Yo?urtlu So?an A?? (Turkish Onion & Yogurt Soup)

Creamy onion soup immersed in beef broth makes for the perfect winter meal.

     I’ve come to learn that yogurt is an essential ingredient in much of Turkish cooking and especially the soup recipes that I’ve been learning lately in my cooking course. Turkish yogurt is one of the best I’ve ever tried! There are so many different types but suzme, is my absolute favorite. It’s thick, creamy and delicious!

Through this course, I’ve come to learn exactly how to temper the yogurt to add it to the soup to keep it from curdling. It’s a beautiful, yet simple technique and worth applying to any recipe that requires cooking with yogurt (I think about a delicious butter chicken or curry chicken recipe).

This Turkish Onion and Yogurt Soup recipe is beautiful and delicious.

Here’s the recipe:

• 500 g stew beef chunks
• 1 kilo small red onions (about the size of a golf ball)
• 1 medium red onion (sliced)
• 1 c chickpeas (frozen, canned &drained or soaked overnight)
• 1 egg
• 1400g suzme yogurt (or any thick yogurt)
• 3 TBSP butter
• 2 TBSP dried mint

Preparation:

Peel and remove the stems from the onions. Rinse and soak in water for 10 minutes, then drain and set aside.

In a large stock pot, add the beef chunks, salt and 2 liters of water and boil for 15 minutes.

Using a cheese cloth lined sieve, drain the beef stock into another pot. Add the beef back to the stock pot and then pour the sifted beef stock back into the pot. (NOTE: this help remove some of the fat that rises to the top during the cooking process).

Add the sliced red onion and chickpeas and cover. Simmer for 10 minutes on medium high heat.

In another large pot, add the kilo of small onions and enough water, just to cover the onions.

Then pour the beef soup mixture over the onions and simmer for 10-15 minutes.

Meanwhile, whisk together the yogurt with 1 egg in a small sauce pan. Heat on medium low heat, whisking frequently. After about 5-7 minutes, temper the yogurt by adding 1-2 ladles of the soup while constantly whisking.

Then pour the yogurt into the soup while stirring constantly.

In a small frying pan, melt the butter. Once it’s sizzling, add the dried mint.

Pour the butter mint mixture into the soup stirring once or twice.

Serve and enjoy!

Afiyet Olsun!

This recipe is from the culinary classes at the Gaziantep Mutfak Sanatlar? E?itim Merkezi. For more information or to take a class, visit their website.