Bulgur Köfte with Chicken

This is a lovely, filling, easy köfte dish to make that most if not all people will eat.  You can make the Köfte ahead of time and freeze making this a very quick meal to make.


250 gr chicken pieces
2 cups prepared köfte
2 tbsp pepper paste(tomato)
1/2 cup cooked chickpeas
water
salt
pepper


You can either use chicken breast or chicken on the bone to make this dish.  Most people will use chicken on the bone that has been cut into small pieces.


Take a saucepan and put the chicken pieces into it, cover with water bring to the boil and then simmer until the chicken is cooked.  At this time add in the pepper paste, cooked chickpeas, salt and pepper then taste.  Add in more water until it covers the chicken well and bring to the boil.  Turn down to a simmer and add in the köfte.  While the köfte is coooking stir a couple of times.  The water level needs to be above the köfte.  If you need to add in more water only add in boiling water at this time.  When the köfte are ready they will rise to the top.  Taste again and if needed add in more pepper paste and salt.  Take off the heat and serve.


If you want to use chicken breast for this I would recommend frying the chicken pieces in some olive oil then adding in the water or chicken stock and following the rest of the recipe.


The reason why chicken on the bone is used is because the flavour is nicer and you are cooking the chicken first then using that stock to create the base of the dish.


I usually have in my freezer cooked chickpeas and prepared bulgur köfte making it easier to have dishes like this or pilavs on the table quickly.


Hope you enjoy this as it is a hearty meal yet not too heavy.  I will be giving a bulgur köfte based recipe for each week for the rest of the month.


http://verygoodrecipes.com/turkish

Döner

The Döner is an institution in Turkey and you can see it in restaurants and on the streets.  It can be cheap to expensive depending on the area you go to.  I have lived in various cities and different areas in regional cities.  Some give hearty servings on lavash bread, some go for bread rolls with very little fillings and if you are in Gaziantep you are the luckiest for Döner. 


Here we discovered the many faces of the Döner.  They use a full sized pide with generous serves of salad and hot chillies.  The fillings are varied as well.  Most places in Turkey really just offer chicken or beef but here you have more of a choice.

various fillings

liver without salad

liver

plain chickpea

hot chickpea

The above photos are showing a half portion of a chicken döner, a spicy and plain chickpea and the liver (Ciğer Kavurma).  There is another they do with red lentils and bulgur which is delicous but not many places do it and if they do they offer it in winter.

If you want to make these at home can you? yes of course you can and I will tell you how.

I have given the link for the liver one.  Liver may not sound tempting but let me assure you it really is.  For a chicken or beef all you need to do is use left over cooked chicken or beef slices. The chickpea one is very easy and a staple of most of the blue collar workers here in Gaziantep.  They usually get one or two of those with ayran for lunch everyday.  In Antep the price ranges from 1 lira to 2 for the non meat ones with the chicken or beef set at 1.75 to 2 lira.  It is a very good price and very filling making it an ideal quick well priced lunch.

1 can chickpeas or 1 cup of cooked 

pepper paste(tomato)

salt

dried chilli


Take your cooked chickpeas and half mash with a fork.  Add in the pepper paste to taste along with the salt and chilli.  Cut up some lettuce, tomato and parsley to make a salad.  Using arabic style pita bread or lavash and place 2 or 3 tbsp of the chickpea mix onto it then adding salad and rolling up.  


If you want the liver or chicken or beef follow the same process but just by substituting. 


http://verygoodrecipes.com/turkish