KISIR

This is a traditional, tea time special which is a trademark for house parties among women. It is a light dish, best served with lettuce leaves. It is prepared with salcha (for a definition of salcha look up to the dictionary) but tomato puree is a good substitute. Pepper salcha adds an exquisite taste but unfortunately there is no alternative to pepper salcha, it can only be found in Turkey.

Ingredients:

• 150 g Bulgur
• 2 tablespoons of salcha, or tomato puree
• 1 teaspoon of biber salcha -optional-
• 40 mL Olive oil
• 3 Spring onions
• Parsley, half pack (20 g)
• Paprika, pepper, salt
• Lemon or lime -optional-

Preparation:

• Lay bulgur in a wide dish, can be a roaster, and add hot water up to two heights of bulgur, cover with a cling film.
• Wait about 20 minutes for bulgur to soak all the water. You may want to mix it in between and even add up more water. When all the water is soaked up, bulgur should be softened yet a bit tasteless. Don't worry, we'll add the taste now.
• In a rather deep dish, beat the salcha or tomato puree with olive oil to a smooth consistency.
• Add paprika, pepper and salt to the tomato-olive oil and mix.
• Add the softened bulgur and mix throughly. Make sure that all the bulgur is coated with spices and it turns to orange-reddish color.
• Add the sliced spring onions and chopped parsley.
• Flavor with lemon or lime to your taste.
• Serve with lettuce leaves.