Tarhana Soup
Ingredients
- tarhana soup mix
- 1/2 c water
- 1 T tomato paste
- 2.5 c chicken stock
- 1 t butter
- crushed urfa pepper (to taste)
Method
Soak the soup mix in the water for at least 30 minutes (over-soaking is impossible).
Add the rest of the ingredients. Stir constantly over medium-high heat - the tarhana will clump if you don't stir constantly, while boiling.
As soon as it starts to boil, reduce heat and occasionally stir for 5 more minutes.
Serve warm with bread. Serves 2 as a main course with bread and a light vegetable, or serves 4 as a side dish. Does NOT reheat well. The leftovers taste good, but the texture is awful!
Notes
SJ Note 20 Oct 2011: I was really looking forward to this, but sadly we found it bland. Clearly we overspice everything in this house. If you try this soup, be warned: black pepper didn't work well at all (at least in my opinion) in this soup. Stick with the urfa pepper. Leslie says she likes feta cheese on hers, so you might try that. Tis very filling, and wasn't objectionable. She says the spice blend varies from city to city, and what we had was Safranbolu tarhana; perhaps we'll try a different kind of tarhana another time.