Turkish White Bean Stew With Meat
Turkey is not just Hagia Sophia, Mimar Sinan or, as recently protests, Turkey is also cuisine.
One of the simplest, yet most magnificent dishes is kuru fasulye.
Kuru fasulye is a stewed bean dish. It is made primarily with white beans and olive oil, and onion and tomato paste or tomato sauce are almost invariably used. It is often considered the national dish of Turkey.
Centuries ago, with the expansion of the Ottoman Empire, kuru fasulye was also domesticated throughout the Balkans and beyond. Especially in the former Yugoslavia and today in its successor states.
When I served in the Yugoslav army many years ago, pasulj, as it is called in that area, was considered the best dish in the military kitchen.
There are, of course, many variations of this dish. In Bosnia, it is enriched with mutton or beef. In Serbia, it must contain smoked pork. I still remember when we got it for lunch in the army. It had smoked pork ribs in it, of course. Since there were quite a few Kosovo Albanians, Muslims, in my company, I always sat with them. They gave me ribs, I gave them beans. And we were all satisfied.
They say you get the best kuru fasulye on Prof. Sıddık Sami Onar Caddesi in Istanbul. A street not far from the Suleymaniye Mosque and near the university. Full of locals and few tourists.
So let’s see what you need for a good kuru fasulye.
Tinned beans, white one, I use cannellini beans, lamb meat (cut into small cubes), large onion (peeled & finely chopped), tomato (roughly chopped) or pureed tomatoes, a tablespoon of double tomato concentrate, garlic, ground red pepper, sweet or hot, depending on your taste, olive oil, hot water, salt & pepper (to season).
Those who love spicy dishes can use chili. Instead of mutton, you can use beef. Smoked pork is also excellent.
If you want a real Turkish taste, use sucuk. Sujuk or sucuk is a dry, spicy and fermented sausage which is consumed in several Turkish, Balkan, Middle Eastern and Central Asian cuisines. Sujuk mainly consists of ground meat and animal fat usually obtained from beef or lamb.
Of course, vegetarians can prepare kuru fayoli without meat.
So, fry the chopped onion in hot oil until it is translucent. Add crushed garlic. Then add whatever meat you have. Fry and cover with water and simmer until the meat is tender.
When the meat is soft, add boiled beans, tomatoes, spices, cover with hot water and cook for about fifteen minutes.
Serve with fresh bread.
Experience says that the dish is even better warmed up the next day.
And don’t complicate the preparation of kuru fasulya. Here they say – simple as pasulj …
And last but not least, let your imagination run free.