TURKISH CUISINE FOODS

MEASUREMENTS

As many of our readers may not be familiar with metric and European measuring systems. Here is a comparative table of measurements:

 * 100 grams butter (Metric) = 7 tablespoons butter (US) = 5.25 tablespoons (British)
* 100 grams flour (Metric) =11 tablespoons (US) = 8.25 tablespoons (British)
* 100 grams sugar (Metric) =tablespoons (US) = 5,25 tablespoons (British)
* 1/4 liter (dry) (Metric) = 1 quart (US) = 1 imp. quart (British)
* 0.95 liter (liquid) (Metric) = 1 quart (US) = 5/6 imp. quart (British)

10 centimeters (cm) (Metric) = 4 inches
2.5 centimeters (cm) (Metric) = 1 inches
appx. 28 grams = 1 ounce
453.5 grams = 1 pound
0.473 lt = 1 US pint
0.568 lt = 1 English pint

* small coffee cup 7.5 cl (Metric) = 5 tablespoons (US) = 3 and 3/4 tablespoons (British)
 * coffee cup 15 cl (Metric) = 3/5 cup (US) = 1/2 breakfast cup (British)
 * tea cup 20 cl (Metric) = 4/5 cup (US) = 2/3 breakfast cup (British)
 * glass 25 cl (Metric) = 1 cup (US) = 5/6 breakfast cup (British)

* Metric : 1 glass (25 cl) = 25 cl milk = 220 gr melted butter and oil = 230 gr rice = 200 gr wheat, dry beans, lentils = 180 gr semolina, castor sugar = 160 gr flour = 240 gr sugar = 100 gr greated cheese = 100 gr crushed almond or walnuts = 100 gr bread crumbs

* Metric : 1 coffee cup (15 cl) = 15 cl milk = 130 gr melted butter and oil = 130 gr rice = 120 gr wheat, dry beans, lentils = 110 gr semolina, castor sugar = 100gr flour = 140 gr sugar = 50 gr greated cheese = 50 gr crushed almond or walnuts = 50 gr bread crumbs

INGREDIENTS

Minced Meat
It is largely used in Turkish cookery, either prepared as various kinds of meatballs (köfte) or saute with onions to garnish various vegetables dishes, or mixed with other ingredients to be used as a filling for pastries and stuffed vegetables. It is sometimes a mixture of beef and mutton and always minced twice.

Yufka (Philo Dough)
These are ready made, very thin, big and rounf sheets of dough used for various kinds of pastries (börek), baked of fried. If you have to prepare the dough yourself for some of the Turkish recipes, you'll need an 80 cm long rolling pin as thin as a finger (oklava). This is the only way ro roll aout paper thin sheets of dough for the famous flaky pastries. But it takes a certain experince to obtain the desired thinness. After rolling the dough with a large rolling-pin until it is as large as a plate Turkish cooks, then gently roll the dough with the "oklava" letting the entire surface of the dough wrap itself around the "oklava". Press the dough with your hands to spread it toward the ends of the "oklava". Now, unroll the dough from the "oklava" and repeat the operation from another edge of the dough. Continue until the dough is about 60 cm in diameter.

2 glasses flour
6 and 1/2 soup spoons butter (or margarine)
1/2 glass water
2 eggs
salt

Sift the flour, keeping back 2 soupspoonsful. Pour the flour into a large salad bowl and make a hollow place in the center. Put an egg, 1/2 glass water, a half spoonful of melted butter and salt into the hollow. Make the dough by mixing and kneading these ingredients. Sprinkle the dough with flour and let stand 15 minutes, covered with a damp cloth.With a rolling pin roll the dough to a thickness of 2 cm. Spreat on 3 soupspoons of softened butter.Cut the dough into 3 pieces, placing one on top of the other. Roll the 3 pieces. Spread on the remaining butter. Cut again into 3 pieces and place one of the other. Knead a few minutes and shape into a ball. Divide the dough into balls, alittle bigger then the size of a tennis ball, and roll out each of these balls to obtain the "yufka" - thin disks of dough approximately 60 cm in diameter. Let dry a little before using.