Cooking with Yogurt: Cool Meze and Gentle Heat
Yogurt plays two different roles in the Turkish kitchen: a cool accompaniment and the foundation of a warm soup. Choose the technique to suit the dish.
Cold dishes: start smooth
Use plain, unsweetened yogurt. Whisk it smooth before mixing in garlic and herbs. For cacık, add cold water gradually to the consistency you enjoy, then add cucumber. A thick meze and a more fluid bowl served beside dinner can both work.
For yogurt with cooked eggplant, drain the eggplant and let it cool before mixing. Excess moisture can thin the mixture. Start with a little garlic and taste before adding more.
Warm soup: temper gradually
Follow your soup recipe for the yogurt, egg and flour mixture. Whisk it smooth in a bowl. Add small amounts of hot soup liquid while whisking, gradually warming the mixture before returning it to the pan.
Keep the heat gentle and stir as the soup cooks and thickens. Avoid a vigorous rolling boil. Tempering reduces the sudden temperature change; it does not replace the recipe’s cooking time.
The finishing butter
Melt butter gently, add dried mint or the pepper specified by the recipe, and let it become fragrant briefly. Take it off the heat before the spices darken. Spoon over the finished dish.
Read the texture
Smooth and lightly thickened: the desired cue for a yogurt soup.
Grainy with separated liquid: reduce the heat immediately. Gentle whisking may improve the texture, but severe curdling is not fully reversible.
Cold meze too loose: use thicker yogurt and drain cooked vegetables more thoroughly next time. Add thinning water only a little at a time.
Soup too thick: loosen gradually with hot water or the recipe’s stock.
Practice with a recipe
Explore our soups for yayla çorbası and Meze & Salads for cacık. Try the eggplant-and-yogurt combination in Ali Nazik.
