Turkish Pasta With Ground Beef (Yogurtlu Kiymali Makarna)

Turkish Pasta With Ground Beef (Yogurtlu Kiymali Makarna)
By UmmBinat on May 08, 2010

Prep Time: 25 mins Total Time: 1 1/4 hr Serves: 2

About This Recipe:
"This is so delicious. With a sauce of garlicky yogurt and cucumber. Traditionally this dish is made with ground lamb but I make it with lean ground beef. A tweaked version of of another recipe. Great meal with a salad on the side masha Allah."

Ingredients:
Cakik Sauce:
1 cup Balkan yogurt (thick)
3-4 garlic cloves (pretty large size)
1 teaspoon fresh mint, chopped
1 1/4 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (to taste)
sea salt, to taste
1/4 English cucumbers

Pasta:
3/4 lb lean ground beef (I use extra lean and add a lot of olive oil or it will be too dry)
170 g rice pasta (May use regular if not gluten free. I prefer macaroni or farfalle shape in this)
2 tablespoons olive oil of good quality
3 tablespoons butter
1 1/2 tablespoons flat leaf parsley, minced
baharat mixed spice
1 1/2 teaspoons fresh mint, chopped (May not be needed, see directions.)
3/4 teaspoon sweet paprika
sea salt, to taste

Directions:
Bring a small amount of salted water to a boil, add garlic with skin on and cook for 7 minutes. Drain, slip from skins and crush with a fork.

Stir yoghurt with crushed garlic, mint & freshly squeezed lemon juice until smooth, set in refrigerator.

Grate English cucumber and set in a sieve, sprinkle with sea salt. Let drain 15 minutes.

Squeeze out liquid from cucumber and mix with yogurt mixture. Add more sea salt and lemon to taste if needed.

Bring salted water for pasta to a boil.

Peel onions. Cut and chop in a food processor until a pulp.

Heat olive oil over medium high, add onions and reduce heat cooking until transparent.

Add 1 tbs butter, parsley and lean ground beef and cook until no more pink shows, stirring to break apart often.

Add baharat, If using Turkish type skip the fresh mint or add fresh mint now (Turkish baharat has mint in it). Add sea salt to taste. Cook until done.

While frying the meat, cook pasta as per package directions. Drain and add lots of butter (2 tbs) & the sweet paprika. Mix.

Add ground beef and mix with pasta or if preferred place pasta on serving dishes and spoon ground beef over top. Serve with Cakik (yogurt sauce) and a fresh salad.

Enjoy!

Wa alay kuma salaam wa rahamatuleh wa barakatu,

Thank you so much sister for sharing this with us...