Hot, foaming chilli butter poured over poached eggs, sitting in a well of garlic yoghurt is Çilbir (Turkish eggs).
There is something very delicious and truly satisfying about eating runny egg yolks flavoured with garlic, chilli, butter and yoghurt. What I really love about this recipe is that I tend to have all the ingredients in my kitchen (they are everyday foods!), it’s just a different way of putting them together if you’ve never tasted this dish before.
It’s worth trying to find some Aleppo pepper (Ottolenghi online sells it) otherwise, chilli flakes will do. This recipe is just right for one person, so increase quantities when cooking for a crowd.
Miraculous ingredients: Burford Browns eggs, whole milk full fat Greek yoghurt, chilli pepper
Turkish eggs with yoghurt and Aleppo pepper
Ingredients
2 eggs (Burford Browns eggs have the best flavour and dark yellow yolks)
1 tablespoon vinegar (to help poach the eggs)
20g unsalted butter
1 teaspoon Aleppo chilli pepper flakes, or chilli flakes
80g Greek yoghurt (whole milk, full fat yoghurt is the most delicious)
½ garlic clove, crushed
1 tablespoon fresh parsley leaves, chopped sea salt, to season
Method
Use a garlic press to crush the garlic into a bowl. Thoroughly mix the garlic with the yoghurt. Make 2 dips in the yoghurt in readiness for the poached eggs.
Place a small frying pan on a low heat, add the butter and chilli. Warm until all the butter has melted and starts to sizzle. Stir well and then turn off the heat (you don’t want the butter to burn).
Boil a small pan of water and add the vinegar. Reduce the heat so the water is simmering. Swirl the water with a spoon and then crack the eggs into the water to poach. Poach for about 2-3 minutes (for runny yolks). Remove the eggs with a slotted spoon, gently shake to remove all the water and lay in the yoghurt dips. Add a little salt to the eggs.
Pour the foaming chilli butter all over eggs and yoghurt and finish with a sprinkle of parsley. Enjoy with fresh bread.
Preparation time 5 minutes, cooking time 10 minutes, serves 1