Turkish Sumac Infused Lima Bean Turnip and Radish Salad with Cacik

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Turkish Sumac Infused Lima Bean Turnip and Radish Salad with Cacik

Recipe By :Sandy D'Amato: The Kitchen Technician, Nov. 10, 2002

Serving Size : 4 Preparation Time :0:00

Categories :

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method

-------- ------------ --------------------------------

1/2 pound small turnips -- cleaned

1/2 pound radishes -- cleaned

2 tablespoons sumac (divided)

1 1/4 ounces garlic peeled -- (7 cloves)

2 bay leaves

1/2 tablespoon fresh rosemary leaves

10 peppercorns -- crushed

2 cups water

1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons fresh squeezed lemon

juice

1 tablespoon kosher salt

1/2 tablespoon sugar

2 cups cooked lima beans (see recipe)

Cacik (see recipe)

Lemon and olive oil dressing (see recipe)

 

Cut tops off turnips and radishes (leave 1/4 inch of greens) and cut into

wedges (turnips into quarters if small, sixths or eighths if large;

radishes into quarters if small or sixths if large).

 

Place 1 tablespoon sumac, garlic, bay leaves, rosemary and peppercorns in

cheesecloth bag and tie. Place in non-reactive pot with water, lemon

juice, kosher salt, sugar, turnips and radishes and bring to boil. Pour

all contents into plastic container with lid. Let come to room temperature

and refrigerate overnight.

 

Soak lima beans as directed and refrigerate overnight. Set yogurt in cacik

recipe in strainer, as directed, to drain overnight.

 

Next day: Finish preparation of lima beans.

While lima beans are cooling in refrigerator, prepare cacik and lemon and

olive oil dressing.

 

When ready to serve: Drain turnips and radishes. Place in bowl with lima

beans. Season with lemon and olive oil dressing. Divide among 4 plates and

garnish with cacik. Add a sprinkling of remaining 1 tablespoon sumac to

each plate. Makes 4 servings.

 

Lima beans

1 cup dry lima beans

10 whole black peppercorns, crushed

6 cloves garlic, peeled

1 bay leaf

1 tablespoon sumac

2 star anise

Zest of 1/2 lemon

1 small onion, peeled but keep in core

1 small carrot, washed

1 rib celery, washed

1 teaspoon saffron

2 quarts salted water (water should taste slightly salty, like sea water)

Rinse lima beans and soak in 4 cups of hot tap water in container with

cover. Let sit at room temperature for 1 hour covered, then mix, cover and

refrigerate overnight.

Place peppercorns, garlic, bay leaf, sumac, star anise and lemon zest in

cheesecloth bag and tie. Drain beans and place in saucepan with spice bag,

vegetables, saffron and 2 quarts water. Bring to simmer and cook

half-covered about 25 to 30 minutes, until beans are tender. Drain and

remove onion, carrot and celery and spice bag. Place beans in flat dish

and cover with plastic wrap and poke holes in wrap to let heat escape, but

so beans don't dry out. Refrigerate.

 

Cacik

1 cup unsweetened yogurt

1 to 2 raw pickling cucumbers

1 clove garlic, sliced, rinsed and chopped fine

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon sumac

1/2 tablespoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon lemon juice

Place yogurt in coffee filter set in strainer and drain overnight.

In food processor, process all ingredients except yogurt. Place in bowl,

fold in yogurt and blend.

 

Lemon and olive oil dressing

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon lemon juice

Kosher salt and pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients.

Source:

" Milwaukee Sentinel Journal "

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Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 17 Calories; trace Fat (12.6%

calories from fat); trace Protein; 4g Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary Fiber; 0mg

Cholesterol; 1426mg Sodium. Exchanges: 0 Grain(Starch); 1/2 Vegetable; 0

Fat; 0 Other Carbohydrates.

 

NOTES : One of the glories of Turkish cuisine is the vast array of pickled

vegetables. Crisp and delicious, these vegetables are a perfect

foil to the rich and savory grilled food. You've probably noticed

the pink vegetables served in many Middle Eastern restaurants,

with eggplant dip or on the side of sandwiches. These are pickled

turnips that traditionally are colored with a bit of beet and

marinade.

 

This dish is really an inverted Turkish salad. The cacik -

traditionally a yogurt and fresh pickle mixture, eaten with a

spoon as a " meze " (hors d'oeuvres course) and garnished with

vegetables and olives - becomes the dressing/sauce for my lima

bean and vegetable salad. The use of yogurt is very important to

this dish, as yogurt is one of the true staples of the Turkish

diet.

 

Sumac is a Middle Eastern spice made from the red, berrylike buds

of the sumac bush or tree. They are dried and ground to make a

tart seasoning. It is used as a lemon replacement in some Middle

Eastern recipes, but I like to use it along with the lemon because

its distinctive tartness adds another dimension to the flavor.

 

Sumac is also a component in the very " au courant " spice mixture

zaatar, where it is in combination with wild thyme and toasted

sesame seeds.

 

In America, sumac was also used by Indians to make a

lemon-flavored drink.

 

Little did I know, growing up in the '50s on the northwest side of

Milwaukee, that all I had to do was to gather the fuzzy red

berries from the sumac tree in the backyard and dry them - then I

could have had the first and best sumac lemonade stand on Capitol

Drive.

 

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