Kısır

A vibrant, herb-packed bulgur wheat salad: fine cracked wheat soaked in tomato paste and pomegranate molasses, tossed with mountains of flat-leaf parsley, spring onion, fresh mint, cucumber and lemon. Kısır is Turkey's most beloved meze: light, acidic, deeply savoury and impossibly fresh.

Origin: Gaziantep & Southeast Turkey

From the journey of Wheat.

Kısır is the Turkish expression of the Levant-wide love for bulgur salads: a cousin to Lebanese tabbouleh, but more deeply flavoured with cooked tomato paste and the sour sweetness of pomegranate molasses. It is the defining meze of the Gaziantep and Antakya regions (Hatay province), areas where ancient Levantine, Arab and Anatolian food cultures have merged over millennia. Unlike tabbouleh, which is mostly herbs with a little grain, kısır is grain-forward: the fine bulgur forms a substantial, almost sticky base that absorbs the acidic dressing completely.

Ingredients

  • 300 g fine bulgur wheat
  • 350 ml boiling water
  • 3 tbsp tomato paste
  • 2 tbsp pomegranate molasses
  • 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 3 tbsp lemon juice
  • large bunch Flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
  • 6 Spring onions, finely sliced
  • small bunch Fresh mint, chopped
  • 1 small cucumber, finely diced
  • 1 tsp dried chilli flakes
  • to taste Salt

Method

  1. Place the fine bulgur in a large bowl. Pour over the boiling water, add the tomato paste and mix well. Cover and leave for 20 minutes until the water is absorbed and the bulgur is soft.
  2. Add the olive oil, pomegranate molasses and lemon juice and mix thoroughly with your hands, kneading until the bulgur grains are evenly coloured rust-red.
  3. Add the chilli flakes and salt. Fold in the parsley, spring onions, mint and cucumber.
  4. Taste and adjust: it should be sour, savoury and lightly spiced. Add more pomegranate molasses for sweetness, lemon for sharpness.
  5. Serve at room temperature with lettuce cups for scooping, olives, white cheese and more flatbread.
The Gastrographer

The Gastrographer

Mapping Culinary History

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Journey Point Map Key

Ingredient originTrade or transit route
Became a culinary stapleColonial / trade control
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