Street food delight: How Turkish kumpir stole our hearts

"Who cares about dinner at the hotel? The best dish I had was on the street," my aunt told me after returning from her holiday. A potato, but what a potato! She couldn't stop raving about it. My aunt tried one of Turkey's most famous street food dishes. It’s called kumpir.

Kumpir is the most well-known Turkish dish, and the potato plays the leading role. Many flavours are mixed, and there's no single recipe. Kumpir, a stuffed potato, can be served with various toppings, both vegetarian and meat-based.

The foundation of kumpir is baked potatoes, which are enriched with vegetables, cheese, and sometimes meat. The dish is complemented by an aromatic yoghurt-based sauce reminiscent of Greek tzatziki. There are countless recipes for kumpir, and everyone makes it the way they like. This is why even my aunt easily recreated this dish and invited me for a warm dinner. However, kumpir is very filling, so it can be successfully eaten for lunch.

Kumpir, like our casseroles, is an excellent dish for using refrigerator leftovers. Each potato can be prepared with different toppings, allowing you to use up leftover meats, cheeses, and vegetables. These prepared potatoes aren't as indigestible as when fried. Additionally, they contain a lot of fibre, keeping you full for a long time. They also provide a lot of energy and potassium, which has a good effect on blood pressure.

Ingredients:

      
• 4 starchy potatoes,
• 4 tablespoons of olive oil or butter,
• 4 tablespoons of grated cheese, preferably sheep's cheese,
• 1 teaspoon of salt.

Toppings:

            
• 1 cup chopped red cabbage,
• ½ cup chopped black olives,
• ½ cup chopped cherry tomatoes,
• 1 shallot,
• 1 bunch of spring onions with chives,
• a few pickled chillies,
• salt, pepper, cumin, paprika, and cinnamon to taste.

Tzatziki Sauce

Ingredients:

          
• 1 cucumber,
• 1 clove of garlic,
• a few sprigs of dill and mint,
• about 250 grams of natural yoghurt,
• lemon juice to taste,
• salt and pepper to taste.

Preparation:

1. Wash and dry the potatoes. Boil them for about 20 minutes. Then poke them with a fork, brush them with olive oil, and bake in the oven for about 40 minutes at 180°C. If the potatoes are smaller, there's no need to boil them; just extend the baking time.
2. Prepare the tzatziki sauce. Grate the cucumber on a fine grater and squeeze out the excess water. Mix it with the yoghurt, season to taste. Add finely chopped herbs. Refrigerate to chill.
3. Cut the baked and cooled potatoes in a way that does not halve them. Scoop out the insides, leaving the walls stable.
4. Mix the potato flesh with butter and cheese, and fill the potato cavities.
5. Mix the cabbage, shallot, tomatoes, and olives with spices.
6. Put portions of the vegetables into the potatoes.
7. Drizzle the entire dish with the sauce and sprinkle with finely chopped chives.