Turkish cingen pilavi salad
Esma tells me that though ‘Pilavi’ means ‘Pilaf’ and denotes a rice dish, Cingen Pilavi is actually a salad with no rice what so ever. The crumbled cheese or curd resembles rice and is the key component of the dish. It’s a recipe native to the west of Turkey, where Esma heils from, and in true granny form, was popularised as a means to use up the curd which was a by-product when making butter. It’s fresh, aromatic and full of flavour thanks to the combination of herbs and spring onion used. I particularly love Esma’s addition of Nigella seeds at the end, a powerful antioxidant to kick-start your day with.
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Recipe information
Yield
Serves 4-6
Ingredients
Preparation
Step 1
In a large salad bowl combine the cheese, herbs, spring onion, tomatoes and cucumber and then top with a good glug of olive oil and the black olives. Don’t worry about seasoning the salad as the olives and cheese should be salty enough. Finish with a sprinkling of Nigella seeds.
Step 2
Serve without seasoning - the olives are salty enough.
