Kisir

Ingredients

Bulgur

• 250 gfine bulgur, köftelik bulgur
• 300 mlhot water or tomato juice

Paste

• 2 tbspbiber salçası, Turkish red pepper paste
• 1 tbsptomato paste
• 4 tbspolive oil

Herbs and vegetables

• 1large bunch flat-leaf parsley, chopped
• 6spring onions, sliced
• half a cucumber, diced
• 2tomatoes, diced
• a few mint leaves, chopped

Dressing

• 3 tbsppomegranate molasses, nar ekşisi
• juice of 1 lemon
• 1 tspground cumin
• 1 tsppul biber, Aleppo pepper
• salt

To serve

• lettuce leaves for scooping
• lemon wedges
• with tea, in the afternoon

Directions

1. Use fine bulgur, sold as köftelik bulgur, which is the grade used for kısır and for içli köfte. Fine bulgur softens completely in hot water without any cooking, which is why kısır needs no pot at all. Pour hot water over the bulgur, cover the bowl, and leave it for twenty to thirty minutes.
2. Use just enough liquid for the bulgur to absorb entirely, roughly a little more than its own volume. Do not drown it in water and drain it afterwards, since draining washes away flavour and gives a waterlogged grain.
3. Add the pepper paste, tomato paste and olive oil to the cooled bulgur and knead it with your hands. Keep working it for two or three minutes until the whole bowl is an even deep red. Nar ekşisi is reduced pomegranate juice, thick, dark and sharply sour with a faint sweetness.
4. Add it with the lemon juice, cumin and pul biber and mix well. It should be distinctly sour, faintly sweet, mildly hot and clearly savoury, all at once.
5. Adjust with more molasses for sourness, more lemon for brightness, more pepper paste for depth. Fold in the parsley, spring onion, mint, cucumber and tomato. Add them at the very end and just before serving, since salt and acid draw water out of cucumber and tomato and the salad turns wet within an hour.
6. Use a large quantity of parsley, since it is a main component even though the bulgur dominates. Chop the parsley just before using it, since it darkens and loses its scent quickly once cut. Taste once more and adjust the salt.
7. Serve it at room temperature with lettuce leaves alongside. It keeps a day in the fridge, though it is best made fresh and the vegetables added at the last moment.

Technique

• Kısır is bulgur-dominant where tabbouleh is parsley-dominant.
• Fine bulgur softens in hot water and needs no cooking.
• The paste is kneaded into the grain by hand rather than stirred.

Substitutions

• Fine bulgur is essential; coarse bulgur gives a different dish.
• Extra lemon with a little sugar if pomegranate molasses is unavailable.

Variations

• Made hotter with acı biber salçası.
• With walnuts stirred through, as in some regions.
• Made with more herbs, closer to tabbouleh.

History

A salad made from fine bulgur wheat mixed with tomato paste, lemon, pomegranate molasses and fresh herbs, documented across Turkey, particularly associated with the southeastern region near Şanlıurfa and Gaziantep, as a popular cold dish closely related to the wider Levantine tabbouleh tradition though built with a much higher proportion of bulgur to herb. Its bright, tangy flavour, achieved through the combination of tomato paste, lemon and pomegranate molasses, reflects southeastern Turkey’s broader culinary preference for pronounced sour and tangy flavour profiles found across several dishes from that specific region. Kisir remains a popular dish across Turkey, commonly served as part of a mezze spread or as a light, refreshing side.

Frequently asked questions

What is Kisir?

Kisir is a salad & side from Turkey: bulgur salad with pepper paste, pomegranate molasses and herbs. A salad made from fine bulgur wheat mixed with tomato paste, lemon, pomegranate molasses and fresh herbs, documented across Turkey, particularly associated with the southeastern region near Şanlıurfa and Gaziantep, as a popular cold dish closely related to the wider Levantine tabbouleh tradition though built with a much higher proportion of bulgur to herb. Its bright, tangy flavour, achieved through the combination of tomato paste, lemon and pomegranate molasses, reflects southeastern Turkey’s broader culinary preference for pronounced sour and tangy flavour profiles found across several dishes from that specific region. Kisir remains a popular dish across Turkey, commonly served as part of a mezze spread or as a light, refreshing side.

How long does Kisir take to make?

Kisir takes 30 min plus 30 min soaking of preparation and none of cooking. The recipe makes 6 servings. It is rated easy to make.

What can I substitute in Kisir?

Yes, within limits. Fine bulgur is essential; coarse bulgur gives a different dish. Extra lemon with a little sugar if pomegranate molasses is unavailable.

What is the most important thing to get right in Kisir?

Use fine bulgur, sold as köftelik bulgur, which is the grade used for kısır and for içli köfte. Fine bulgur softens completely in hot water without any cooking, which is why kısır needs no pot at all. Pour hot water over the bulgur, cover the bowl, and leave it for twenty to thirty minutes.