Destination
Antalya
The story
Beyran is Gaziantep's most iconic breakfast dish and one of Turkey's fiercest soups. Lamb shin is slow-cooked overnight until the meat falls off the bone, then a portion is placed in a wide shallow bowl over a mound of cooked rice, topped with more shredded lamb and a fierce hot broth built on the shin's cooking liquid, aggressive amounts of garlic and Aleppo pepper, and a generous drizzle of the same broth's melted lamb fat. The dish is served at dawn from specialist beyran shops (called beyranci) that open only for breakfast, from about 5am to 10am. The classical accompaniment is a plate of raw sliced onion tossed in sumac, and the classical Gaziantep breakfast is beyran followed by a glass of tea and a piece of baklava.
Method
In a very large heavy pot, combine lamb shin, halved onions, garlic head, bay leaves, peppercorns, cumin seeds, salt and water. Bring to a boil, skim foam. Simmer covered on the lowest heat 4 to 6 hours (or overnight in a slow cooker on low) until the meat is falling apart.
Cool the pot briefly. Lift the lamb pieces out and shred the meat, discarding bones. Reserve.
Strain the broth through a fine sieve into a clean pot, discarding solids. Skim 3 tbsp of the lamb fat from the top of the broth (or refrigerate briefly and lift solidified fat off).
Simmer the strained broth for 20 minutes to reduce and concentrate. You should have about 1.5 litres of intensely-flavoured broth.
In a separate pot, warm butter, add rinsed rice and toast 60 seconds. Add water and salt. Bring to a simmer, cover and cook 15 minutes on lowest heat. Rest covered 10 minutes.
In a small pan, warm the 3 tbsp reserved lamb fat over medium heat. Add minced garlic paste and cook 60 seconds. Add Aleppo pepper, red pepper paste, black pepper and cumin. Cook 90 seconds until deep red and fragrant. Whisk this seasoning into the hot broth. Taste and adjust salt.
In each wide shallow bowl, place a heaped portion of cooked rice. Top with a generous pile of shredded lamb. Ladle the hot spicy broth over everything.
Serve immediately with sumac onion salad on the side, chopped parsley on top, lemon wedges, warm bread and hot tea. This is a breakfast dish; the classical Gaziantep serving is between 5am and 10am.
Tips
- Overnight cook. This is essential. The lamb shin needs 4 to 6 hours minimum to release its collagen and become spoonably tender.
- Skim the fat and use it. The 3 tbsp of lamb fat used to bloom the spices is what gives beyran its characteristic richness. Do not skip.
- Do not skimp on garlic. Ten cloves for four servings is the Gaziantep minimum. Aggressive garlic is the whole point.
- Sumac onion on the side. Not optional. The sharp raw onion cuts the richness of the meat and fat.
- This is a breakfast dish. Serve it early. It works at any time of day but the Gaziantep tradition is dawn.
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