Chicken, vegetables and bean stew – Sebzeli tavuklu türlü

This chicken, vegetables and bean stew is a delicious and easy all in one pot, versatile meal. I used courgettes, peppers, chard in mine, though you can use other vegetables in hand – aubergines, runner beans, kale or spinach would be lovely here too. Türlü is our traditional stew, where vegetables and sometimes meat are cooked together over stove top or baked, with spices, tomato and sometimes pepper paste (though optional, biber salcasi, Turkish pepper paste add oodles of flavour; if you prefer a milder flavour, you can substitute with an additional tablespoon of double concentrated tomato paste). I always keep good quality precooked dried beans and chickpeas in my pantry and add to my stew and casseroles – they not only add extra layer of flavour and wholesomeness but make your stew go further too. You can prepare this stew ahead and it freezes well. Simply omit meat for vegetarian option and replace with more beans or perhaps small chunks of potatoes.

You can serve this delicious Türlü with Cucumber and yoghurt Cacik dip and Bulgur pilaf with caramalised onions from Ozlem’s Turkish Table cookery book; signed copies available here.

Chicken, vegetables and bean stew – Sebzeli tavuklu türlü

 

Author: Ozlem Warren

Recipe type: Chicken and vegetable stew

Cuisine: Turkish cuisine

• 700g skinless chicken breast fillets, cut into 6x4cm chunks
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 2 medium courgettes, trimmed and sliced into 1cm width circles
• 3 pointy or 2 red bell peppers, deseeded, cut into 2cm chunks
• 100g chard or kale, cut into 2cm slices
• 2tbsp double concentrated tomato paste
• 1tbsp Turkish red pepper paste, biber salcasi (optional)
• 200g chopped tomato in can
• 400g/ 1 can of pre-cooked cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 ½ tsp ground cumin
• 1tsp pul biber
• 4tbsp olive oil
• 350ml water
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

1. Pour 2 tbsp olive oil over a wide pan and stir in the chicken, tomato paste, pepper paste, cumin and pul biber. Season with salt and ground black pepper and combine the chicken pieces with the pastes and seasoning. Sauté over high heat for 5-6 minutes, stirring continuously, which helps seal the juices and lightly browns the chicken. Then place the chicken on a plate and leave the remaining marinade in the pan.
2. Pour in the remaining 2 tbsp olive oil into the pan and stir in the onions, courgette and peppers. Sauté over high heat for 8 minutes, combining with the lovely marinade left in the pan, stirring often. The vegetables will soften and shrink in size at the end of this period. Stir in the chard and 150ml of the water and cook further 3 minutes, stirring often.
3. Stir the chicken back into the pan, along with the chopped tomato and the remaining 200ml water, season and combine well. Cover, bring to the boil then turn the heat to low and simmer for 35 minutes.
4. Stir in the rinsed cooked beans, combine well. Cover and simmer for another 15 minutes. Serve warm with Cacik dip of yoghurt with cucumbers and with rice or bulgur pilaf aside.
5. Afiyet Olsun.

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