Çılbır: Turkish Poached Eggs in Yoghurt with Spiced Butter

I love a good breakfast, and Turkish culture really knows how to do it up as a feast. Menamen (scrambled eggs in pepper sauce) might be the best known (internationally) egg-based breakfast dish from Turkey, but by golly cilbir should be on everyone's list, too. Cilbir (anglicized somewhat from Çılbır) is pronounced, roughly, as CHILL-ber (like Wilbur, but, you know, chill).

What is it? Well, the beauty-base-zero version is poached eggs in garlicky yoghurt, drizzled with browned butter infused with chile flakes. There are a LOT of variations to be had, though - most of which appear to be placing the basic version on top of an additional element - kıyma, for example (fried seasoned ground meat), or sautéed spinach (like a Turkish version of eggs Florentine). This versatility explains why cilbir is eaten not only for breakfast, but for any other meal of the day.

Between the above description and the pictures, you probably don't need a recipe, but I'm going to give you one anyway:

Çılbır: Turkish Poached Eggs in Yoghurt

Serves 2

Yoghurt base

300 grams plain thick yoghurt
1-2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley (or dill, or mint)
1 teaspoon olive oil
1/4 teaspoon kosher or coarse sea salt

2 - 4 Poached eggs

I'm going to assume you know how to poach eggs, and have a preferred method. If not, go ahead and google it, or even just fry your eggs sunny side up, or soft boil them (I won't tell)

Spiced Butter

2 tablespoons salted butter
1/2 teaspoon - 2 teaspoons Turkish pepper flakes (eg. Aleppo) or paprika, adjusting for the level of heat as desired


Assembly

Prepare the yoghurt base first, because you want it more room-temperature than fridge-cold. I take the yoghurt out of the fridge as soon as I get up, before I shower or make coffee, to let it warm up a bit. When you're ready to get cooking, combine the yoghurt base ingredients in a small bowl, and beat until everything is well integrated. Set aside for the flavours to mingle while you prepare the rest.

Warm a couple of bowls by filling them with hot water and letting them stand. You probably don't need to do this in the summer.

Prepare the spiced butter next. Melt the butter in a small pan over medium heat. If you are using unsalted butter, add a tiny pinch of salt. Reduce the heat to medium-low and let the butter boil and seethe until the water evaporates and the milk solids start to brown (alternatively, you can use ghee). Remove the butter from the heat, and add the chile flakes. I was using extra-hot oiled Pul Biber (Turkish chile flakes), so I didn't add a lot, but with a milder chile you can add quite a bit more (which does look very pretty). Let the butter and chile flakes infuse together while you prepare the eggs.

Prepare the eggs as you like - I poached mine in a skillet of bubbling water for 5 minutes, but your mileage may vary.

Just before the eggs are ready, take your warmed bowls (drained and dried) and add a generous spoonful of yoghurt base into the bottom of each. Use the spoon to swirl it out to cover the bottom of the bowl. When the eggs are ready, use a skimmer to lift them from the water, and place them in the bowls. Use a teaspoon to drizzle the desired amount of spiced butter over and around the egg(s). Serve at once with warm flatbread, and maybe some nice sliced vegetables and hummus.