Turkish Noodle Rice or Arpa Şehriye -vegan

To prepare this special pasta dish, I went to my local Turkish supermarket this morning. 

I wanted to use Kritharaki, the Greek rice noodles. But they are a lot smaller. And I needed some paprika paste. It is sold in glass jars and is a staple in Turkish households.

The recipe is vegan. But eating it with a yogurt with garlic and mint makes it even better. To keep it vegan, just use soy yogurt.

Recipe for 3:

225 g Arpa Şehriye large rice noodles

1 onion, 3 garlic cloves, 1 green long pepper

2 tbsp Turkisch paprika paste, 1 tbsp tomato paste, 3 tbsp olive oil

1 small can chopped tomatoes, 450 ml veg stock

Salt, pepper, smoked paprika

Fresh thyme, mint, oregano

Topping:

150 g yogurt, 1 clove of garlic, mint, pepper

Heat up the olive oil and sauté onion and garlic, add chopped green pepper. 

Now toss in the two pastes and give them 2 min. Add the dry pasta and stir very well until everything is well covered. Season.

Add tomatoes and veg stock and stir very well. The pasta tends to stick to the bottom. Add the fresh herbs and cook covered on low heat for 15 min or until the pasta is done. Stir often to loosen the pasta.

Serve as it is or top with yogurt.