Here is a soup (çorba means soup in turkish, pronounced chorba) with a curious name. It literally means "The soup of Ezo the bride" (gelin means bride). The reason for this strange name I explain below.
Ezo was a young woman living near Gaziantep in the early 20th century. She was a very beautiful woman and her family rubbed their hands thinking of the large dowry that she would receive from the multitude of suitors who requested her. In order to seek the best match for her, many good men were rejected until one appeared that was liked by her family.
Unfortunately, the chosen one had eyes on many women except for her, and he also mistreated Ezo, so they divorced after a few years. Ezo, as she was still beautiful, remarried.
With her next husband it was no better. Her mother-in-law was a difficult woman to deal with, and nothing her daughter-in-law did to please her seemed worthy of appreciation. In fact, legend has it that this soup was invented by Ezo to try for the umpteenth time to ingratiate herself with the mother of her husband. It was useless. Ezo died in the early 1950s bitter and despised by her own family, her husband, and even her children.
Since then this story, which according to historians is not based on someone in particular but on a multitude of experiences of different Turkish women who lived disgraceful marriages, has served as an example of the uncertain future that awaitss brides before the imminent wedding, where nor the beauty can save from failure. And for this reason it is traditional in Turkey for brides to eat Ezo's soup on the eve of the wedding, as a cruel counterpoint, a warning that shows that the happiness of the moment also casts a shadow in the future that must be taken with cautios.
If you go to Turkey you will see that there are countless songs, poems and even movies about Ezo's sad life. Without making us sad, and without being brides about to get married, this is Ezo's soup recipe.
INGREDIENTS (4 people)
- 100 grams (3.5 oz) of orange lentils (sometimes called Egyptian, they lack skin)
- 50 grams (1.7 oz) of fine bulgur or couscous
- 100 grams (3.5 oz) of mushrooms
- 1 large onion
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 750 ml of vegetable or meat broth (3 and a half cups, approximately)
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 2 tablespoons of red pepper paste (you can skip it if you can't find it, it is very typical of Turkish cuisine but difficult to find elsewhere)
- Salt
- Black pepper
- a tablespoon of dried mint
First, wash the bulgur and orange lentils with plenty of water, letting them drain for a long time.
In a saucepan we pour two tablespoons of butter, we melt it, and in it we poach the finely chopped onion. While we fry the onion we mix the tomato concentrate with the bulgur, the lentils and the pepper concentrate (if you have any). Pour into the onion casserole and then the broth that we will bring to a boil with the pot covered. When it boils, we reduce the fire so that when it is uncovered it stops the boiling. Cooking lasts half an hour.
While we clean the mushrooms and cut them into slices, seasoning. In another pan we brown them in butter until they are well done, we take them to the main pot and stir. Add salt and pepper.
We heat two tablespoons of butter in a pan - it can be the same one where we have made the mushrooms - until it is foamy. It is added to the soup, finally sprinkling with a pinch of dried mint.
Don't be surprised by the use - and perhaps abuse - of butter in Turkish cuisine. Is very common. Olive oil is only used on the Turkish Aegean coast, the rest is the butter empire. And indeed the famous Iskender Kebap is often served with sauce boats filled with melted butter. Great for the arteries of the heart (ironic).
So in the end we don't know if Ezo wanted to ingratiate himself with her mother-in-law or kill her with a heart disease. We will never know it. In any case soup is very tasty.