Balik Ekmek
The fish sandwich sold off boats by the Galata Bridge, all grilled mackerel, raw onion and a hard squeeze of lemon. Sea air not included, sadly.
- Total time
- 14 min
- Serves
- 2
- Effort
- Easy
What you need
Written for 2 — nudge the counter and the numbers follow.
0 of 9 in the basket.
How you make it
Toss the onion with the sumac and a pinch of salt and leave it to soften while you cook, at least 5 minutes.
Pat the mackerel fillets completely dry and season the flesh side with salt and pepper.
Heat the olive oil in a heavy pan over high heat and lay the fillets in skin side down, pressing flat for the first 20 seconds.
Cook 3 to 4 minutes until the skin is crisp and browned, then flip and cook 1 to 2 minutes more, until the flesh is opaque all the way through and flakes cleanly with a fork.
Warm the cut sides of the rolls in the same pan for 1 minute, then layer in lettuce, tomato, the hot fish and the sumac onions.
Squeeze over plenty of lemon, close the sandwich and eat before the bread softens.
Read all that and thought “absolutely not”?
Completely fair. Balik Ekmek is sitting in the Turkish kitchen right now, it costs nothing, and it will never arrive.
Order it insteadMore from the Turkish kitchen
Charcoal, yoghurt and bread worth the trip alone.