Instructions

1. 1

   Put the bulgur in a bowl, pour the hot water over it, stir once and leave it to swell, covered, until it has absorbed all the water.

2. 2

   Meanwhile, finely dice one onion and sweat it in 1 tbsp oil over a medium heat until soft. Add the minced meat and fry until crumbly and no pink remains, season with ½ tsp salt and the pepper, stir in the finely chopped parsley and spread the filling out flat on a plate to cool completely.

3. 3

   Add the semolina and ½ tsp salt to the bulgur, set a bowl of cold water beside it and knead vigorously with wet hands for about 10 minutes until a smooth, pliable dough forms; if it cracks, knead in 1 tbsp water, and if it is sticky, 1 tbsp semolina. The technique is the same as for the large Kutilk, only the dumplings are smaller and round.

4. 4

   Divide the dough into about 24 walnut-sized balls of 3 cm. With a wet index finger, bore a hole into each ball and turn the ball around your finger while your thumb presses the wall thin from the outside, until you have a little cup with a 3 mm wall. Put in 1 tsp filling, seal the opening firmly with wet fingers, roll the dumpling smooth and round and set it aside, covered.

5. 5

   For the broth, cut the lamb into 2 cm cubes and finely dice the second onion. Heat the oil in a large pot, brown the lamb well all over, add the onion and let it turn translucent, then toast the tomato paste and pepper paste for 1 minute, stirring.

6. 6

   Pour in the water, bring to the boil and skim off the foam. Simmer half-covered over a low heat until the lamb is almost tender.

7. 7

   Meanwhile, cut the celery into 2 cm pieces. Cut the chard stalks into 2 cm pieces and the leaves into wide strips; cut the eggplant into 2 cm cubes and the carrot into slices. Add the celery, chard stalks, eggplant and carrot to the broth and simmer until the vegetables are tender.

8. 8

   Stir in the lemon juice, sugar and salt and season the broth so that it is distinctly sour. Carefully slide in the dumplings and the chard leaves and let them simmer gently over a low heat, not at a rolling boil, so that the dumplings don't burst; only move them gently with a spoon.

9. 9

   Cut open a dumpling: it should float on top, the dough should be cooked through and the filling hot throughout, at least 70 °C, with no pink. Otherwise simmer for a few more minutes.

10. 10

    Cut the garlic into thin slices. Heat the oil in a small frying pan, fry the garlic until pale golden, sprinkle in the mint, swirl briefly and stir everything into the broth.

11. 11

    Ladle the broth with the dumplings, lamb and vegetables into deep bowls and serve hot with white rice.

12. 12

    Tip: Serve with Birinc bi şehriye — White Rice with Toasted Vermicelli. In Duhok, 1 tsp citric acid is often used instead of lemon juice, and instead of lamb neck, beef shoulder also tastes good; it simmers about 30 minutes longer. Once shaped, the raw dumplings can be frozen on a baking tray and then kept in bags for up to 3 months; add them to the broth frozen and simmer for about 5 minutes longer until the filling reaches 70 °C. Kutilk — Duhok-Style Fried Stuffed Bulgur Dumplings shows in detail how the shell is hollowed out, filled and sealed step by step.