Turkish Spinach with Beef and Bulgur

Spinach is one of the staples of winter cooking, and February is when it is at its best.

It carries a good amount of vitamin C, along with vitamins A, E and K, plus iron, potassium, zinc, manganese and calcium. It is also high in fiber. Originally from central and southwestern Asia, it has been part of the cooking of that whole region for centuries.

In Turkey spinach is usually made with rice, with eggs, or with yogurt. This version uses beef, and it is the most substantial of them — a complete dish rather than a side.

Serves 4

Ingredients

2 lb spinach
1 onion
9 oz ground beef
2–3 cloves garlic
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1/4 cup rice
1/4 cup bulgur
1 carrot
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Method

Clean the spinach

Pick over the spinach and wash it in a deep bowl of water, lifting the leaves out and leaving the grit behind. Repeat two or three times until the water runs clear.

Then soak it for 10 minutes in water with a splash of vinegar, and rinse again.

This step is not optional with spinach. Grit hides in the crimped leaves and there is no recovering a dish once it is in there.

Chop the cleaned spinach coarsely.

Cook

Dice the onion and finely chop the garlic.

Heat the butter in a large pot. Cook the onion first, until soft, then add the garlic and cook another minute.

Add the ground beef and cook until well browned, breaking it up as you go.

Stir in the tomato paste and cook for 2 minutes — the paste needs the heat and fat to lose its raw edge.

Add the chopped spinach with the salt and pepper. It will look like far too much for the pot; it collapses to a fraction of its volume.

Cover and let it wilt and release its water, about 5 minutes.

Grate the carrot while you wait.

Add the carrot, rice and bulgur to the wilted spinach. Stir, cover, and cook on low heat.

The dish is ready when the rice and bulgur are tender and have absorbed the liquid — about 20 minutes. The spinach gives off a lot of water, so there is usually no need to add any. Check once and add a splash only if it looks dry.

Rest it, covered and off the heat, for 10 minutes before serving. The grains finish steaming and the flavors settle.

Serve with thick yogurt alongside.

Chef’s note

Do not use frozen spinach for this. It is already cooked and holds far more water, and the dish turns to a wet mash. Frozen spinach has its uses — börek fillings, where you squeeze it dry — but not here.