Haydari, a sine qua non for rakı tables, is a perfect summer side dish or dip. It is great with grilled meat or on toasted bread. Traditionally it's made by mixing strained/Greek yogurt and white cheese--although some try to skip the cheese, we all know that it ain't haydari if there's no cheese.
~2 cup strained or Greek yogurt (in Turkey it's always whole milk yogurt, but non-fat is also fine)
1/2 cup Turkish or Bulgarian white cheese. If you cannot find them, use feta.
1 clove of garlic, minced
2-3 tsp dry mint leaves
1/4 cup fresh dill, chopped
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp olive oil
salt
-With a mortar and pestle mash the white cheese to a smooth texture. You can use the back of a fork as well but make sure there are absolutely no lumps left.
-Mix the cheese and yogurt, and half of the fresh dill, and salt in a bowl. The amount of salt depends on the saltiness of the cheese. Adjust to your taste.
-In a small pan heat 2 tbsp butter,1 tbsp olive oil, and garlic.
-When the butter starts bubbling. Turn the heat off and add the dry mint. Set aside to cool down to room temperature.
-Once the butter cools down, mix it into the yogurt. Mix it really well.
!!!Once you mix the butter into the yogurt, haydari should never go into the fridge, should stay out at room temperature.!!!
-Serving: Haydari is best served on an oval or rectangle serving plate. Lay it evenly on the plate and then make dents with the side edge of the scoop for olive oil that we'll use to decorate to stay on, as in the picture.
-Drizzle the remaining olive oil and sprinkle the rest of the fresh dill.
Bon appétit!
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