Pazılı kuru bakla salatası (broad bean and chard salad)
- Dem
- Jan 14
- 3 min read
Pazılı kuru bakla salatası is a vibrant and healthy Turkish salad. The dried broad beans (kuru bakla - 'kuh-ruk bahk-lah') have a creamy texture and a rich, earthy, nutty flavour with a subtle sweetness, similar to that of chickpeas. The beans are perfectly balanced by the mild and slightly bitter flavours of the chard and lifted by the lemon and olive oil dressing.
The salad is best made when chard is in season. We use a green chard variety from Cyprus, which is available in most Turkish food stores. However, you can use rainbow chard instead if that is what you have available. Chopped white courgettes and pak choi can also be used as substitutes for chard, but you may need to adjust cooking times if you do.
Pazılı kuru bakla salatası is an ideal light summer meal, especially when paired with fresh bread for dipping into the zesty olive oil and lemon dressing. Like pazılı kuru börülce salatası, this dish can be enjoyed warm during cooler seasons or served chilled on hot days.
To prepare the salad, the cooked chard, along with its cooking water, is added to the saucepan with the boiled broad beans in their water. This method makes it easier to mix the vegetables together without mashing the beans. Alternatively, you can drain both before combining them if you find that easier.
For the dressing, Cypriot extra virgin olive oil is the perfect choice due to its peppery notes, which complement the earthy flavours of the vegetables. If Cypriot olive oil is not available, feel free to use another high-quality variety that suits your taste. You can also add chopped garlic to the dressing for a bolder flavour, but this is optional.
Serves 4 to 5 as a side | Preparation time: 15 minutes | Cooking time: 30 minutes | Additional time for cooling if needed
Ingredients
Bean and chard preparation | |
500g dried broad beans (fava beans) | 1 ½ tsp salt, or as desired |
400g chard, washed and strained | |
Dressing | |
150-200ml extra virgin olive oil, or as desired | 50-100ml lemon juice, or as desired |
Hob heat settings
Method
Sort through the dried broad beans to remove any damaged ones, then rinse them well and leave to strain.
Place each chard leaf flat on a chopping board. Trim off the bottom ends of the stalks if they appear slightly brown and discard them. Next, slice the leaves lengthwise into two halves.
Once the leaves are halved, slice them horizontally (including the stalks) into 1cm-wide strips.
Place the dried broad beans and 1 teaspoon of salt in a large saucepan. Add enough hot water to cover the beans by about 5cm. Boil on a high heat while loosely covered for 20-30 minutes, or until the beans are firm but tender in the centre. If white foam forms during boiling, skim it off using a tea strainer or spoon. Stir occasionally while cooking and add more hot water as needed to ensure the beans remain covered.
In a separate saucepan, place the chard along with ½ teaspoon of salt and enough hot water to cover by about 2cm. Boil while loosely covered on a high heat for 5-10 minutes, or until the chard is cooked —the stalk pieces should be firm but tender in the centre. Aim to time this step to finish as the broad beans are almost finished cooking.
Add the cooked chard, along with its cooking water, to the pot with the cooked broad beans and their water. Gently stir together before draining off all the water. By mixing together in this way, it prevents the broad beans from mashing.
In a bowl, mix together the olive oil and lemon juice to make the dressing (you can adjust the quantities of lemon juice and olive oil to suit your taste). Pour the dressing over the beans and chard and mix together. To avoid mashing the beans, you can use a large oven tray, lifting the beans from the bottom with a large spoon to make it easier to evenly coat with the dressing.
Serve warm, or chilled from the fridge with some fresh bread on the side.
