Homemade Turkish Tarhana Powder Recipe

Preparing the Vegetables

1. Start by thoroughly washing your red Romano peppers, tomatoes, peeled onions, parsley, dill, and mint. You’ll want to roughly chop them all, as they’ll be blended together later.
2. Place the tomatoes in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth. Transfer it to a large bowl.
3. Repeat the same with red peppers, onions, and fresh herbs, and add them together with the tomatoes.
4. Pour in the strained yogurt and natural yogurt, salt, yeast, and flour, and stir well to ensure everything is fully combined. 

Fermenting the Mixture

1. Cover the bowl with a clean kitchen towel or plastic wrap and leave it in a warm place to ferment for 3-4 days. During this time, the mixture will start to develop that signature tangy flavor, thanks to the yeast and yogurt.
2. Stir the mixture once a day to help it ferment evenly. After 3-4 days of fermentation, the tarhana mixture will be ready to dry.

Drying the Tarhana

1. Spread the mixture onto generously floured clean kitchen towels or a cloth in small, thin mounds. Leave enough space in between to speed up the drying process. You can do this on a tray or directly on a clean surface.
2. Leave it to dry in a sunny, warm, and dry place for a couple of days, flipping it occasionally so it dries evenly.
3. After 2 sunny days, the tarhana will be nearly dried. Break it into smaller pieces at this stage to speed up the drying process. Leave it dry for another day and grind it into a fine powder using a food processor or blender.
4. After blending the tarhana, pass it through a colander to ensure there are no large pieces. If any remain, simply collect them and blend again until you have a fine, smooth tarhana powder.
5. Your tarhana powder is almost ready, but you’ll need to spread it out on a clean cloth for a couple more days to ensure it’s fully dried. Once completely dry, you can store it in airtight containers for months.