A festive Gaziantep soup eaten on the first morning of Ramadan Bayramı (Eid al-Fitr), in place of breakfast. Chickpea-sized balls are rolled by hand from finely ground rice kneaded with a little minced lamb, then poached in a broth of lamb, chickpeas and meat stock that has been thickened with egg-tempered strained yogurt. A drizzle of dried mint bloomed in butter finishes each bowl. Rolling the hundreds of tiny köfte is a communal job, so the dish is as much a social ritual as a recipe.
Yuvalama is the signature Eid al-Fitr dish of Gaziantep, traditionally served on the first morning of Ramadan Bayramı instead of an ordinary breakfast. The name comes from the verb yuvala- (a local form of yuvarlamak, to roll into balls), describing the act of hand-rolling the tiny rice köfte. It carries the protected geographical-indication 'Antep Yuvarlaması / Antep Yuvalaması', registered with Turkey's patent office in January 2017 (registration no. 208) on the application of the Gaziantep Metropolitan Municipality. The dish is labour-intensive enough that households rarely make it outside the holiday, and neighbours gather to share the rolling.
The rice balls are tiny — barely bigger than a chickpea — and cook up firm and just slightly chewy, scattered through a broth that is creamy-thick and pale ivory from the yogurt. The flavour is mild and tangy: warm chickpeas, tender shreds of lamb, the gentle sourness of yogurt against the soft sweetness of rice. The butter-bloomed dried mint floats on top in green flecks and perfumes every spoonful. It is gentle, almost soothing food — a quiet, rich start to a festival day.
The yogurt is the technical heart of the dish. Plain yogurt curdles into grainy curds the moment it boils, so it is first whisked smooth with egg, then warmed by ladling in the hot broth a little at a time before being stirred back into the pot — a classic Turkish terbiye that raises the yogurt's temperature gradually and lets the egg protein bind the casein so it stays creamy. The pot is then brought up over low heat with constant stirring to just one gentle boil, never a rolling one. Using finely ground rice rather than rice flour keeps the köfte firm — flour would make them pasty and dissolve into the broth.
Variations
Some households add a little flour along with the egg to firm up the yogurt further, though the geographical-indication recipe lists only whole egg. The meat may be cubed lamb shank or shredded off the bone. A few cooks stir in chickpeas only, leaving the lamb out for a lighter bowl. The closely related düğün çorbası (wedding soup) uses a similar egg-and-yogurt thickening but no rolled rice köfte, while across Anatolia the generic word 'yuvalama' can describe a version made with fine bulgur rather than rice.
On the Palate
Where Yuvalama sits in the Turkish flavor cloud
Ingredients
Serves 8
How it's made
6 steps · 1 hour 30 min active + 1 hour waiting
- 190 min
Simmer cubed lamb (or a lamb shank) with the chickpeas in salted water until both are tender, about 90 minutes; reserve the meat and the strained broth.
- 225 min
Knead finely ground rice with a little minced lamb, grated onion, salt and pepper into a stiff dough; roll into chickpea-sized balls between your palms.
- 315 min
Drop the rice balls into simmering salted water and poach until they float and are cooked through, then lift out and set aside.
- 48 min
Whisk the strained yogurt smooth with whole egg in a bowl, then temper by ladling in hot broth a spoonful at a time, whisking constantly.
Watch outTemper the yogurt by ladling hot broth in a spoon at a time — dump it in hot or let the pot boil hard and the yogurt curdles into grainy shreds.
- 510 min
Pour the tempered yogurt back into the pot of broth, add the chickpeas, meat and rice balls, and heat over low heat, stirring, until it reaches just one gentle boil.
Watch outBring it up to just one gentle boil, stirring the whole time — a rolling boil breaks the egg-bound yogurt and the soup splits.
- 65 min
Bloom dried mint (and black pepper, if liked) in melted butter until fragrant, drizzle over each bowl, and serve hot.
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