The Bulgarian Tarator is a delicious traditional soup enjoyed by all Bulgarians. It’s a white cold soup with yogurt and cucumbers very popular in Bulgaria, mainly in Summer, for its cooling effect. Sure, not the typical thing when thinking of soup. Very easy and fast to prepare, healthy, one never bored of eating it. I share with you a very easy recipe to prepare.
Most Bulgarians love tarator. You can enjoy it as a short drink, as an appetizer or as a main dish if you are not particularly hungry for diner. You can taste this cold soup in all Bulgarian restaurants, everywhere in Bulgaria, and apparently the recipes vary according to the region. Tarator is consumed in Bulgaria, Macedonia, and Albania, either as input in soup or as a side salad main course. The main ingredients of tarator are yogurt, cucumbers, spices and oil. I love this dish mainly as a short drink for the aperitif, when I have guests at home, which I present in small transparent glasses. One portion per person is more than enough, and replaces a ton of chips and other calorie products. It’s simple and healthy.
Ingredients for 6 :
- 1 large cucumber,
- 500 g Bulgarian yogurt,
- 1 cup of water,
- 2 small clove garlic,
- 60 g of crushed walnuts,
- 2 soup spoon of chopped fresh dill,
- 2 soup spoon of olive oil,
- Salt and pepper.
Adjust this ingredients according to your taste.
If you are away from Bulgaria and you want to eat tarator, you can prepare it at home a few minutes only. It’s very easy : 10 min. / Waiting time after preparation : 30 min / Budget : < 8 levas (6 people) / More : Enjoy with a glass of Bulgarian red wine of course / For the French version of the Bulgarian Tarator’s recipe, it’s here.
Beat the Bulgarian tarator yogurt until it becomes homogeneous. To make it enough liquid, you can add some water (but not a lot). Crush walnuts and chop the herbs. Peel and crush the garlic degerminating. Mix well those ingredients. Peel the cucumber, remove the seeds and cut into small pieces. Next, to prepare faster the soup, simply put all your ingredients into the bowl of the mixer and let do the machine. Cool and refrigerate 30 minutes before serving your delicious soup. If the Tarator is not cool enough, add ice cubes.
Enjoy your Tarator !