Kumpir
Kumpir: Ortaköy's fluffy baked potato mashed with butter and kaşar, then loaded with toppings
On a warm evening in Ortaköy, under the Bosphorus Bridge, the kumpir stalls line up with trays of toppings and queues of students waiting for a potato the size of a fist and a half. The vendor splits it, beats butter and grated kaşar into the hot flesh right in the skin until it turns stretchy, then piles on whatever you point at: corn, olives, pickles, peppers, Russian salad. At home it makes a filling supper that everyone builds for themselves. Kaşar is usually made with animal rennet, so pick a vegetarian mild melting cheese if that matters to you. Chef's tip: bake the potatoes on a bed of coarse salt; the skins dry and crisp while the inside goes floury, which is what lets the cheese melt into it.
- Total time
- 95 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
For the potatoes
Toppings
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What you'll need
Spices & pantry
Fresh ingredients (3)
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Method
0/7 doneStep 1: Heat the oven to 400°F (350°F fan). Prick the 4 large baking potatoes all over with a fork.
Step 2: Spread 7 oz coarse salt over a baking tray and sit the potatoes on it. Bake for 60–75 minutes, until a skewer slides into the centre with no resistance and the skins feel papery.
75 minStep 3: While they bake, set out the 7 oz sweetcorn, 3 ½ oz sliced black and green olives, 3 ½ oz pickled gherkins and 5 ½ oz red cabbage in small bowls so everyone can choose.
Step 4: Lay each hot potato on a plate, slit it along the top and push the ends together to open it wide. Work quickly while it is steaming hot.
Step 5: Add a quarter of the 2 ⅞ oz butter and a pinch of ½ tsp salt to each potato and mash the flesh inside the skin with a fork.
Step 6: Add a quarter of the 7 oz kaşar or mild cheddar to each and keep mashing and stirring for a minute, until the cheese melts into stretchy, glossy strands. Common mistake: adding the cheese to a potato that has cooled; it stays in lumps instead of melting.
Step 7: Spoon your chosen toppings on top, finishing with squiggles of ketchup and mayonnaise if you like, and eat straight from the skin.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 640 kcal
- Protein
- 20 g
- Carbs
- 78 g
- Fat
- 29 g
- Fibre
- 9 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does kumpir take?
- About 95 minutes in total: 20 minutes to prepare and 75 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of large baking potatoes?
- Sweet potato, same weight (sweeter, cooks a little faster).
- What can I use instead of butter?
- The same weight of ghee or coconut oil (for frying and most baking).
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