TürkiyeEggsBreakfast

Çılbır

Name: Çılbır
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 20 min
Yield: 2 servings
Cuisine: Türkiye
Ingredients: 300 g thick Greek or strained yogurt; 1 clove garlic, grated; salt, pinch; 4 eggs; 1 tbsp white vinegar; 40 g unsalted butter; 1 tsp Aleppo pepper or paprika; 1/2 tsp dried mint, optional; crusty bread, to serve

Poached eggs over garlicky yogurt, finished with a sizzling spoonful of warm chilli butter.

prep: 10 min
cook: 10 min
total: 20 min
serves: 2
level: easy

Çılbır is a Turkish breakfast built on two temperatures at once: cool, garlicky yogurt underneath, hot poached eggs on top, and a sizzling red chilli butter poured over both at the table.

It looks like a small dish, but the yogurt base and the butter finish do a lot of work; this isn't just eggs on yogurt.

Part of our 20 best egg recipes list.

method

Stir the grated garlic and a pinch of salt into the yogurt, and divide between two shallow bowls.
Bring a wide pan of water to a bare simmer and add the vinegar. Poach the eggs two at a time for about 3 minutes, until the whites are set and the yolks are soft.
Lift the eggs out with a slotted spoon, drain briefly on paper towels, and set two on top of the yogurt in each bowl.
Melt the butter in a small pan until it starts to foam, then stir in the Aleppo pepper and mint, if using, and cook a few seconds until fragrant.
Spoon the hot, red-tinted butter straight over the eggs and yogurt, and serve at once with bread for scooping.

chef's tips

Serve the yogurt at room temperature, not straight from the fridge, or it fights the hot butter instead of melting into it.
Don't let the chilli butter sit too long once it's spiced; the paprika can scorch quickly in hot butter.