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Selin Kiazim
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Oklava: Recipes from a Turkish-Cypriot kitchen Hardcover – May 4, 2017

by Selin Kiazim (Author)
4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 264 ratings
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'Welcome to the extremely tasty world of modern Turkish-Cypriot food - what a stunning and beautiful book' - Peter Gordon

With influences from the Mediterranean, Southern Europe and the Middle East, Turkish-Cypriot food offers incredible flavour combinations unique to its region. Oklava: The Cookbook celebrates the culinary delights of this area in a way no cookbook has done before.

Oklava translates simply as 'rolling pin'. For Selin Kiazim, this word conjures up memories of her Turkish-Cypriot grandmother: a rolling pin was never far from her hands, which meant a delicious treat was imminent. The same can be said for this book. These sensational recipes will take you on a journey from home-cooked meals and summers spent in North Cyprus to an exciting interpretation of modern Turkish-Cypriot cooking in London.

Bring the Oklava experience into your home with Turkish delights such as Pistachio-crusted Banana & Tahini French Toast with Orange Blossom Syrup & Smoked Streaky Bacon; Grilled Quails with Palm Sugar, Sumac & Oregano Glaze; Courgette, Feta & Mint Fritters; Crispy Pomegranate-Glazed Lamb Breast with Yoghurt; Chilli-Roast Cauliflower; and Chocolate, Prune & Cardamom Delice.

Praise for Selin Kiazim:

'This woman can bloody cook' - Grace Dent, Evening Standard

'Keep an eye out for Selin Kiazim, because she is going places, in every conceivable way' - Giles Coren, The Times

'Swoon' - Time Out London

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Previous page
  1. Print length
    240 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    MITCHELL BEAZLEY
  4. Publication date
    May 4, 2017
  5. Dimensions
    7.91 x 1.06 x 10 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    1784722464
  7. ISBN-13
    978-1784722463
  8. See all details
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Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ MITCHELL BEAZLEY (May 4, 2017)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 240 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1784722464
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1784722463
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.51 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 7.91 x 1.06 x 10 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 264 ratings

About the author

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Selin Kiazim

Selin Kiazim

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Selin Kiazim is chef-director of Oklava in Shoreditch, London, which she opened in 2015.

Selin grew up in the kitchens of her mother and grandmother, which inspired in her a love for the food of her Turkish-Cypriot heritage. In her restaurant, she melds her modern take on this culinary background with seasonal produce and a passion for all things smoke and fire.

Outside of the restaurant world, Selin takes inspiration from her passion for fusion cooking and her love for travel to redefine what everyday cooking can look like for home cooks.

Selin is a vocal spokesperson for women in the hospitality industry, and has appeared on BBC1's Saturday Kitchen as well as Great British Menu in 2017. She is the author of Oklava: Recipes from a Turkish-Cypriot Kitchen; Three is her second book.

Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars
4.6 out of 5
264 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Elaine Wilkinson
5.0 out of 5 stars A Love Poem To The Traditional Cuisine of Cyprus
Reviewed in the United States on April 19, 2018
Verified Purchase
OKLAVA is the name of the author's London restaurant, but this is not a book of recipes better prepared by professionals in a commercial kitchen. This collection is a celebration of traditional dishes from Cyprus where Selin Kiazim's culinary DNA is firmly rooted. Cypriot cuisine is a wonderful Mediterranean island melange of Greek, Turkish, and Middle Eastern flavors and ingredients. The food is fresh, simple, and delicious, not overwrought. The gorgeous accompanying photographs stimulate both the appetite and the imagination.

I have a great many Middle Eastern cookbooks, but this one is not a repetition of any of them. There is a chapter of recipes using fish and seafood, but being in landlocked Tennessee doesn't keep me from experimenting and substituting the protein and adapting the sauce, or preparation method to my needs. Lamb can be easily substituted with beef. I am a big fan of sumac, that wonderfully deep red and lemony-tasting spice. If you live in a small town as I do, everything is easily available online. Penzey's is one of my favorite suppliers, but there are many good ones.

The recipes are arranged in the following chapters:
--Salads & Snacks (14 recipes, including a brunch menu with recipes) Fresh, herbal, and colorful salads and meze components.
--Savory Bakes (11 recipes, including breads and savory pastries)
--Meat (25 recipes, including fowl, lamb, beef, veal, rabbit. Also hummus, pilaf, and 2 special salad accompaniments) I'll be making these with beef, pork, chicken, and turkey, which is what I have ready to hand.
--Seafood (8 recipes) These are of course salt-water fish, but I'll be using some catfish and tilapia to try these, which are readily available to me, or go for frozen. Where there's a will, there's a way.
--Vegetables & Grains (12 recipes) Slow-cooked white beans with tomato, lemon, and olive oil are calling my name, Barbecued sweet corn with butter, garlic, sumac, and za'atar reminds me strikingly of roasted Mexican street corn but with different spices.
--Drinks (11 recipes, with and without alcohol) Real Turkish tea, raki, Turkish coffee, and a Turkish Bloody Mary I can't wait to try.
--Dressings, Bits & Dips (20 recipes) Fabulous dressings, relishes, and a recipe for preserved lemons.
--Sweet Things (14 recipes) Traditional cakes, pastries, lovely baked fruits, custard-filled filo pastry, rice pudding brulee. All things yummy.

The photographs are inspiring, and instructional where needed. She lists ingredients in both metric and imperial weights and measures, so anyone can use the recipes easily. The Kindle organization is excellent: lots of links within recipes, chapter headings, the entire index in fact. You can also browse by ingredient, if you wish.

I've rarely seen a cookbook by a professional chef that is so understandable and accessible to the average home cook. I have not yet cooked from any of the recipes, but I have so many collections from this part of the world and am so fondly familiar with the broad strokes of Middle Eastern/Mediterranean cooking that I'm very comfortable recommending this book. It is beautifully done with an introduction to every recipe, which I love. I'm reading straight through, like a novel, while making mental notes about what I will try first: Cicassian Chicken, Black Olive and Pepper Tapenade, or will it be a beautiful round of Spinach & Feta Borek (lovely filo pie)? So hard to choose when everything looks and sounds so good.
38 people found this helpful
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Voco28720911
5.0 out of 5 stars looks good
Reviewed in the United States on May 22, 2023
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it looks good but i haven't recieved
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natmicstef
5.0 out of 5 stars Reminiscent of home
Reviewed in the United States on April 27, 2021
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As a British born Turkish Cypriot this book is exactly what I was missing..recipes from home that brought everything back to me. I don't live in the UK any more but will definitely visit Selin's restaurant the next time I am there.
4 people found this helpful
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John C.
4.0 out of 5 stars Great e-book but can't loan--
Reviewed in the United States on November 15, 2019
It is a great e-book but kindle loaning is not enabled so I can't just let my friend borrow it for a while...
2 people found this helpful
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Alastair england
5.0 out of 5 stars Delicious food, beautiful book
Reviewed in the United States on January 31, 2019
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Brilliant book, brings the restaurant to life.
One person found this helpful
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Whitney Robinson
5.0 out of 5 stars This is a beautiful book of Turkish-Cypriot recipes
Reviewed in the United States on October 10, 2017
This is a beautiful book of Turkish-Cypriot recipes. The fusion of Greek and Middle Eastern flavors makes for some wonderful flavor profiles and the recipes range from decadently delicious, like a smoked bacon and medjool date sandwich, to fresh and light, like the tomato-pomegranate salad with parsley. The dessert section is a standout in particular, and there are even a couple of mixed drink recipes for entertaining (the medjool date, espresso, and fennel martini is a must try). A unique cookbook offering, and the photography is a treat.
9 people found this helpful
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Tammie Sisco
1.0 out of 5 stars One Star
Reviewed in the United States on May 31, 2017
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Book was never produced
7 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Great book on Turkish cooking.
Reviewed in Singapore on July 14, 2022
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It’s a great cookbook.
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PM
5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful book
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 9, 2017
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Really lovely recipes, easy to follow - and if I can find most of the ingredients (including za'atar) in the little deli here in the countryside, anyone can! Selin's flavour combinations are fantastic, adding lemon juice to slow cooked beans just bought them alive. Her mother's hummus recipe is a new favourite, as is the shepherd's salad. I'm looking forward to many happy hours of cooking.
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Mandy26
5.0 out of 5 stars Meals full of flavour yet simple to make
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 31, 2018
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Amazing book. I like that the recipes are not overly complicated but are packed with taste and flavour. I've made a number of meals from this book and have had positive comments every time. It now holds one of my husband's favourite recipes. Also incredibly healthy. Would definitely recommend. It's my go to book.
2 people found this helpful
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Nicola Kropp
5.0 out of 5 stars to be able to bring some of the beautiful colours and flavours of Selin's cooking into my own ...
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 27, 2017
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As a huge of fan of Selin's palette and creativity, I dare say this book is over-due. What a treat, to be able to bring some of the beautiful colours and flavours of Selin's cooking into my own kitchen! Not only can we now take home the recipes, but the stories; the history and tradition that brought us these gorgeous plates too. A delicious and vibrant addition to any kitchen.
3 people found this helpful
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Alison Towers
4.0 out of 5 stars Recommended, definitely.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 30, 2017
Vine Customer Review of Free Product( What's this? )Verified Purchase
She actually passed my acid test for Turkish cookbooks. She actually provided an authentic recipe for Coban Salata, (shepherds salad) that every household in Turkey made every mealtime as a matter of habit when I lived there more than forty years ago. Great recipe for fried mussels and tarama. The pide looked almost identical to the ones I bought from the little specialist baker, more so if you blended both recipes with minced mat and cheese for fillings and then on top of that, mixed everything with a beaten egg, the ymortli pide I used to order.

I love The Turkish version of liver, and still dream of it today. But, it was cubed, marinated overnight, then breaded and fried and seved with an onion salad. Not the thin slivers she calls Edirne liver, a place famous for liver, but this is not the way I remember it, but a lot can change in four decades, I'm going to try it though, it looks rather tasty.
I am impressed by the emphasis on fish, especially the red mullet I have eaten many times in Cyprus and along the southern coast of Turkey, a favourite.
I was very puzzled by the vegetable section. Pleased to see the white bean dish that is ubiquitous everywhere, but confounded that there was nothing on what here in the IK we call French beans, the long juicy green bean and tomato salad in olive oil, that like Coban Salata appeared on the table of just about everyone at every meal regardless of what meat or fish the main course comprised.
Good sections on spices and beverages.

Where this book excels in my opinion is Breakfast. Absolute perfection. Mouthwatering just looking at the illustrations, never mind taste memory.

The semolina custard borek and the chocolate delice are old favourites and am delighted they are included.

What is not included is the water pastry used to make one of the most delicious cheese pie/tray-bakes I have ever come across and found in just about every traditional style cafe and bakery/cake shop across Cyprus and Turkey. Thats a real shame. Neither is the meat free, plain macaroni cheese pie served in wedges or squares, usually cold that are so delicious and filling.

So, what is there all looks delish. Plenty of scope there for more books of authentic recipes we have to make ourselves in the vegetable section which should be massive, and especially the baking sections because our bakeries are still fairly limited and sponge cake and shortcrust still reigns supreme in our shops and cafes. Our extremely limited and often unimpressive selections in UK bakeries would get you laughed out of any self respecting bake/cake shop anywhere, in any neighbourhood, along the Med coast.

So, a very good selection of recipes and well worth having.
21 people found this helpful
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