Turkish Pasta

Turkish pasta is a viral hit on social media, and there’s a simple reason why: It is truly delicious and simple to make! Several videos from Australian TikTok star Anna Paul feature her mom’s recipe, and each video has received over 20 million views (and climbing!). The ground beef pasta recipe is unique, as it uses garlic yogurt and saucy paprika butter to coat the noodles instead of a traditional pasta sauce. Since she made it look so delicious online, we created our own version at home.

What is Turkish pasta?

Anna’s mom’s recipe is a riff on a Turkish dish called manti, which is made of dumplings filled with spiced ground meat (typically lamb or beef) then topped with garlic yogurt and drizzled with a spiced sauce made with olive oil or melted butter. There’s actually a name for Turkish pasta dishes like the one Anna’s mom makes: kiymali makarna, or “cheat” manti. This version is much simpler to make than traditional manti but still features many of the same delicious flavors. As Anna says, “This whole meal only takes as long as it takes pasta to cook. It’s super, super easy and quick.”

Turkish Pasta Ingredients

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• Ground beef: Use 90% lean beef in this recipe for the best flavor. The ground meat is cooked in the skillet until it crisps up around the edges of the pan.
• Onion: Yellow or white onion is the best type of onion to use in this recipe. You’ll need one medium onion (or about 1 cup finely chopped onion) for this recipe.
• Seasonings: The ground beef and onion mixture is seasoned with a mixture of onion powder, curry powder, sweet paprika, salt and pepper.
• Yogurt-garlic sauce: The savory flavor of the crispy ground beef is complemented by a refreshing sauce made from plain Greek yogurt flavored with freshly minced garlic and seasoned with salt.
• Paprika butter sauce: This butter sauce combines melted butter with paprika, packing an additional punch of flavor to this dish. Dried mint and black pepper round out the seasonings in this tasty sauce.
• Fresh parsley: Fresh parsley adds a pop of green color and fresh flavor to the pasta.
• Fresh tomatoes: Halved cherry or grape tomatoes add sweetness.
• Pasta: Use a small pasta shape like farfalle, fusilli, small shells or elbow macaroni for this recipe. For a gluten-free Turkish pasta, use your favorite gluten-free pasta variety.

Directions

Step 1: Make the pasta

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Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook to al dente according to the package instructions. Drain and set aside.

Step 2: Cook the beef

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While the pasta cooks, make the meat sauce. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the ground beef and cook until browned, five to six minutes. Add the chopped onion, paprika, onion powder, curry powder, salt and pepper.

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Cook for another four to five minutes or until the ground meat becomes crispy on the edges. Remove from the heat.

Step 3: Make the yogurt-garlic sauce

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In a bowl, stir together the yogurt, minced garlic and salt.

Editor’s Tip: A garlic press is a great tool to quickly mince garlic.

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Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

Step 4: Make the paprika butter sauce

Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the paprika, dried mint and black pepper, and stir together. Remove from the heat and set aside.

Step 5: Put it all together

To serve, transfer the cooked pasta to a large serving dish. Top with a few tablespoons of the yogurt-garlic sauce, followed by the beef and a generous drizzle of the butter sauce. Top with chopped tomatoes and parsley to garnish.

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Turkish Pasta Variations

• Keep it traditional: For a more traditional take on Turkish pasta, lean into Turkish spices. Skip the curry powder and instead season the meat with about 1 tablespoon red pepper paste. Add a pinch of ground sumac (or a squeeze of fresh lemon juice) to the yogurt sauce for a bright, citrusy flavor, and use Aleppo pepper wherever the recipe calls for black pepper. For additional spice, add a pinch of red pepper flakes to the butter sauce.
• Make it vegetarian: Substitute soy crumbles, sliced mushrooms or your favorite ground meat substitute for the ground beef.

How to Store Turkish Pasta

Ideally, all the components of Turkish pasta—the pasta, meat, yogurt sauce and butter sauce—should be stored in separate airtight containers in the refrigerator.

How long does Turkish pasta last?

Turkish pasta lasts up to three days when stored properly in the refrigerator. Any leftover garlic-yogurt sauce will last up to a week when properly stored in the refrigerator.

How do you reheat Turkish pasta?

Leftover pasta and meat sauce can be reheated in a pan on the stovetop over medium heat, stirring to help it warm evenly. Top with the yogurt-garlic sauce and reheated butter sauce, then garnish with chopped parsley and tomatoes.

Turkish Pasta Tips

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What type of pasta should you use for Turkish pasta?

Any short pasta shape is ideal for this Turkish pasta recipe. Choose a shape with ridges or nooks and crannies that will capture all the flavorful sauce.

What else can you serve with Turkish pasta?

While Turkish pasta dishes are pretty filling on their own, a fresh cucumber salad or another green side salad as well as flatbread warm from the oven would be great options to round out this flavorful meal.