Turkish Pasta with Spiced Meat & Garlic Yogurt

Directions

• Before We Start

  Pasta options: You can use either dried or fresh bowtie pasta here—just be sure it’s cooked al dente and well-drained.
  Tomato topping: If you’re short on time, replace the full Zesty Tomato Herb Salad with 1½ cups of quartered cherry or grape tomatoes and a pinch of salt.
  Make-ahead tip: Garlic yogurt and paprika butter can both be prepped up to 3 days in advance and stored in the fridge. The butter will need reheated though.

• Make Fresh Pasta (optional)

  If going all out, make the bowtie pasta from scratch using our recipe. Otherwise, use dried bowtie pasta, and proceed to Step 3.
  
  For Fresh Bowtie Pasta:
  225 g | 1½ cups 00 flour (Italian style pasta flour)
  75 g | ½ cup fine (double milled) semolina flour
  150 g | 3 large whole eggs
  
  See detailed Handmade Bowtie Pasta (Farfalle) Recipe.

• Prepare Your Pasta Water

  You will want to get the pasta pot going, since it takes a while to reach a boil. Fill the pot 2/3 full with water and add a large handful of salt, it should taste like the sea. Set the stove top to high heat to allow the water to reach a boil while you continue with the remaining steps.
  If it reduces too much, you just add more hot water to it and let it get back up to boil.

• Make the Garlic Yogurt Sauce

  A garlic yogurt sauce is super quick and easy to make. It’s just grated garlic, lemon juice, plain greek yogurt, salt and pepper. That’s it. Follow our recipe to make it.
  
  For the Creamy Garlic Yogurt Sauce:
  4 g | 2 cloves grated garlic
  15 g | 1 tbsp lemon juice
  2.5 g | ½ tsp kosher salt
  0.3 g | ⅛ tsp black pepper
  245 g | 1 1/4 cup full fat Plain Greek yogurt
  
  See detailed Creamy Garlic Yogurt Sauce Recipe.

• Tomatoes

  While you can just add some cherry tomatoes, by quartering them, we take it up a notch with this zesty tomato herb salad that is well worth the extra effort. Follow our recipe and reserve it to top the pasta dish at the end.
  
  For Zesty Tomato Herb Salad:
  270 g | 1⅔ cups cherry tomatoes quartered
  35 g | ⅛ red onion thinly sliced
  10 g | 2 tbsp flat leaf parsley roughly chopped
  2 g | 1 tsp lemon zest zest of 1 lemon
  0.7 g | ¼ tsp smoked paprika
  2.5 g | ½ tsp kosher salt
  0.2 g | ⅛ tsp freshly ground black pepper
  13 g | 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  30 g | 2 tbsp lemon juice about 1/2 lemon
  2 g | 1 tsp fresh mint finely chopped
  1 g | ½ tsp sumac optional
  
  See detailed Zesty Tomato Herb Salad Recipe.

• Cook the Pasta

  Cook bowtie pasta until just al dente.
  For fresh pasta, cook time is about 1-3 minutes, or until it starts to float.
  For dried pasta, time varies between 8-12 minutes, go by directions on the packet.
  Test the pasta for doneness before removing from the pot.
  Once cooked, drain and set aside, reserving about 1/2 cup of the pasta water, in case you need it.

• Make the Meat Topping

  Heat avocado oil in a 12in stainless steel or cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion with a 1/4 tsp salt and sauté for about 3-4 minutes until starting to turn translucent. Add diced red pepper and cook another 2-3 minutes until starting to soften. Throw in the garlic and cook another minute.
  
  Add the ground beef along with the remaining 1 tsp of salt and spread the beef trying to make as much direct contact with the pan as possible. Cook for 5-6 minutes without moving it around or until the meat is starting to brown on one side. If there is a lot of moisture collecting, spoon it out so the meat can brown faster.
  
  Flip the meat over to brown the other side cooking for another 4-5 minutes or until browned. Using a spatula or wooden spoon, break up the meat into small pieces. Continue cooking and stirring periodically for 2-3 minutes to continue browning the meat and to just cook it through.
  
  Mix in the tomato paste, paprika, cumin, and black pepper. Cook 2–3 minutes, until everything is well combined and sizzling. Set aside and keep warm.

• Assemble the Dish

  Divide cooked pasta between bowls. Spoon the meat mixture over the top. Drizzle with warm paprika butter and a generous scoop of garlic yogurt sauce. Add the tomato herb salad or some fresh cherry tomatoes on top. Top with an additional spoonful or two of the paprika butter (optional; I like a little extra sometimes) and some finely chopped mint and enjoy.