Alaca Borani

Geographical Indicationana-yemek

Alaca Borani (officially registered as Alaca Borana Yemeği) is a traditional yoghurt-based dish unique to Alaca district of Çorum. Beyond everyday meals, it is also served on special occasions such as weddings, holidays and festivals.

History and geographical indication

Alaca Borani is enriched with yoghurt, garlic, butter, red pepper and parsley, and holds a deep-rooted place within Alaca’s local culinary culture. Following an application filed by Alaca Municipality on 27.02.2023, the dish was registered with the Turkish Patent and Trademark Office on 01.02.2024 under registration no. 1530 as a mark of origin, becoming one of the district’s geographically protected products.

Two ways of preparation

The dish is traditionally made in two versions:

• Egg Alaca Borani: boiled eggs are mixed with crushed garlic and yoghurt, then topped with a hot sauce of red pepper toasted in butter.
• Mushroom Alaca Borani: chopped mushrooms are sautéed in oil and mixed with yoghurt and garlic, then topped with the same butter-red pepper sauce.

Both versions are garnished with parsley and served hot.

Place of production and inspection

The registration requires that the dish be prepared and cooked exclusively within Alaca district, Çorum province. Inspection is coordinated by Alaca Municipality, carried out at least once a year by a team of representatives from the Municipality and the Alaca District Directorate of Agriculture and Forestry.

Cultural significance

Alaca Borani is a regional dish that requires a certain mastery to prepare and appears on both everyday and special-occasion tables. Its geographical indication registration documents the authenticity of this Alaca specialty in both its ingredients and its method of preparation.

🍳 How to make it

Servings: 6 servingsTime: ~30 minutes

Ingredients

• Egg version: 4 boiled eggs, 250 g yoghurt, 10 g crushed garlic, 10 g salt, 50 g butter, 5 g ground/flaked red pepper, 20 g parsley
• Mushroom version: 500 g chopped mushrooms, 250 g yoghurt, 10 g crushed garlic, 10 g salt, 50 g butter, 50 ml vegetable oil, 5 g ground/flaked red pepper, 20 g parsley

Method

1. Egg version: mix the boiled eggs with crushed garlic and yoghurt, add salt and stir into a smooth mixture.
2. In a separate pan, melt the butter and toast the red pepper to make a hot sauce.
3. Pour the sauce over the yoghurt-egg mixture, garnish with parsley and serve hot.
4. Mushroom version: sauté the chopped mushrooms in vegetable oil for about 5 minutes.
5. Add yoghurt, garlic and salt to the sautéed mushrooms and mix; pour the separately prepared butter-red pepper sauce on top, garnish with parsley and serve hot.

💡 Tips

• Both versions share the same yoghurt-garlic base; the difference is the use of egg or mushroom.
• The sauce should be prepared without burning the butter; the red pepper is toasted only briefly so it does not turn bitter.

A traditional recipe; quantities and times are approximate and vary by household.

← All Çorum dishes