Sütlaç

Sütlaç is a Turkish milk dessert made by simmering rice in milk. The milk is thickened while the rice grains remain intact, and the mixture is poured into bowls and cooled. Besides sweet versions made with sugar, some places make an unsweetened version and combine it with another sweet.

Thickening the milk while keeping the rice grains

In one method, the rice is first cooked in water, then milk and starch dissolved in water are added and the mixture is heated further. Sugar, lemon zest and the like are added, the mixture is poured into bowls, and cinnamon is sprinkled on top. The starch thickens the milk and, with the rice grains still intact, brings the pudding to a soft consistency that can be scooped with a spoon. Methods vary, however, and the use of starch cannot be considered a requirement for all sütlaç.

Mountain milk and a browned top

Hamsiköy, in the mountains of Trabzon Province in the Black Sea Region, is known for sütlaç made with local milk. In the method described in its geographical indication registration document, rice is added to boiled milk and stirred so as not to break the grains, and sugar and salt are added once the rice is cooked. No starch is added; the milk and rice are simmered slowly until thickened. It is eaten either warm or chilled, with hazelnuts or cinnamon added to taste. Hamsiköy lies on the northern side of Mount Zigana, and dairy cows are raised on rainy mountain pastures. Local makers say that this milk is an important part of the flavor.

Nazmi Kayukcu, who has made this sweet for many years, values a method based on milk, rice, and sugar, while also presenting today’s ways of serving it, such as browning the top in an earthenware dish or adding hazelnuts.

Some versions have a browned top. In one example presented by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, a small amount of sütlaç is mixed with egg and spread over the surface in the dish, which is then browned in the oven. The toasty aroma of the browned surface is added to the softness of the milk and rice beneath.

White milk and the sweetness of zerde

In Mardin in the southeast, there is an example in which sütlaç cooked from only milk and rice is poured into a bowl until it is half full and cooled, and zerde, made with water, rice, sugar, and allspice, is layered on top. The upper layer is poured only after the lower milk layer has cooled thoroughly, so that two different flavors can be enjoyed in one bowl. In Gaziantep as well, unsweetened sütlaç and zerde are combined on festive days.

In parts of Anatolia, it is also called sütlü or sütlü aş. Both names contain the word for milk, reflecting the nature of this sweet as rice cooked in milk.

Glossary