Düzce’s regional cookbook records a simple palamut tava made with fish, oil and salt. This home version follows the uncoated approach and serves lemon alongside.
Palamut Tava — Recipe Card
Simply pan-fried bonito steaks with lemon
Makes 2 servings · Serves 2; two small bone-in steaks per person.US cup = 240 ml · tablespoon = 15 ml · teaspoon = 5 ml. Cup and weight conversions are approximate. Australian cooks: use a 15 ml measuring tablespoon.
Ingredient quantities and servings are scaled. Cooking times, pan sizes, frying oil depth, and temperatures stay the same; cook larger batches as needed.
Ingredients
How to make Palamut Tava
Dry and season
Use fishmonger-cleaned steaks. Pat thoroughly dry with paper towels and season both faces with the measured salt. Keep raw fish separate from ready-to-eat food.
Pan-fry
Heat the oil in a heavy 24 cm frying pan over medium heat until shimmering, not smoking. Lay in the steaks in one layer. Cook about 4–5 minutes per side, turning carefully once. Reduce heat if browning too fast. Continue as needed until the thickest flesh reaches 63°C (145°F), measured away from bone, and is opaque and flakes easily.
Serve
Lift onto a clean plate, allow excess oil to drain and serve immediately with lemon wedges. Remove the central backbone and smaller bones carefully as you eat.
Bring this recipe to your kitchen with a printable copy.
Print recipeRecipe from MyTurkishRecipes · https://myturkishrecipes.com/turkish-pan-fried-bonito-palamut-tava. Quantities reflect your selected serving scale. Cooking times are estimates; follow the doneness cues.
A few helpful kitchen notes
Heat level
No added chili. For optional heat, sprinkle 1 g (½ tsp) gluten-free-labelled hot pul biber over the whole cooked batch.
Dietary notes
The uncoated base recipe is gluten-free with these plain ingredients. Contains fish; it is not vegetarian. Adding ordinary flour would introduce gluten.
Fish handling
Use fresh refrigerated bonito or thaw frozen steaks in the refrigerator. Cook promptly and keep at 4°C (40°F) or below until preparation.
How to store and reheat Palamut Tava
Refrigerate leftovers in a shallow covered container within 2 hours, or 1 hour above 32°C (90°F). Keep at 4°C (40°F) or below and use within 2 days. Reheat to 74°C (165°F) throughout; texture is best when freshly cooked.
Palamut Tava: questions and answers
Does it need flour?
This version is fried without flour, following the simple Düzce approach. Other versions use a flour coating.
Can I use thicker steaks?
They require longer cooking. Use the 63°C (145°F) internal temperature rather than the stated time alone.
