Kızılcık Şerbeti (Cornelian Cherry Sherbet)
کزلجک شربتی (کورنیلین چیری کا شربت)
Cornelian cherries, *kızılcık*, are small, glossy red fruits from a wild shrub that grows across Anatolia. They're far too sour to eat raw, but cooked with sugar they make one of the most famous Ottoman sherbets, served at weddings and feasts. Fresh cornelian cherries aren't sold in Pakistan, so this recipe gives the traditional method plus a close home version using *aloo bukhara* and dried sour cherries.
- ⏱ Total: 35 min
- Prep: 10 min
- Cook: 25 min
- Easy
- Serves 6
Method
Tap a step when it is done.
Rinse the fruit. If using aloo bukhara and dried cherries, soak them in the water for 30 minutes first.
Put the fruit, water and cloves in a . Bring to a boil and simmer for 15 minutes, pressing the fruit with a spoon.
Add the sugar and simmer 5 minutes more. Strain through a fine sieve, pressing out the pulp, and cool.
Chill in a jug and serve over ice.
Pour into glasses and serve cold.
Kitchen notes
The aloo bukhara version is darker and slightly more like plum, but has the same sharp, refreshing sourness.
Taste before chilling. It should be sweet and sour at the same time.
Keeps 4–5 days in the fridge.
An Ottoman wedding sherbet
Sherbets were the drinks of Ottoman celebrations, and cornelian cherry sherbet was one of the most loved: bright red, sharply sour and sweet. It was served at weddings and feasts, and the fruit still grows wild in forests and village gardens across northern and western Turkey, where families make sherbet and jam from it every late summer.
A Pakistani version
Fresh cornelian cherries aren’t sold in Pakistan. The closest flavour comes from a mix of aloo bukhara, which every grocer sells for chutneys and pulao, and dried sour cherries, sold by many dry-fruit shops and online. Together they give the deep red colour and strong sourness the sherbet needs. If you find frozen cornelian cherries in an imported-food shop, use them in the same way.
Balancing sweet and sour
This should be a bold sherbet, much more sour than ordinary sharbat. Add the sugar, simmer, then taste: it should make your mouth water. Add more sugar only a little at a time.
Serving
Serve very cold over ice. It’s lovely at iftar and in summer. For a similar drink with a Pakistani twist, try imli aloo bukhara sharbat.
Questions people ask
What are cornelian cherries?
The fruit of Cornus mas, a shrub related to dogwood. They aren't true cherries, but they look like small, elongated red cherries.
Can I use fresh cherries from Swat or Gilgit?
Sweet cherries are too mild on their own. Mix them with aloo bukhara or add plenty of lemon.
Why is it linked with weddings?
It was a traditional Ottoman wedding sherbet, and the colour red is linked with brides in Turkish custom.
Nutrition (estimate, per serving)
- Calories
- 150
- Protein
- 0 g
- Fat
- 0 g
- Carbs
- 38 g
