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Tarhana Čorba (Bosnian Tarhana Soup)
A tomato-red soup of beef mince, carrot, pepper and celery thickened with tarhana, the tangy dried pellets of fermented dough and yogurt, served in bowls with a dollop of sour cream.
Bosnian · easy · serves 6
prep 20 min · cook 50 min
~303 cal · 20g protein · 11g carbs · 20g fat · 3g fiber · 6g sugars · 8g sat fat (estimated, per serving)
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Tarhana is one of the typical soups of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Its heart is the ingredient that gives it its name: tarhana, a dried mixture of grain and yogurt or soured milk that is , dried and broken into little pellets or coarse crumbs, and kept in the larder to be cooked into soup. The same pantry staple is made across Turkey, the Balkans and the Middle East, and in Bosnian homes it is often made at home and stored for the winter; it can also be bought in Balkan and Turkish shops.
The Bosnian soup is built like many Bosnian dishes, on onion softened in oil, then carrot, pepper and celery, a little minced beef or lamb browned with paprika, and tomatoes. Water goes in, the tarhana follows, and the soup for about twenty minutes, stirred often, until the pellets have swollen and thickened it. The tarhana gives it a gentle sourness.
It is served hot with a spoonful of sour cream in the middle of each bowl and bread on the side, and in small bowls it makes a warming first course.
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Make it yours
✓ Naturally nut-, egg- and pork-free. No swaps needed.
Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.
🥕 Vegetarian
🌱 Vegan
🌾 Gluten-Free
🥛 Dairy-Free
🥜 Nut-Free
🥚 Egg-Free
🐖 Pork-Free
Dietary labels are a cooking guide, not allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish; we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, read the label on every product you use, and note that a kitchen can cross-contaminate in ways a recipe cannot control.
Ingredients
US
Metric
Serves 6
- 2 tbsp sunflower oil
- 1/2 onion, finely chopped
- 2 small carrots, finely diced
- 1 red pepper, finely diced
- 1 celery stick, finely diced
- 400 g beef or lamb mince
- 1 tsp sweet paprika
- 1 tsp salt, plus more to taste
- a pinch black pepper
- 400 g chopped tomatoes (tinned)
- 100 g tomato paste
- 2 litres water
- 150 g (about 3/4 cup) tarhana (dried dough pellets), from Balkan or Turkish shops; it is made with wheat and yogurt
- a handful flat-leaf parsley, chopped
- 6 tbsp sour cream, to serve
Instructions
- 1Heat the oil in a large pot and soften the onion for about 5 minutes. Add the carrot, pepper and celery and cook for 5 to 8 minutes more, until they begin to colour.
- 2Add the mince and cook, breaking it up, for about 8 minutes, until browned. Season with the paprika, salt and pepper.
- 3Stir in the chopped tomatoes and tomato paste, then pour in the water and bring to the boil.
- 4Sprinkle in the tarhana, stirring, and simmer for about 20 minutes, stirring often so it does not catch on the bottom, until the pellets are soft and the soup has thickened.✎ Chef’s noteTarhana keeps absorbing liquid as it stands; loosen leftovers with a little hot water.
- 5Taste for salt, stir in most of the parsley and serve hot with a spoonful of sour cream in each bowl, a little cracked pepper and bread.
Bosnian home cooking.
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🌏 While it simmers, know your destination
📍
Sarajevo. Cevapi here are beef and lamb, ground and shaped without any casing at all, and never pork. They come ten to a portion inside a round of somun still warm from the oven, with raw onion and kajmak, a soured cream skimmed thick and counted as part of the dish rather than a garnish.
🗺️
Bosnia & Herzegovina. Bosnian cevapi are beef and lamb, without pork and without a casing, grilled in fingers and counted out ten to a portion into a warm somun flatbread with raw onion and kajmak. The bread is expected to soak up the fat, and the whole thing is eaten with the hands standing at a counter as often as sitting down.
🌍
Europe. European cooking is built on the land and the seasons, wheat, butter, and cured pork in the north; olive oil, tomatoes, and seafood around the Mediterranean; preserved vegetables and hearty stews through long winters. Centuries of peasant tradition, guild craft, and royal courts refined techniques from French mother sauces to Italian fresh pasta and Central European baking. Regional identity runs remarkably deep, with a single dish often changing from one valley to the next.
The story behind this dish is up top, worth a read while the pot works.
More from Bosnia & Herzegovina
ĆevapiHand-rolled grilled beef fingers tucked into pillowy somun with raw onion and kajmak, Sarajevo’s pride.
Uštipci with KajmakLittle fried dough balls served warm with kajmak clotted cream and soft cheese.
Begova ČorbaA rich, velvety chicken and okra soup finished with a sour cream and egg yolk liaison, the noble Bey's soup of Bosnian cuisine.
Browse all Bosnia & Herzegovina recipes →
Good to know
You’ll need: Pot or saucepan.
Storing it: Soup keeps 3 to 4 days refrigerated and freezes well. Reheat gently and loosen with a little water or stock if needed.
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Cuisine
Diet
Frequently asked questions
What is Tarhana Čorba (Bosnian Tarhana Soup)?
A tomato-red soup of beef mince, carrot, pepper and celery thickened with tarhana, the tangy dried pellets of fermented dough and yogurt, served in bowls with a dollop of sour cream.
Where does Tarhana Čorba (Bosnian Tarhana Soup) come from?
Tarhana Čorba (Bosnian Tarhana Soup) is a Bosnian dish from Sarajevo, Bosnia & Herzegovina.
Can Tarhana Čorba (Bosnian Tarhana Soup) be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?
This Tarhana Čorba (Bosnian Tarhana Soup) recipe includes substitution suggestions for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, egg-free, and pork-free versions. Treat the substitutions as a starting guide rather than a guarantee, and see the allergen note below.
Is Tarhana Čorba (Bosnian Tarhana Soup) safe for people with food allergies?
Our dietary labels and substitutions are a cooking guide, not medical or allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we still count coconut as a tree nut to be cautious, although the FDA stopped listing it as one in 2025), fish, and shellfish, but we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, always read the label on every product you use, and remember a home or commercial kitchen can cross-contaminate ingredients in ways a recipe cannot control.
How long does Tarhana Čorba (Bosnian Tarhana Soup) take to make?
About 70 minutes total (20 minutes prep, 50 minutes cooking), serving 6.
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