Turkish Cuisine

What are the features of Turkish cuisine? What is worth trying in Turkey from soups, meat and fish dishes? What sweets to try in Turkey? What drinks to try in Turkey?

Excellent Turkish cuisine will not leave anyone indifferent! If this is your first time getting to know her for the first time, you should know the features and main dishes that you should definitely try.
 

Features of Turkish cuisine

• Local cuisine is a combination of Caucasian, Oriental and Balkan dishes. Every tourist will find the best dishes for himself!
• The country is Muslim, and pork in street food is banned here. The main meat dishes are prepared from chicken, beef and lamb. Fish and various seafood are very popular.
• Turkish breakfast is like a small feast. Turkish breakfast is olives, fried sausages with toast, fresh cheese and scrambled eggs. Even if you go to rest on BB (breakfast), you definitely won’t stay hungry in the morning.
• Most dishes are cooked on a spit or grill, meat and fish are very juicy. Spices are added in moderation, focusing on the taste of tourists.

What is worth trying on vacation in Turkey?

The menu in the hotel restaurant will offer you a variety of delicious dishes. But if you want to try the national cuisine, we advise you to take a walk along the streets of the city and visit the cafe where the locals eat.
 

Meze (snacks)

• Hummus – a pâté of chickpeas and tahini paste, with olive oil and lemon juice, generously flavored with garlic
• Piyaz – an unusual omelette made from eggs, beans, tomatoes, olives, fresh herbs and onions
• Haidari – a sauce of cheese, yogurt and olive oil with garlic and nuts, served with flatbread or with meat dishes

Fish dishes

• Balik Ekmek – a baguette sandwich topped with a piece of grilled fish, salad and sauce, a very popular street snack
• Dolma mussels – served in shells, stuffed with rice, seafood on top and always sprinkled with lemon
• Anchovies – small fish fried in batter in a large amount of oil, served with green onions and sprinkled with lemon

Kebabs

• Doner kebab – the meat is fried on a spit, then cut into thin pieces, mixed with onions, tomatoes and lettuce, and wrapped in pita bread
• Iskander kebab – pieces of meat from a spit are mixed with fresh herbs and vegetables, then poured with yogurt and tomato sauce and wrapped in pita bread
• Adana kebab – minced meat is fried on a grill in a pan, mixed with vegetables and herbs, boiled rice and served with pita bread
• Shish kebab – pieces of lamb fried on skewers, served with vegetables and pita bread, an analogue of our shish kebab

vegetable dishes

• Chi kefte – deep fried balls of bulgur, tomato paste and spices, served with a slice of lemon
• Imam baildi – eggplant stuffed with tomatoes, onions and garlic, baked under a cheese crust

Street food

• Lahmakun – a flat cake baked with minced lamb, vegetables and spices
• Pita – a cake with wrapped edges, where you can choose any filling, baked in the oven
• Borek – flatbread baked with homemade cheese and spinach filling
• Kumpir – baked potatoes, where they put the filling of your choice and pour over yogurt sauce
• Corn – boiled sweet corn, grilled, served with salt and sprinkled with lemon juice
• Chestnuts – a special variety of chestnuts, they sell seeds like ours, a popular snack
• Simit – a sesame bun, a popular street snack, you can meet vendors with trays at every step

First meal

Do not be surprised if you are offered to drink soup – in Turkey, first courses are served in deep bowls.

• Lentil chorba is the most popular soup, several types of lentils are grown here, but the most popular is red. Potatoes, carrots and onions are added to the soup, sprinkled with red pepper and poured over with lemon juice.
• Shifa Chorbasy – translated as “healing soup”. The composition includes celery, carrots, onions, parsley, lentils, garlic, potatoes and many different spices.
• Tarkhana – milk soup based on yogurt, with the addition of tomato paste, garlic, butter, onion and hot red pepper

Main dishes

In addition to traditional kebabs, Turks love various meat or vegetable dishes with side dishes.

• Pilaf – unlike ours, rice is prepared separately in chicken broth or in water. The meat is fried in a pan and served separately.
• Kokorech is a dish for offal lovers. Lungs, liver and heart of sheep are boiled, ground into minced meat and stuffed with intestines, then grilled, spices and vegetables are added and served on a piece of toasted bun
• Sujuk – fatty sausage, the main ingredient of scrambled eggs with white bread toast

Sweets

Finally, we got to the most interesting list – the famous Turkish sweets. Needless to say, many tourists first of all want to try them!

• Baklava – it is impossible to count the number of varieties! Puff pastry soaked in honey and topped with nuts
• Tulumba – oblong balls of unleavened dough, deep-fried and soaked in honey syrup
• Lokma – small balls of dough deep fried and sprinkled with sweet syrup

Beverages

• Tea is drunk always and everywhere! Prepared in a special two-tier teapot, and then poured into tulip-shaped glasses
• Turkish coffee is brewed in cezve in special boxes with sand, served in small cups and always with a glass of cold water.
• Ayran – a fermented milk drink based on yogurt, perfectly refreshing in the heat
• Raki – aniseed vodka, 45-50% alcohol, drunk, diluted with water, served with snacks and hot dishes
• Sharap – Turkish dry wine, the most popular brands are Doluca, Sevilen Premium and Kayra