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Food in Turkey There are many types of in restaurants in Turkey. Seafood, et restaurant (type of steak house) kebabcı (kebab house specializes in variety of kebabs such as shish kebab ), donerci (a restaurant that specializes in roasted and barbecued meats ) köfteci (a restaurant specializes in meat ball dishes) , pideci (Turkish pizza places) , manti evi ( restaurant sell mainly small size ravioli with yogurt sauce on it) , gözlemeci ( small shops sell only type of filo dough filled with different ingredients to order), çorbacı (a restaurant only serve soups) and lokanta ( Those are the small size restaurants mainly locals go to eat). Seafood or meat specialty restaurants are full of meze dishes. The word meze , loosely translated, actually means “appetizers” or “first courses”. Restaurant menus boast many different types of meze, both hot and cold. Such as Arnavut Ciğeri , Cacık, Kuşkonmaz, Çiğ Köfte, Haydari , Ekşili Patlıcan, Fava , Enginar dolmasi, Humus, Kabak kizartmasi , Kısır , Kuru Bakla Ezmesi, Kuru Fasulye Piyazı , Mercimek Köftesi , Midye Pilakisi, Patlıcan Salatası, Rus Salatası, Tabule, Tarama, Tarator ,Taze Peynir, Tereyağlı Ançüez, Yoğurtlu Patlıcan Salatası, Zeytin Ezmesi, Antep Ezme, Karides Izgara Kalamar Tava, Sigara Böreği Mantar Izgara Midye Tava Kırmızı Köz Biber and so on. I strongly recomended to go eat in lokanta in order to taste real Turkish food. Most of them serve breakfast or lunch to local shop owners. They are clean and carry traditional dishes called sulu yemek . Direct translation is watery food. It can be described as salçalı yemek; dishes cooked with salsa sauce. There are many varieties of Turkish dishes that create Turkish cuisine. The dishes can be categorized: grain-based, grilled meats, vegetables, seafood, desserts and beverages. Kebab and börek dishes can be found everywhere. The dishes varies depending on region. Turkey has seven regions: the Black Sea region, the Marmara region, the Aegean, the Mediterranean, Central Anatolia, the East and Southeast Anatolia regions. For instance, if you are in The Black Sea, you will find more fish meals. Anything related to "hamsi" a small fish similar to the anchovy. Red cabbage, green beans and pickles are basic dishes. The Black Sea people are fishermen, so their ecological companion is the hamsi even became dessert here. But if you are in Aegean cost like in Izmir , try Çupra fish. Çupra fish is exclusively in Aegean Sea. You will eat the best grilled çupra is in Izmir. |
You will find more wheat, bulgur dishes in Anatolia. Tandır kebab is famous there which is vegetables cooked in a clay pot slowly with either meat of lamb or beef in a wood fire clay oven . On the other hand Kuyu tandır is a dish with meat of goat or lamb, cooked in special pits. Meat stuck on the walls cooks very slowly usually served over rice pilaf. You will find kuyu tandır more around village areas than cities. Best mantı, kind of dumpling filled with ground beef, onion and spices, served with garlic yogurt sauce comes from Kayseri. Have you ever eat ravioli? Then imagine ravioli with yogurt sauce, very tasty, it is my favorite dish.
You can buy Börek from pastry shops it is called börekçi, located all over the country. Börek is basically fillo dough filled with many combinations of ingredients such as cheese, spinach, potato, eggplant, zucchini, meat etc. cooked in ovens. Bought by the piece or weight.
All kinds of vegetables are used in many types of dolma . Grape leaves stuffing called yaprak sarma is the peculiar combination of sautéed rice, pine-nuts, currants, spices, herbs and all tightly wrapped. When I was a small girl, mom and I used to race to see who will make pertfectly tight small sarma faster. We all cook sarma for special occasion and picnics. Another version of this called lahana dolma made of leaves of cabbage, each roll exactly half an inch thick and filled with same ingredients with ground meat. You will find from elegant seafood restaurants to street snack Midye dolması ,boiled mussel is filled with rice served in shell. All types of dolma variety of biber, peppers and patlıcan, eggplant can be stuffed with either chesee and fried, or filled with rice and cooked.
By the side of the roads you will see many gözleme houses , where the villager women make filo dough , filled with cheese, spinach, potato, eggplant or ground beef combination cooked on saç like a metal grill with a smooth surface, cook to order.
Spices give the strong taste to Turkish food. Mint leaves or dill weed are used with zucchini, parsley is used with eggplant, a few cloves of garlic has its place in some cold vegetable dishes, and cumin is sprinkled over red lentil soup or mixed in ground meat when making köfte (meat balls). Lemon and yogurt are used to complement both meat and vegetable dishes. Vegetable dishes are so common in Mediterranean and Aegean cost of Turkey. Olive oil used in almost all vegetables dishes, especially salads. When you travel towards eastern Turkey, everything tastes hotter. They use red crushed hot pepper, similar to jalapeño peppers for common spice.
Turkey has many pastry-based desserts. Baklava is well known all over the world. There are many types of baklava in Turkey, depends on region taste will be slightly different. Because sometimes they serve very thick syrup, sometime with honey mixed syrup, with rose water in it. Most familes make their own baklava in their houses. My grandmother ( she is 80 years old and her grandmother was famous cook) still makes the best baklava in all Turkey. I do not buy from tatlıcı, baklava store any baklava, because ıi is not as good as hers. Kadayıf (made from shredded pastry baked in syrup, often filled with pistachio nuts, walnuts or clotted cream) or Şambali , semolina baked then served with heavy syrup. Lokma ,deep-fried lumps of batter served in syrup. Dozen different types of milk puddings awaits you at a muhallebici, pudding shop. Fruit desserts such as Ayva Tatlısı , quince dessert is a very seasonal dessert with a delightful flavor , Kabak Tatlısı , pumpkin in syrup, and Aşure, wheat pudding with many ingredients such as rice, apricots, figs, raisins, rose water, walnuts , and pomegranate. A unique dessert locals are fond of is Irmik Helvası , a confection made from semolina. It is generally prepared for religious feasts. We cook ırmık helvası after a funeral and share with neighbors to grieve with others.
Street snacks are everywhere. Street vendors, especially in summer they sell tasty vegetables like boiled corn on the cob and pickles. In winter they sell cooked kestane chestnut, even pilav with chick peas or dried bean on it. Kumru is the toasted sesame seeds on piece of oval shape bread like dinner roll, filled with feta cheese and tomatoes which is often comes with piece of hot thin green pepper in it. While you are drinking Turkish tea eat that, it is really good. Another version of this is called gevrek some places called simit is again sesame roll is tasty snack option with tea or local drink Ayran . You will find ayran everywhere, it is made of yogurt, salt and water mixed. It is served cold. Turkish tea and coffee houses can be found also. Turkish coffee is pretty strong taste. If you are used to espresso, you will find so tasty. As we say “afiyet olsun” bona petite.
