Turkish food is light. What to try in Turkey from food: the best Turkish cuisine

16.08.2020

Turkish national cuisine is very versatile and original. Its formation was influenced by the fact that Turks, Armenians, Persians, Greeks, Assyrians and many other peoples lived on the territory of this country, each of which left its own unique mark in the culinary history of the state. The list includes popular delicacies such as pilaf, kebab and baklava. You will find their recipes in today's article.

Basic nuances

Indigenous Turks turn every meal into a kind of ritual. All meals are served in sequence. Any meal starts with snacks, which include stuffed vegetables, olives and a variety of pickles. After them, soups, fish or meat dishes and desserts appear on the table.

Vegetables are often used for cooking. Eggplants are especially popular. They are served pickled, stuffed, baked, stewed, steamed or fried. Also, the local population loves to generously add not only to side dishes, but also to various sauces.

Meat is very much appreciated in Turkey. It is consumed in any form, but most often it is grilled or fried in a skillet. Milk occupies a special place in the national cuisine of this state. On its basis, amazing cheeses, delicious desserts and incredibly healthy yoghurts are made.

Turkish eggs

This interesting dish vaguely resembles a traditional omelet. It has an extraordinary taste and is ideal for a family breakfast. Before preparing one of the many Turkish national dishes, check in advance if your kitchen has everything you need. In this case, you will need:

8 chicken eggs.
100 grams of butter.
100 milliliters of broth.
150 grams of chicken liver.
A couple of tomatoes.
Salt and spices.

Washed and dried chicken liver fried on butter... As soon as it acquires a golden hue, it is poured with broth, previously mixed with chopped tomatoes. Beaten salted eggs are also added there. The future omelet is baked in the oven at a standard temperature. Before serving ready meal can be sprinkled with tomato sauce.

Lentil soup

This is one of the most popular Turkish national dishes. It is prepared from simple budget ingredients sold in any supermarket. To pamper your family with such a soup, stock up on everything you need in advance. This time you will need:

3 liters of drinking water.
A couple of tablespoons tomato paste.
1.5 cups red lentils
A tablespoon of flour and ground paprika.
Salt, aromatic spices and vegetable oil.

The washed lentils are poured with cold water and sent to the stove. As soon as the liquid boils, the foam that appears is removed from its surface and left to boil over minimal heat.

A little vegetable oil is poured into a separate saucepan, heated up and wheat flour is fried there. After a few minutes, add tomato paste, a little water, basil and oregano there. Mix everything well and leave on the stove. After a couple of minutes, a little more water is added there and the resulting frying is sent to a pan with lentils. All this is salted, seasoned with mint and almost immediately removed from the burner. The finished soup is grinded through a sieve and poured into bowls. A little lemon juice is squeezed into each portion.

Baklava

This dessert is very popular not only among the local population, but also among numerous tourists. Like all other recipes for Turkish national dishes, this option assumes the presence of a certain set of components. Therefore, before starting to work with the test, check if you have at hand:

250 grams of butter.
Egg.
300 grams of powdered sugar.
A pound of wheat flour.
200 milliliters of milk.
Cinnamon, salt and walnuts.
A glass of water and sugar.
A tablespoon of honey.

Like many other national Turkish dishes, photos of which can be seen in today's publication, baklava is prepared using the simplest technology possible. Into a bowl filled with sifted wheat flour, alternately add a pinch of salt, melted butter and warmed milk. Everything is well kneaded until a sufficiently cool, but at the same time elastic mass is obtained. Ready dough placed in a plastic bag and left for half an hour.

In the meantime, you can do the rest of the products. Grind the nuts with a meat grinder and combine with cinnamon and icing sugar... The present dough is divided into twelve approximately identical balls. Each of them is rolled out in a thin layer, greased with butter, sprinkled with nut filling and rolled, tucking the edges inward. The resulting blanks are laid out on a baking sheet. Their surface is smeared with yolk. Products are baked at two hundred degrees for about a quarter of an hour. Then the temperature is lowered to 160 0 C. Baklava is coated with butter and returned to the oven. After fifty minutes, it is transferred to a deep bowl, poured with a syrup consisting of water, sugar and honey, and left for six hours.

Pilaf

This is one of the simplest and most hearty Turkish national dishes. It is prepared from inexpensive and readily available ingredients. To create it you will need:

700 grams of chicken.
1.5 cups long rice
A couple of tablespoons of pine nuts.
A pound of tomatoes.
3 tablespoons of butter.
Bulb.
A handful of parsley, basil and dried cranberries.
Salt and spices.

In a thick-bottomed frying pan, in which there is already butter, lay out the washed and dried chicken. As soon as it is browned, half rings of onion are added to it and continue to fry. A few minutes later, pine nuts and tomatoes rubbed through a sieve are sent there. Almost immediately, washed cranberries, chopped greens and rice are placed in the pan. All this is poured with water, covered with a lid and cooked until the liquid is completely absorbed. Before serving, pilaf is garnished with basil.

Lula kebab

It is one of the many culinary delights for which Turkish cuisine is renowned. The national dishes of this country are known far beyond its borders. Therefore, in order to try lula kebab, it is not at all necessary to go to Turkey. You can also cook it in your own kitchen. To do this, you will need:

A kilo of lean lamb.
100 grams of bell pepper.
200 g fat tail fat.
25 grams of wheat flour.
75 g garlic.
100 grams of parsley.
150 g tomatoes.
0.25 kg onions.

The flour is soaked in a small amount hot water and wring out. Lamb, pepper and fat tail fat are ground in a meat grinder and sent to the refrigerator. An hour later, the minced meat is salted, seasoned with spices and carefully strung on skewers. Lula-kebab is fried on smoldering coals, not forgetting to periodically turn it over. It is served with a sauce made from chopped tomatoes, onions, garlic and parsley.

Turkish coffee

This aromatic invigorating drink leaves a pleasant aftertaste. Prepare it in several different recipes(a photo of Turkish national dishes can be found while reading this article). To make real strong coffee, you will need:

A couple of teaspoons of sugar.
Ground coffee.
A teaspoon of cinnamon and vanilla.
A pod of cardamom.
Carnation.
200 milliliters of water.

Ground coffee is poured into the preheated cezve. Poured there cold water and place the utensil on the stove. The drink is kept on minimal heat for half an hour, not allowing it to boil. In the process of cooking, sugar, spices and spices are added to the cezve. Ready coffee is poured into cups and served at the table.

Revaney

This delicious dessert also belongs to Turkish national dishes. It is a delicate pie soaked in lemon syrup. To prepare it, you will need:

3 eggs.
A glass of flour, semolina and sugar.
200 milliliters of vegetable oil and yogurt.
Baking powder bag.

In order to cook the syrup, prepare in advance:

3 glasses of water.
Juice of half a lemon.
3 cups of sugar.

Eggs are combined with yogurt and sugar, and then beat, gradually adding semolina, flour, baking powder and vegetable oil. The finished dough is poured into a mold with high sides and sent to the oven. Dessert is baked at one hundred and fifty degrees for at least forty minutes. The cooled cake is cut into portions and poured over with hot syrup consisting of water, sugar and lemon juice.

Istanbul style eggplants

This spicy appetizer also applies to national dishes Turkish cuisine... It is prepared so simply that even a novice cook can do it without any problems. It includes:

3 large eggplants.
Medium onion head.
3 fresh tomatoes.
Medium carrot.
150 grams of celery root.
Sweet bell pepper.
A slice of garlic.
A bunch of parsley.
A pinch of ground dried thyme.
Salt, spices, and vegetable oil.

Eggplants are cut lengthwise and soaked in cold salty water. After half an hour, they are washed, dried and fried on the inside for vegetable oil... The browned pulp is separated from the skin and chopped.

Boil peeled carrots and celery until half cooked and cut into small cubes. The pepper is baked in the oven, separated from the peel and seed, and chopped. All this is combined in one vessel. Fried onions, chopped tomatoes, salt, aromatic herbs and chopped garlic are also added there. The resulting mass is spread in eggplant boats and baked at a standard temperature.

Turkish cuisine is very different and is fraught with many different delicacies: first courses, second courses, salads, hot and cold appetizers with savory sauces, drinks, sweet dough products - all this has incomparable taste, being prepared according to the traditional recipes of the country, and therefore is unique food and drink.

The basis of the national cuisine of Turkey is vegetables and cereals, mostly wheat and rice. An equally important place is given to meat dishes. The Turks do not season their dishes with spices and spices in large quantities, but put seasonings in moderation, believing that the true taste of delicacies should not be interrupted. The people love stewed and stuffed vegetables. The chefs use minced meat as a filling, sometimes it is mixed with rice and other cereals. Eggplants and bell peppers are very popular among vegetables. National Turkish dishes are very famous: pilaf, boreki (bereki), dolma with minced rice, manti, shashlik - all these delights are served in Europe, clearly following the classic recipes.

Fish dishes are not well-known in Turkey. The cooks are very careful in cooking and are kind to their work, and therefore use exclusively fresh fish and seafood. For this reason, dishes from these products are served only in establishments located near the sea.

Turkish people bake a lot different bread, baking from plain and puff pastry.

This eastern country is famous for an abundance of sweets: a lot of delicious pies, cakes with filling, Turkish delight, baklava, halva, puddings. Among the drinks, the Turks prefer coffee, which must be freshly brewed.

Turkey's meat dishes are nutritious, vegetables are always very tender, sweet desserts will turn everyone's head. Spiciness, piquancy, sophistication, softness, sweetness - all this is about traditional Turkish dishes.

It is not so difficult to get acquainted with the nuances of cooking oriental dishes of this country, especially using the ones offered on our website step by step recipes with a photo, after mastering which you yourself will be able to give master classes in cooking Turkish dishes.

Turkish recipes with step by step photos

Puff pastry baklava
Imam Bayaldy
Turkish baklava
Lavash roll with minced meat
Lahmajun
Chicken tabaka with potatoes
Shish kebab
Lamb with potatoes in a slow cooker
Turkish shawarma
Turkish eggplants with minced meat
Chicken saute
Filo dough baklava

Characteristics of the peculiarities of the national cuisine of Turkey

The characteristics of the peculiarities of the national cuisine of Turkey are very interesting: the inhabitants of the country make magnificent dishes from meat, vegetables, fruits, without overusing spices and spices, their unique sweets do not leave indifferent anyone who once tasted a delicacy, and the recipes of traditional drinks because of their excellent taste popular outside their homeland.

If we turn to the history of Turkish cuisine, it is worth noting that it is ancient. Its formation was influenced by Greek, Armenian, Egyptian, Arabic, French, Italian. Today there is an assimilation with the Russian, Uzbek cuisine... Nevertheless, culinary area Turkey has its own characteristics. Chefs replenish the menu of cafes, restaurants original dishes, and housewives experiment with ingredients at home, deviating slightly from classic recipes, creating new unique dishes.

The eastern country is the owner of the Mediterranean cuisine. That is why residents give their preference to vegetables, fruits, nuts and spices. Regarding the latter, Turkish wives, aunts, professional chefs and everyone who is connected with cooking has one very important rule: you cannot overdo it with seasonings, because the real taste of the dish should remain that way, you cannot hide or saturate it with sauces and seasonings. That is, in a lamb dish, lamb should be felt, in pepper - pepper, and beans - beans, and so on.

Almost all dishes are seasoned with olive oil, lemon juice and fermented milk products, often with plain yogurt. Since Turkey is an eastern country, which is very hot, they prepare breakfast, lunch and dinner very quickly, for one meal.

Breakfast at the Turks has its own characteristics. At this time, the table is served as for a holiday, many different treats are served: bread, flat cakes, hard cheese and feta cheese, butter, jam, cut vegetables, fresh fruits, eggs. For breakfast in Turkey, it is customary to drink exclusively freshly brewed tea. Here coffee is inferior to him. The morning meal should be very satisfying, unhurried, energized for the whole day. Family members gather at the table and share plans, slowly discuss matters.

Breakfasts in cafes and restaurants are quite common. To raise the spirits, these establishments are located on the embankments, by the sea, in nature, where an incredible view opens up to the eyes. An average earner can afford a breakfast of minced meat pie, cheese or spinach, buns filled with olives, olives, potatoes, cheese, and a sesame bagel called simit.

There are a lot of dishes on the table for lunch or dinner. The most popular dish is Turkish kebab. This is meat that is cooked over an open fire. They use not only ram and lamb meat, but also poultry - chicken, in rare cases fish. Today there are several varieties of barbecue: for example, if classic recipe, to which we are accustomed, the meat is strung on a skewer and fried over the fire, then this is a shish-kebab, but if a whole lamb carcass is baked in the ground, then it turns out a tandoor-kebab.

Interestingly, all the ingredients for the first, second course or appetizers are cooked in one bowl. Thanks to this, the food turns out to be more aromatic, and the taste seems even richer.

Residents of Antalya attach great importance to harvesting for the winter. They can also preserve vegetables and fruits. These can be your favorite eggplants, peppers, tomatoes, pears, apples. Products are procured different ways... Sometimes they just dry in the sun. This applies more often to fruits. By the way, Antalya people love to refresh themselves with street food. Kokorich (or, as it is also called, kokorech) is gut-covered mutton giblets. It doesn't sound very appetizing, but it is tasty and adored by the Turks.

The most popular products that are used to prepare almost all dishes are meat, vegetables, olives (also olives), cereals, dairy, and legumes. Meat for the Turks is very valuable, and therefore they eat it, subjecting it to various heat treatments. However, it is most often fried on the grill, over an open fire, or at home on the stove using a regular skillet.

Among vegetables, eggplants take pride of place, since they are bought at any time of the year. Eggplants can be boiled, stewed, fried, stuffed, baked, pickled, and salted. It is pickled and salted vegetables that are served as an appetizer on the table. In Turkey, tomatoes are also loved, which chefs use during the preparation of sauces, pasta, and various side dishes. Olives and olives, like tomatoes, are also an integral part of the Turkish diet. They are put in main dishes, side dishes, or put on the table as a snack.

You cannot do without cereals during cooking. They serve as one of the main ingredients for the first and second courses. This product is essential for baking the famous Turkish bread. The most common cereal is, perhaps, rice. Traditional pilaf is cooked on its basis, adding vegetables, meat, fish.

Using dairy products, Turkey makes incredible desserts and "branded" yoghurts. There are a lot of all kinds of cheeses in this eastern country. Turks love to pickle cheese in brine and enjoy incredible taste feta cheese, feta. These products are often used to fill baked goods.

As we said, fish is not used very often, however, the dishes are very tasty. The important thing is that it is not difficult to cook fish at home, since the recipes are very simple. Turks cook from popular varieties - red mullet, stingray, mullet, swordfish. There are a lot of crabs, shrimps, octopuses, squids, cuttlefish, mussels, lobsters and other seafood. Such a wide choice allows the Turks to cook a lot of all kinds of "sea" dishes.

Now let's summarize:

One main thing a traditional dish in oriental cuisine is absent. All dishes are equally important on the table and all create an overall picture of Turkish cuisine.

Turkey is the owner of almost all products: it contains meat, vegetables, fruits, berries, seafood and fish. That is why there are a lot of various dishes - the ingredients alternate, change, supplement with spices, spices and something new, original is obtained.

Turkish dishes bring great benefits to the body, because in the cooking process they use healthy foods... For heat treatment, choose cooking, stewing, baking. They do not fry so often. Dishes are rarely too greasy.

There is always a wide selection of food on the table for breakfast, lunch and dinner, because you do not need to have a snack, but eat abundantly, satisfyingly, in order to get energy and a reserve of strength.

With the design of dishes among the Turks, everything is at the highest level: the dishes always look very beautiful, appetizing, bright, emit a pleasant aroma that awakens the desire to try it sooner.

There are traditions regarding serving dishes on the table. Initially, snacks are served. In Turkey they are called "meze". These are stuffed vegetables, olives, salted and pickled foods. Further - the main meals. The main thing is the soup. After that, dishes of meat, fish and side dishes are already served. Finally, they are fortified with desserts.

Eating is a long process, since the Turks eat slowly and chew their food thoroughly. In addition, you need to try every dish on the table. This all takes time. Conversations are being conducted in parallel.

It is not customary to eat alone in Turkey. You should always get together with your family, friends, colleagues and have a meal together.

So now you know what Turkish cuisine is. We will tell you about the varieties of all foods below.

Main dishes

The main dishes in Turkey are quite varied: here it is initially customary to eat snacks, then vegetables, meat, chicken, fish soups and stews, pilaf (with a lot of minor ingredients in addition to cereals), meat and vegetable dishes, without which every meal is not complete.

Traditionally, the meal begins with snacks. It is most often prepared from eggplants adored by the Turks.

Famous vegetable dishes are moussaka and karniyaryk. Moussaka is obtained if eggplants are baked in the oven filled with minced meat, seasoned with spices. Karniyaryk differs in that the eggplants are cut into halves, laid out on a baking sheet, minced meat is spread on them and so baked. Main dishes are also made from eggplant: the vegetable is baked whole, then cut and spread on lightly toasted bread. Pieces are placed on the eggplant fried meat and all this is dressed with yogurt.

In addition to eggplant snacks, they are made from other vegetables. Simple but very delicious dish is kyzartma. Vegetables are fried in deep-fried butter (this can be zucchini, the same eggplants, cucumbers, tomatoes, potatoes, peppers), then served on a plate with fresh bread.

One of the most popular snacks is sarma - a kind of stuffed cabbage, only instead of minced meat, pilaf is used as a filling for cabbage leaves. Other cold snacks are also famous. For example, khaidari is made from feta cheese, mint, sugar and yogurt; karidesh povech is made from shrimp, tomatoes, garlic, all this is baked and spices are added; firinda mantar - mushrooms baked in a sauce with cheese.

Wide selection of Turkish first courses. Soups and stews are prepared with different products and in different ways. For example, stew is hot and cold. The first, that is, hot, is known as chorbu and is prepared with tomatoes, lentils and other vegetables. The second, jajik, is made with cucumbers, garlic, ayran, and herbs. There are also several types of soups, depending on the products used:

merdzimek chorbasy - cooked on red lentils;

tarhana chorbasy - consists of dry and crushed products - peppers, onions, tomatoes, yeast combined with flour;

chorbasy yogurt - made on the basis of yogurt;

imkembe chorbasy - speak with giblets, vinegar and garlic heads.

Shurpa (or shorpu) is also cooked - rice soup with potatoes.

The most famous second course is pilaf. It is often cooked with rice, but it is no less famous with wheat. Less often, pilaf is made from achma.

Rice pilaf. By traditional recipe a meal is prepared from, of course, cereals, tomatoes, nuts, meat (often chicken fillet), butter, herbs (parsley and basil), berries (cranberries or cherries). Making classic Turkish pilaf at home is a snap. The recipe is not complicated. Pine nuts are fried in an empty pan, the onion is cut into half rings, the greens are washed and chopped. Tomatoes are peeled and grated, turning into gruel. The meat, cut into pieces, is fried in a cauldron or high-sided frying pan in butter. Then nuts, tomato paste, herbs, berries and spices are added. After that, washed rice is poured and everything is poured with boiling water, and when ready it is infused under a closed lid.
Wheat pilaf. During cooking, the cereals must be stewed along with vegetables - onions, peppers (red or green - to the taste of the cook), tomatoes, meat. Pilaf is being prepared in a cauldron. First, onion chopped into half rings is fried in oil, then chopped pepper is added, and after a while - tomatoes. Further, wheat, called "bulgur" in Turkey, and chopped greens are sent to the cauldron. After frying, the composition is poured with water, seasoned and stewed under a closed lid until the cereal absorbs the boiling water and the pilaf is ready.

Meat dishes are also at the heart of the meal, which can be served as a separate dish, or can be used as a side dish or as a snack. A common shashlik fried on skewers in Turkey is called "shish-kebab", Turkish shawarma is "dener-kebab", "tandyr-kebab" is the name of a kebab that is baked in the ground. Side dishes are served with the second course. For example, dolma, known in many countries, is a kind of stuffed cabbage, when minced meat or meat is wrapped in cabbage and grape leaves. They complement the dishes and kyuft - small round minced meat patties, kuzu pyrzola - lamb ribs straight from the grill, menemen - an omelet with vegetables.

There are many appetizers, first and second courses, side dishes in Turkish cuisine, and all of them are magnificent and truly unique in their own way.

Turkish salads and sauces

There are many Turkish salads: they are prepared with vegetables (eggplants, tomatoes, cucumbers, cabbage, broccoli), meat, olives and olives, mushrooms, seafood, beans and much more.

One of the best salads Turkey is considered "Piyaz", where the main ingredient is dry beans. It is boiled. The same is done with the eggs. The onions are pickled in vinegar. Chopped tomatoes and eggs, mixed with boiled beans, then add onions and all this is seasoned special sauce from lemon juice, grape vinegar, sesame paste, cumin, garlic, mushy beans, olive oil. As a result, the ingredients are mixed, garnished with parsley, olives and served.

The popular Turkish eggplant salad is Patlijan. Vegetables are baked in the oven, peeled, then the excess liquid is decanted and the eggplants are cut into small pieces. Next, they are mixed with minced garlic, a mixture of olive oil, yogurt and lemon juice. Apart from this unusual sauce, the taste of the salad is very intense due to the ground black and cayenne pepper.

Is there some more vegetable salad with crackers. The ingredients (baked bell peppers, toasted bread, tomatoes, onions, lettuce) are chopped, broken or torn, mixed and seasoned. The sauce is again unusual as it consists of lemon juice, olive oil and pomegranate syrup. Top of the salad is decorated with chopped herbs.

Tasty and common in Turkey salad with wheat, that is, with bulgur - "Kysyr". The groats are boiled and cooled in tomato paste. Pine nuts are fried in a pan. Cucumbers, tomatoes, onions are cut. Mint and parsley are chopped. The whole composition is mixed and seasoned with a classic lemon-olive sauce with chili flakes and sumac.

Turkish salads are easy to prepare, sometimes with a minimal amount of ingredients, but at the same time satisfy the needs of the most fastidious gourmets. The sauces in the dishes are unique, unusual and almost every one contains a mixture of olive oil and lemon juice.

Traditional pastries and sweets

Traditional Turkish pastries and sweets are very original and created for every taste: there are flour products with and without filling, a variety of bagels and bagels, there are also sweet treats that melt in your mouth.

In Turkey, bagels are called "simit", they are sprinkled with sesame seeds on top. They also eat soft cakes called "pita" with yeast or "gözlem" stuffed. Berek bagels are practically a visiting card of Turkish cuisine. We have already noted the fact that the Turks bake their own national bread: black - somun and white - ekmek. They also make lahmajun - pizza with sausage, meat and vegetable filling.

As for sweets, Turkey is famous for them all over the world. The cook's ready-made delicacies are filled with sugar, syrups, and therefore the already sweet food turns out to be rather sugary. This is in the style of the Turks, since these people are avid lovers of sweets.

The key role is played by the Turkish baklava, known to us as "baklava". This is not just a sweetness, a symbol of respect and some kind of tribute. Guests who are dear to the host are treated to such a meal; during matchmaking, baklava is also indispensable, as in the process of celebrating the birth of a child. On the eve of religious festivals, baklava is an obligatory decoration of every table.

There are also traditional desserts that are prepared only in Turkey, and therefore they are characteristic only for this eastern country. There are simply no similar ones in Russian and other cuisines. These milky sweets resemble manna and soufflé at the same time. We are talking here about syutlach, muhallebi and kazandibi. You should definitely try them while vacationing in Turkey.

Indicative, but already widespread far beyond the borders of the historical homeland, are other goodies - Turkish delight, halva, candied fruits.

Beverages

Drinks in Turkey are famous for: and the people do not live a day without coffee, tea, milk drink, while alcohol is not in demand because of the faith of the residents of the country - Islam.

The Turks drink coffee every day and at every meal, in addition to breakfast. In the morning, it is customary to drink exclusively tea. All sorts of drink are common. Equally common, along with black and green, are red, white, fruit (apple, pear), citrus (orange, lemon, grapefruit), berry (strawberry, strawberry, raspberry) drinks. In Turkey, merchants walk the streets and sell tea in cups. In addition, there are special counters and shops in the markets where tea leaves are sold by weight, so that you can feel the aroma and only then buy.

The Turks also quench their thirst with ayran, their national milk drink, which is made from yogurt.

As for alcohol, in Turkey it is not as popular as tea or coffee, because the country is Muslim. There are only semi-sweet or dry wines, which are consumed exclusively on holidays, and raki - Turkish vodka diluted with water.

Popular Turkish food names

We will share with you the names of popular Turkish dishes and give them a short description, so that when you meet them in the menu of restaurants or cafes, you will already know whose food is in front of you. After that, you may also decide to try making these dishes at home.

Name	Description
First meal
Arabashi chorbasy	This is a meat soup chicken broth, the peculiarity of which is that it is served not with ordinary bread, but with a special dough, which must be eaten with the dish itself with a spoon.
Ishkembe Chorbasy	The dish is based on the offal of beef or lamb. Put garlic with onions, if desired, season with citrus juice (lemon or orange) or diluted vinegar essence.
Merdzimek Chorbasy	Soup, which is cooked with red lentils, herbs and peppers (supplemented with other vegetable products as well).
Tarkhana Chorbasy	A dish based on tarkhana - tomatoes dried and chopped together with pepper and onions, combined with yeast and flour.
Shehrieli yeshil merjimek chorbasy	Lentil noodle soup.
Ezogelin Chorbasy	The dish is prepared with tomatoes, bulgur (wheat), red lentils, rice grits, tomatoes or pasta. It is also called "Bride's Soup".
Yayla Chorbasy	The peculiarity is that the food is seasoned with yogurt. Composition: rice groats, butter, mint.
Meat dishes
Adana kebab	Minced meat, which is fried on skewers with hot pepper Chile.
Dener kebab	Grilled meat stuffed with vegetables and spices.
Iskender Kebab	This is lamb meat with tortillas. A mixture of tomato paste, olive oil, yogurt is used as a sauce.
	Small cutlets or meatballs from any meat product.
	This is meat pilaf with vegetables made from rice, wheat, achma or other cereals, which is stewed in a cauldron.
	Meat and vegetable cubes baked in the oven.
Shish kebab	Meat with tomatoes and peppers, which are fried on the grill or over the fire. Shashlik.

Antep ezmesi	Chopped onions with pepper, parsley and mint, which are seasoned with lemon-olive sauce with tomato paste, red pepper paste.
	An appetizer of cucumbers, garlic, pepper, mint, seasoned with yoghurt sauce with lemon juice, olive oil.
Karidesh Gyuvech	A dish that consists of oven-baked shrimp, tomatoes and minced garlic.
Berek cigar	Fried or baked dough sausages stuffed with feta cheese and parsley.
Firinda mantar	Filled mushrooms baked in sauce different kinds cheeses.
Hawuch ezmesi	Carrot and pepper cream, seasoned with a yoghurt mixture with olive oil, lemon juice.
	A creamy snack consisting of feta cheese, yoghurt, sugar and mint.

	Vegetable (tomatoes, onions, cucumbers) with bulgur (wheat) and nuts.
Patlyjan	Eggplant salad with garlic, seasoned with chopped parsley with olive oil.
	From beans, tomatoes, eggs, onions. Sauce - olive oil, sesame paste, lemon juice, grape vinegar, bean gruel.
	Arugula, which is fried with meat (chicken).
	Tomato-cucumber with onion, feta cheese and pepper.

	Bagels stuffed with a mixture of cheese, herbs and spices.
	Flatbread with different fillings(cheese-spinach, meat, vegetable, cottage cheese).
Lahmajun	Thin flatbread, sprinkled with minced meat, vegetable slices, spices. This is analogous to pizza.
	"Boat" with cheese filling and onions, tomatoes, herbs.
	Yeast-baked flatbread with meat, vegetable, cheese filling.
	Sesame bagels.
	Turkish analogue of the white bread we are used to.
Sweets
Quince tatlysy	Boiled quince in syrup, served with cream.
	Puff pastry, where chopped nuts are placed between each layer, and sprinkled with pomegranate seeds on top.
Jezerye	Jelly made from fruits and pomegranate juice, carrot syrup and pistachios.
Tavern Tatlysy	Candied pumpkin, boiled in pieces.
	Cookies with jam or jam inside. Can be baked without filling.
	Balls of dough fried in butter or cream, poured over with sweet syrup.
	Sugar and honey cubes with pistachios, dried fruits, coconut or nuts.
	Nut or pistachio flour sweetness in syrup.
	A delicacy in the form of grape juice syrup.
	Pie with semolina in syrup.
	Rice porridge cooked in milk with vanilla.
	The sweetness of the dough in a syrup without filling in the shape of a cylinder.
	Sesame sugar paste with cocoa powder.

	Drinking yoghurt based.
	A mass of yeast, sugar and millet that ferments and produces a sweet drink.
	Drinking from brewing ground coffee or grains. With or without sugar.
	It is an alcoholic drink of the Turkish nation. "Vodka" made from anise, which is mixed with mineral water.
Salgam (shalgam)	Bitter-sour turnip-based drink.
Salep (salip)	A milk drink that is consumed hot.
	Drinking from different types of tea, which is brewed fresh.
	Grape juice.
	Turkish wine.

Now you know what Turkish cuisine is, what are the features of such dishes and drinks. You can safely try to cook or enjoy in restaurants, cafes. Everyone is satisfied with the taste, therefore be sure to reproduce at home one of the step by step photos recipes given on this page.

Many culinary historians say that there are only three great cuisines in the world: Chinese, French and Turkish. Indeed, Turkish national cuisine is real cooking masterpiece and one of the most important elements of the richest Turkish culture.

Contemporary Turkish cuisine is very diverse as it has been shaped by the influence of culinary traditions of the most diverse peoples. So, Turkish cuisine has a lot in common with the cuisines of other Islamic peoples, with the Caucasian, Balkan cuisines. Many features of Turkish cuisine are also characteristic of Greek ones. The peak of the development of Turkish cuisine was the times of the Ottoman Empire: the Ottomans paid great attention to cooking, more than a thousand chefs worked at the same time in the Sultan's palace, and the national cuisine absorbed all the best from the cuisines of the peoples who inhabited the territories that were part of the Ottoman Empire - North Africa. Middle East, Balkans. Many Turkish dishes spread throughout the world during the wars of the Turks with other peoples - in particular, it was during the Russian-Turkish war in Russia that they learned how to cook well-known cabbage rolls.

In the twentieth century, following the formation of the Turkish Republic, the Ottoman culinary heritage became Turkish national cuisine.

The Turks traditionally eat a variety of grains, the most popular of which is wheat. From wheat, the Turks bake bread (baslama, pita, katmer) and all kinds of flour products. One of the most important types of dough pastries is burek - filled pastries. So, the word "cheburek" is translated from Turkish as "minced meat pie". Other popular dough dishes are gözleme (stuffed flatbread), lahmakun (Turkish pizza), manti (Turkish dumplings).

Cereals are also used as cereals from which bulgur is prepared. Rice and couscous are also popular. The Turks also pay great attention to all kinds of legumes - they cook peas, chickpeas, lentils, white beans... As in other Islamic countries, hummus is very popular.

Traditional Turkish cuisine is famous for its wide selection of dairy products - this tradition has been preserved since the days of the nomadic Turks. Turkish yogurt is served with many dishes, and ayran (a cold salty drink, which is a mixture of yogurt and water) and cold cucumber soup tsatsik (dzatzik) are made from it. Sheep's milk cheeses are popular.

Turkish cuisine, like many others, is distinguished by its seasonality. So, in the hot season, the Turks can do well without meat and eat mainly fresh vegetables... The most important vegetables in Turkish cuisine are onions, garlic, tomatoes, peppers and eggplant. Turks cook vegetables like fresh salads and hot meals. Dolma is a separate category of dishes - a dish considered to be the progenitor of cabbage rolls well known to us. However, the Turks do not limit themselves to rolling the filling into cabbage leaves - they also stuff zucchini, eggplant, tomatoes, pumpkin, paprika, beetroot and grape leaves. Interestingly, minced meat is usually not added to the filling - the correct dolma should be stuffed with rice, spices, nuts and dried fruits.

In the winter season, the Turks are happy to cook various meat and fish dishes Turkish national cuisine. Pork is traditionally not eaten here, but mutton and chicken are popular. Most often minced meat is used, but there are other groups of dishes that differ little from the dishes of other Islamic cuisines - in particular, kebab and kofta.

The stereotype that Turks do not eat soups is not true. On the contrary, soups are an important element in the diet of every Turk. However, liquid soups are really unpopular here - usually thicker soups-mashed potatoes are made from legumes, dairy products, and cereals.

The pride of Turkish cuisine is confectionery. In variety confectionery hardly anyone can compare with the Turks - there are hundreds of varieties of cookies, sweets and other sweets. For their preparation, mainly sugar, honey, dried fruits, nuts and various spices are used.

Any Turkish meal is impossible without drinks. In summer, the number one drink is refreshing ayran, compotes and sorbets, and in winter - warm and high-calorie boza and sahlep drinks. In addition, the Turks drink tea and coffee all year round and around the clock - this country has a very developed culture of drinking both of these drinks. Alcoholic beverages are unpopular (Muslims are prohibited from drinking alcohol), however traditional Turkish alcoholic drinks still exist - these are various fruit and berry wines and also a strong alcoholic drink called rakia.

Turkish cuisine is replete with all kinds of dishes with unique flavors and is able to whet the appetite of even the most fastidious gourmet. An abundance of meat dishes, recipes from seafood and vegetables, sweets and pastries for every taste every year win the hearts (or rather, stomachs) of travelers who find themselves in the country. Many Turkish foods are high in calories, as their main ingredients are often meat, olive and butter, flour and rice. Food is fried and baked in the oven here, and many desserts are deep-fried.

Of course, in the country there are National dishes and for adherents healthy eating, which are prepared on the basis of vegetables, legumes and dietary meat... To learn all the intricacies and secrets of Turkish cuisine, we decided to conduct our own gastronomic investigation.

Turkish breakfast

Kahvaltı - this is how breakfast sounds in Turkish. The name comes from the words "kahve" (coffee) and "altı" (before), which can be roughly interpreted as "food before coffee." A real Turkish breakfast can truly be called royal, because it looks more like a buffet than a standard set of morning meals. Food in Turkey on the morning table is beautifully shaped into special dishes, where there are:

Although the word Kahvaltı implies drinking coffee, Turks usually drink several glasses of freshly brewed black tea at breakfast, which has a high invigorating effect. And a couple of hours after your morning meal, you can enjoy a cup of strong Turkish coffee.

First meal

Turkish national cuisine offers a rich selection of first courses, among which there are various soups. Soup in Turkey is a slightly different food than we used to think: it is usually a thick substance made from ground ingredients and looks more like a puree soup. And in Turkish there is no expression “to eat soup”, because here they “drink” it, so do not be surprised if a barker from a local restaurant offers you “to drink excellent soup”. The most popular first courses in Turkey are:

Lentil soup

Many types of legumes are grown in the country, among which lentils (red, yellow, green) have won great love. It was red lentils that became the main component of the famous national soup, which, according to various recipes, can be supplemented with onions, carrots and potatoes. Such a dish must be seasoned with red pepper flakes and lemon juice.

Shifa Chorbasy

Translated from Turkish, the name of this dish means "medicinal soup", and there is a reasonable explanation for this. The chowder is made up of vitamin-rich ingredients and is commonly consumed in winter to prevent and treat colds. The main components of Shifa Chorbys are red lentils, celery, onions, carrots, parsley, red and black peppers.

In traditional Turkish cuisine, a special dried mixture of flour, yoghurt, red peppers, onions and tomatoes is often used for preparing first courses. This ingredient gives the soup original taste and density. It is especially honored here milk soup Tarkhana, in which, in addition to the mixture, tomato paste, garlic and butter are added.

Meat dishes

Although red meat in Turkey is quite expensive, the Turks simply adore it, therefore, many national dishes of Turkish cuisine are prepared from meat products. The abundance of such foods allows you to diversify your daily diet with food from beef, lamb, veal and lamb, as well as chicken and turkey. Among the culinary delights that you should definitely try when visiting the country, you can highlight:

Doner kebab

We all know this food oriental cuisine like a kebab, which means fried meat. There are many versions of this dish in Turkey, each of which has its own unique recipe. Perhaps the most famous type of kebab is doner kebab, for which the meat is fried on a spit and then cut into thin pieces and mixed with onions, lettuce and tomatoes, after which it is flavored with seasonings and dressings and rolled into pita bread. In fact, this is the same as shawarma, but in Turkey this concept is not used.

Other versions of kebab are worth noting:

Adana kebab

Adana kebab. The recipe for this dish comes from the city of Adana, and its main ingredient is minced meat, which is fried on the grill and served along with rice, vegetables, herbs and thick pita bread.
Iskander kebab. The finest slices of red meat, fried on a skewer, are served on slices of thick pita bread laid out on a plate and complemented with vegetables and herbs. Such a dish necessarily includes yogurt, a special tomato sauce, and, if desired, can be poured with melted butter.
Shish kebab. This Turkish dish is a shish kebab served with rice and baked peppers.

In Turkish cuisine, pilaf is often called plain white rice, boiled in water or chicken broth with the addition of butter or olive oil. This dish is not always served with meat and may contain chickpea chickpeas, vegetables, or small noodles. Of course, pilaf is often served with chicken, lamb or beef, whose pieces are fried separately along with onions.

If you are a lover of non-standard cuisine and do not know what to try in Turkey, then be sure to order kokorech at the restaurant. Such food is prepared from the intestines of young sheep, in which the giblets of the animal are wrapped - the liver, heart, kidneys and lungs. All these ingredients are fried on a skewer, seasoned with spices, then finely chopped and laid out on a crispy roll.

Sudjuk - Turkish sausage with beef or lamb fat, the main difference between which from others sausages serves as a way to prepare it. Sujuk is not smoked or boiled, but it is dried and the resulting product is abundantly seasoned with various spices. You cannot eat such sausage raw, so it is always fried in a pan. Sujuk is often added to scrambled eggs, toast, or spread on white bread.

Fish dishes

The country is washed by the waters of the Mediterranean, Black, Marmara and Aegean seas, rich in different types of fish and marine life. Of course, this fact had big influence to the national cuisine of Turkey, where such seafood dishes as:

Balyk-ekmek

Vegetable dishes

Dolma

If you think that the national cuisine of Turkey is not complete without meat or fish, then you are mistaken. There are many different dishes presented here, the main components of which are vegetables. An example of this is the famous Turkish dish dolma, which is analogous to the Greek sarma. It is prepared from grape leaves stuffed with rice and vegetables. You can try it in almost any restaurant.

Imam bayaldi

Among vegetarian food in Turkey there is also a dish called imam bayaldi, which is eggplant with vegetable filling. Eggplant dressing is made with onions, green peppers, tomatoes, garlic and herbs, richly seasoned with spices and tomato paste. All this is baked in the oven and served with bread and yogurt.

Savory pastries

Most of Turkey's national dishes are used with pastries: bread, lavash, all kinds of buns and flat cakes. In the restaurant, before they bring you the main meal, they will definitely put a basket of fresh food on the table. bakery products and sauces, and both are offered absolutely free. Many baked goods are complete individual dishes.

Simit is a sesame round bun, sometimes hard and soft, usually eaten for breakfast. It can be eaten either neat or cut in half and filled with cheese, vegetables and sausage. This inexpensive national pastry is in great demand and is sold in special stalls and bakeries.

Su bereg

Börek is a delicious Turkish pastry with different fillings, which is presented in three versions:

Su beregi, made from thinly rolled unleavened dough (yufka) with cheese fillings; differs in oiliness
Kol beregi, baked from puff pastry stuffed with potatoes or minced meat
Homemade borek is made from yufka with lor cheese, chicken, minced meat, potatoes and vegetables

If you don't know what food to try in Turkey, then börek is undoubtedly the No. 1 candidate.

Often, pita is served with soups and meat dishes in Turkish cuisine - a tortilla hot and hot, which literally melts in your mouth. Sometimes pita is supplemented with fillings of cheese, vegetables, sausage, chicken and cutlets, and in this case it becomes a separate dish.

Another national culinary delight, which is simply a crime not to taste, is the gözleme cake made from the finest dough, in which various fillers are wrapped in the form of minced meat, potatoes, hard cheese and lor cheese (analogue of cottage cheese). As a rule, gözleme is fried on both sides in butter and served with tomatoes and salad.

Snacks

Cold and hot appetizers in Turkey are called meze and are served before main courses. Among such food, special attention should be paid to:

This cold appetizer is a thick yogurt and white cheese sauce, mixed with garlic, olive oil, mint and walnuts. The sauce goes well with freshly baked flatbread, but is also suitable for dressing vegetables and meat.

Hummus is quite popular not only in Turkey, but also in Europe, but here an additional specific ingredient is used in the recipe. This food has the consistency of a pâté, which in the Turkish version is made from chickpeas with tahini paste obtained from sesame seeds. This appetizer is flavored with garlic, olive oil, lemon and served cold.

One of the peculiarities of Turkish cuisine is the fact that the Turks use unusual products for preparing salads. These include pasta, peas, and beans. Piyaz - national salad, the main components of which are beans and eggs, complemented by herbs, olives, onions, tomatoes, tahini and olive oil. The salad tastes quite unusual, but worth a try.

Ajili ezme

Vegetable spicy sauce made from garlic, tomatoes, peppers, onions, tomato paste and lemon is a delicious Turkish appetizer that can be eaten simply with bread or complemented with meat dishes.

Sweets

Among the national food of Turkey, there are many sweet desserts made from both dough and sugar or honey syrup. The undoubted leaders here are:

A delicacy made on the basis of sugar syrup originated in Turkey several centuries ago, when the cooks at the court of the Sultan decided to impress their master with a new an exquisite dish... So the first Turkish delight with rose petals was born. Today this dessert is presented in a variety of fruit variations with the addition of pistachios, walnut, peanuts, coconut flakes and other components.

An equally popular Turkish sweet, which is made from puff pastry, soaked in honey syrup and supplemented with a variety of nuts. In Turkey, you can find baklava in boxes, but it is better to try the product in pastry shops that sell freshly made dessert by weight.

Lokma - sweet balls of dough fried in oil and poured with sugar or honey syrup. Quite easy to prepare, but very tasty national food, which is worth trying for all guests of Turkey. Like baklava, this is a very sweet, sugary dessert, so you won't be able to eat much of it.

Tulumba is a sweetness that largely repeats lokma in its method of preparation, but differs from it in an oblong corrugated shape.

Soft drinks

Turkey has its own national drinks with a unique taste and intricate way of preparation.

Turks drink black tea anytime, anywhere. This drink is usually consumed one hour after a meal. In Turkey, they usually drink locally produced tea, which is concentrated on the shores of the Black Sea coast. To make Turkish tea, a special two-tier teapot is used, in the upper section of which the tea leaves are poured, subsequently filled with boiling water, and the lower section is diverted to hot water.

In this state, the teapot stays on low heat for 20-25 minutes, after which the tea is poured into small tulip glasses. In one sitting, the Turks drink at least 5 glasses of this strong invigorating drink, which is always served hot: after all, the kettle remains on the gas during the entire tea drinking.

The second most popular soft drinks Turkey takes coffee. The inhabitants of this country love to drink finely ground boiled coffee, which is prepared in a Turk or cezve (in Turkish). Such a rather strong drink is served in miniature cups. After drinking coffee, it is customary here to wash off the bitter aftertaste with a sip of cool liquid. Therefore, in restaurants, next to a cup of coffee, they will definitely put a glass of water for you.

This healthy fermented milk product is consumed in Turkey during lunch and dinner. It is made on the basis of yoghurt with the addition of water and salt and does not undergo the gasification process. The village ayran with foam is especially appreciated here. The drink acts as an excellent addition to meat dishes and easily replaces the notorious soda and packaged juices for the Turks.

Alcoholic drinks

Despite the fact that Turkey is a Muslim state, the country has its own national alcoholic drinks.

A common Turkish drink is anise-based raki vodka. The drink has a specific herbal taste and can differ in different alcohol content (from 40 to 50% pure alcohol). Before use, crayfish are diluted with water, after which the transparent drink acquires a milky hue. As a rule, they drink vodka in small sips and eat spicy food.

Sharap translated from Turkish means wine. Turkish winemakers today offer a wide range of white, red and rosé wines. It is noteworthy that in Turkey this drink has to enter into fierce competition with Chilean manufacturers, which are gaining more and more popularity in the local market. You will not find sweet and semi-sweet versions among Turkish brands, all drinks are dry. The best quality wine brands here are Doluca, Sevilen Premium and Kayra.

Doluca

Fruit and berry wines are very popular in Turkey - from pomegranate, mulberry, cherry, melon, etc. Such drinks are notable for their weak strength, and in their assortment there can be found both sweet and semi-sweet versions. In any tourist wine shop you will definitely be given a chance to taste different varieties of wines, but the price tag is also obscene, so it is best to buy wines in city supermarkets.

Street food in Turkey

It is very popular in the country to eat in small cafes and buy takeaway food, so there are eateries here literally at every turn. Street food in Turkey is represented by national dishes, which do not take a lot of time to prepare:

Pide and lahmajun

Lahmajun

Lahmajun is a large round cake made from thin dough, on which minced meat with finely chopped vegetables is laid out. It is cooked in a special clay oven and served with lemon and salad. One lahmajun cake costs about $ 1-1.5. Pide is also cooked in clay ovens from a strip of already thicker dough, and the filling here can be minced meat, pieces of meat, hard cheese or an egg. The portions are huge, so one pide may be enough for two. The cost of this street food, depending on the filling, ranges from $ 2-4.

Doner kebab

We have already described this dish above, it remains only to say that doner kebab is sold on almost every corner and is inexpensive. One portion of this national dish with chicken will cost $ 1.5, with beef - $ 2.5-3.

What is really worth trying in Turkey is chi köfte. You are unlikely to find such food in other countries. This dish looks like cutlets from minced meat, but in fact it is made with fine bulgur, olive oil, tomato paste and spices. The cook mixes these ingredients, grinds the resulting mass by hand for several hours until it is cooked from the warmth of his hands. Serve cutlets on pita bread or in lettuce leaves, be sure to sprinkle with lemon and season pomegranate sauce... The price of this pleasure is only $ 1 per serving.

It is not easy to find fish among the street food in Turkey: usually dishes like balyk-ekmek are sold in coastal areas, and not on city streets. And if you want to try fresh seafood, then it is better to go to trusted restaurants.

Output

Turkish cuisine can rightfully be considered a national treasure. The abundance of her dishes allows you not only to taste various dishes, but also to get acquainted with the original, previously you have not famous recipes... And the taste of the seemingly familiar food will completely change your idea of the culinary possibilities of the Turkish people.

Appetizing video: street food in Turkey.

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