Asurvey of the types of dishes according to their ingredients may be helpful to explain the basic structure of Turkish Cuisine.Otherwise there may appear to be an over­whelming variety of dishes, each with a unique combination of ingredients and its own way of preparation and presentation. All dishes can be conveniently categorized into grain-based, grilled meats, vegetables, seafood, desserts and beverages. devamı »

The importance of culinary art to the Ottoman Sultans is evident to every visitor to Topkapı Palace.    The huge kitchens were housed in several build­ings under ten domes. By the 17th century some thirteen hundred kitchen staff were housed in the Palace. Hundreds of cooks, spe­cializing in different categories, such as soups, pilafs, kebabs, vegetables, fish, breads, pastries, candy and helva, syrups and jams, and bever­ages, fed as many as ten thousand people a day, and, in addition, sent trays of food to others in the city as a royal favor.

The importance of food has also been evident in the structure of the Ottoman military elite, known as the Janissaries. devamı »

For those who travel to engage in culinary pursuits, the Turkish Cuisine is worthy of explo­ration. The variety of dishes that make up the cuisine, the ways they all come together in feast-like meals, and the evident intricacy of each craft involved offer enough material for life-long study and enjoyment. It is not easy to discern a basic element or a single dominant feature, like the Italian pasta or the French sauce. Whether in a humble home, at a famous restaurant, or at dinner in a Bey’s mansion, familiar patterns of this rich and diverse cuisine arc always present. It is a rare art, which satisfies the senses while reconfirming the higher order of society com­munity and culture.

A practically-minded child watching Mother cook “cabbage dolma’ on a lazy, gray winter day is bound to wonder: ‘Who on earth discovered this peculiar combination of sautéed rice, pine nuts, currants, spices, and herbs all tightly wrapped in translucent leaves of cabbage each roll exactly half an inch thick and stacked up on an oval serving plate decorated with lemon wedges? How was it possible to transform this humble vegetable to such heights of fashion and delicacy with so few additional ingredients? And, how can such a yummy dish also possibly be good for you? devamı »

Culinary attitudes towards meat, dairy products, vegetables and grains that characterized this early period still make up the core of Turkish thinking. Early Turks cultivated wheat and used it liberally in several types of leavened and unleavened bread either baked in clay ovens, fried on a griddle, or buried in embers. “Manti” (dumpling). and “bugra,” (the ancestor of “borek,” or filled pastries, named for Bugra Khan of Turkestan) were already among the much-coveted dishes of this time. Stuffing not only the pastry but also all kinds of vegetables was com­mon practice, and still is, as evidenced by dozens of different types of “dolma”. Skewering meat as well as other ways of grilling, later known to us as varieties of “kebab,” and dairy products, such as cheeses and yogurt, were convenient staples of the pastoral Turks. They introduced these attitudes and practices to Anatolia in the 11th century In return they met rice, the fruits and vegetables native to the region, and hundreds of varieties of fish in the three seas surrounding the Anatolian Peninsula. These new and wonderful ingredients were assimilated into the basic cuisine in the millennium that followed. devamı »