You didn’t think we’d leave Turkey without
giving you some amazingly mouth-watering Turkish recipes to try, did you? No
way!
The Turkish culinary repertoire is a real melting pot of
other cuisines and shows very strong regional associations throughout the
country. For example, the Black Sea Region specializes in fish recipes and shows
influence from Balkan and Slavic cuisine. In contrast, the regions of Istanbul,
Bursa, Izmir, and near the Aegean Sea show greater influence from traditional
Ottoman court cuisine. This means dishes
with a lighter use of spices, more vegetable stews, and a preference for rice
over bulgur.
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via Flickr by Simon Q |
Occasionally, regional recipes will include
the name of a city or region, which can actually help differentiate one recipe
from another. For instance, take the urfa
kebab and adana kebab. The urfa kebab is thicker and less spicy
than the adana kebab.
All right, now that you have a little bit
of background knowledge, it’s time to dive in and take a look at a few
different traditional recipes. We’ve looked high and low to round up the
tastiest looking recipes around...so dig in and enjoy!
Adana Kebab
You had us at marinated ground lamb. But seriously, how incredibly succulent do those kebabs look? With the right seasoning and a little know-how you too can have this wonderful meal on your very own table. (Just remember to invite us for dinner!)
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Photo by J. Kenji López-Alt |
Döner
Traditionally this is a very popular fast-food meal for Turks and foreigners alike, but of course with a little ingenuity and clever work-arounds it can also be made in your own home. The meat won't be quite the same (unless you have a vertical rotisserie) but you can definitely recreate some of the traditional sauces and toppings.
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via Flickr by Alex Kehr |
Click here for The Kitchn's thoughts on how to get started with at-home döner.
Baklava
What’s not to love about flakey pastry,
pistachios (or sometimes walnuts), and a gooey, delicious melt-in-your-mouth
syrup? Nothing. Baklava is just about the most incredible dessert on the planet...in fact, we
can’t think of one that tops it. Nope. Nada.
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Photo by Cook's Hideout. |
Click here for Cook's Hideout’s full recipe.
Türk Kahvesi
It's well known that we're fans of coffee. Whether it's in a cup or in a homemade project, we simply can't get enough! Turkish coffee is said to be a little sweeter than the regular cup of java. The secret to perfect Türk Kahvesi is not in the beans, but in the way it's prepared.
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via Flickr by Damien McMahon |
Click here for full preparation instructions.