Turkish cuisine

Turkish cuisine, known locally as *Türk mutfağı*, covers the traditional and regional cooking of Turkey and its diaspora. Its roots lie mainly in Ottoman cuisine, which blended culinary practices from Central Asia with those of the Mediterranean and the Middle East. During the Ottoman era, this cuisine had a major impact on the food of former Ottoman lands—including the Balkans, the Levant, Mesopotamia, North Africa, the South Caucasus, and Crimea—creating a shared food culture across these regions.

The cooking styles of Istanbul, Bursa, İzmir, and the rest of Anatolia carry many traits of Ottoman palace cuisine: spices are used moderately, rice is favored over bulgur, koftes are common, and vegetable stews (*türlü*), eggplant dishes, and stuffed dolmas are widely available. Along the Black Sea coast, fish—especially the Black Sea anchovy (*hamsi*)—is a staple, and corn-based dishes are typical. Southeastern cuisine, from places like Urfa, Gaziantep, Adıyaman, and Adana, is known for its wide range of kebabs, mezes, and dough-based sweets such as baklava, şöbiyet, kadayıf, katmer, and künefe.

In western Turkey, where olive trees thrive, olive oil is the main cooking fat. The Aegean, Marmara, and Mediterranean regions feature plenty of vegetables, herbs, and fish. Central Anatolia is famous for dishes like keşkek, mantı (especially from Kayseri), and gözleme. The name *mantı* is related to the Chinese *mantou* (steamed bun), and it is widely thought to have originated in Mongolia in the 13th century.

Many dishes are named after their places of origin, and these names can indicate different preparation methods. For instance, Urfa kebap is milder and thicker than Adana kebap. Although meat dishes like kebabs are what many abroad associate with Turkish food, everyday meals in Turkey rely heavily on rice, vegetables, and bread.

**History**

In the early years of the Turkish Republic, only a few studies looked at regional Anatolian dishes, and cuisine was not a major focus of Turkish folklore research until the 1980s. At that point, the growing tourism industry led the state to sponsor two food symposia. The papers from these events presented Turkish cuisine as part of a continuous history stretching back to Turkic origins in Central Asia and continuing through the Seljuk and Ottoman periods.

Before these symposia, interest in Turkish culinary culture was sparked by Süheyl Ünver’s 1948 book *Fifty Dishes in Turkish History*, which drew on recipes from an 18th-century Ottoman manuscript. His next book covered the palace cuisine of the 15th century under Sultan Mehmed II. After Ünver’s work, more studies appeared, including a 1978 book by historian Bahaettin Ögel on the Central Asian roots of Turkish cuisine.

**Culinary customs**

**Breakfast**

A traditional Turkish breakfast is varied and plentiful. A typical spread includes cheeses (such as white cheese, kashar, and others), butter, olives, eggs, muhammara, tomatoes, cucumbers, jam, honey, kaymak, sucuk (a spicy Turkish sausage), pastırma, börek, simit, poğaça, açma, fried dough (*pişi*), and various soups. A breakfast specialty is menemen, made with tomatoes, green peppers, onion, olive oil, and eggs. Depending on the region, kuymak (also called muhlama, mıhlama, or yağlaş) or eggs with spinach or potato may be served. Another specialty is the Balkan Turkish dish çılbır, known as Turkish eggs, which consists of poached eggs with yogurt. Turkish tea is always served at breakfast. The Turkish word for breakfast, *kahvaltı*, literally means “before coffee.”

**Homemade food**

Home cooking remains common in Turkey. A typical meal starts with soup (especially in winter), followed by a vegetable dish (cooked with olive oil or ground meat), boiled meat, or legumes (often cooked with meat), usually served with or before Turkish pilav, pasta, or bulgur pilav, along with a salad or cacık (a cold, diluted yogurt dish with garlic, salt, and cucumber). In summer, many people prefer a cold vegetable dish cooked in olive oil (*zeytinyağlı yemekler*) instead of soup, either before or after the main course, which might be chicken, meat, or fish.

**Restaurants**

*Esnaf lokantası*—modest restaurants serving homemade, traditional dishes like bulgur, stew, dolma, and lentil soup at reasonable prices—can be found across Turkey. These places are especially popular with male workers, as meals are often served before sunrise, before shifts, and are affordable for lower-wage earners. Many restaurants specialize in specific foods, such as köfte, döner, kokoreç, kumpir, midye tava, börek, and gözleme. Eating out has long been common in cities. Fast food is growing in popularity, and many major foreign fast-food chains have opened outlets throughout Turkey.

**Summer cuisine**

In the hot Turkish summer, a meal often features fried vegetables like eggplant, peppers, or potatoes, served with yogurt or tomato sauce. Menemen and çılbır are typical egg-based summer dishes. Sheep cheese, cucumbers, tomatoes, watermelons, and melons also make for a light summer meal. Those who enjoy helva for dessert may choose “summer helva,” which is lighter and less sweet than the regular version.

**Key ingredients**

Common ingredients in Turkish specialties include lamb, chicken, beef, fish, rice, eggplants, green peppers, onions, garlic, lentils, beans, zucchinis, chickpeas, and tomatoes. The average beef consumption per person per year is 15 kilograms. Nuts—especially pistachios, chestnuts, almonds, hazelnuts, and walnuts—along with spices, hold a special place in Turkish cuisine.