Food — Turkey

Turkish gastronomy is considered one of the world's three great cuisines alongside French and Chinese. This recognition rests on immense regional diversity, refined preparation inherited from Ottoman palace kitchens, and a generosity of the table that turns every meal into a complete social event.

Mezze are the obligatory opening of any Turkish meal. These small savoury plates — hummus, baba ganoush, dolma (stuffed vine leaves), haydari (garlic-mint yogurt), patlıcan ezmesi (eggplant 'caviar'), cacık (yogurt-cucumber-mint), ezme (spicy tomato-pepper sauce) — accompany raki (national anisette, served with water that turns it milky). An Istanbul meyhane (traditional tavern) serves 20 to 40 different mezze in the early evening — a mezze + raki dinner is a social institution that can stretch 3-4 hours.

Kebabs are the country's signature meat tradition, in a diversity far broader than the international street-food version. Adana kebab (spicy minced meat on a flat skewer) and Urfa kebab (mild version, no chili) come from the south-east. İskender kebab (sliced döner on pita, tomato sauce, yogurt and melted butter) is a Bursa specialty. Şiş kebab (marinated meat cubes on round skewer), çöp şiş (mini-skewers typical of Izmir), Cappadocia's testi kebab (stew cooked in a clay jar broken at the table)… each region has its version, best discovered in family lokantas rather than in tourist restaurants.

Pides (boat-shaped Turkish pizzas with raised edges) and lahmacun (thin flatbreads with minced meat, tomato, parsley) are the quintessential popular lunches. In Istanbul, the balıkçı (fishermen-restaurants) by Galata Bridge serve balık ekmek (grilled fish sandwich) for 100-150 TRY (€3-5) — one of the world's great street foods.

Desserts are a category of their own. Baklava (filo pastry, pistachios or walnuts, honey syrup) reaches perfection in Gaziantep — Karaköy Güllüoğlu in Istanbul offers an anthology version. Künefe (kadayıf strands, cheese, syrup) is served hot with a ball of ice cream. Lokum (Turkish delight) is hand-made at Hacı Bekir (since 1777) in Istanbul. Dondurma (elastic goat-milk ice cream from Kahramanmaraş) has a unique consistency that can be cut with a knife.

Drinks accompany the meal with ritual. Çay (black tea served in small tulip glasses with two sugars) is the national drink — Turks consume on average 1,300 glasses per year. Turkish coffee (kahve), thick and strong, doubles as fortune-telling (reading the grounds at the bottom of the cup). Fresh pomegranate and orange juices are sold everywhere on the street. Raki (40-45 % anisette) is the national spirit, the mandatory companion of mezze evenings. Turkish wines are of growing quality — the regions of Cappadocia (Kavaklıdere, Turasan, Kocabağ), Thrace (Doluca, Kayra) and the Aegean (Sevilen) produce interesting cuvées from indigenous grapes (Öküzgözü, Boğazkere, Kalecik Karası).