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Is Turkish Food Healthy?

4 min read
Published: 04 Jan 2024

We have a wide variety, a very rich, very delicious, world-famous kitchen. Our kitchen is an excellent “synthesis” and “fusion” kitchen. In its structure, there are similarities of Anatolian civilizations such as Sumer and Hittite, Seljuk and Ottoman cultures, and some Armenian, Jewish, Greek, Arab and Caucasian flavors. For this reason, we are one of the “considerable” “flavor and health” food stops of the world. This is why everyone who says, “I understand from the kitchen’’ amazes in the face of Turkish cuisine.

Turkish cuisine consisting of soups, stews prepared with cereal, meat and vegetables, olive oil dishes, pastries, fries, desserts, and traditional drinks; Due to it contains a variety of unique foods such as grape molasses, wheat grains, yogurt, tarhana soup, it is also a source for healthy and balanced nutrition and vegetarian cuisine. The diets that differ from region to region turn into a sacred ritual on special occasions, celebrations such as weddings, circumcisions and religious ceremonies. The general features of Turkish cuisine are quite wide. When we look at the main titles, it is seen that the following features come to the fore in summary.

The major food in Turkish nutrition is bread, which is also considered sacred. Kebabs, juicy stew meat dishes and pastries are the majority. It is common to cook vegetables with meat, onions and tomato paste. Olive oil is mostly used in dishes made in Western Anatolia. Wheat grains are specific Anatolian grain that is used frequently in soups, vegetable dishes and meatballs. In Turkish cuisine, sometimes the dishes are sweetened with dried fruits and berries. Spices are common in meals. The most commonly used seasoning is red pepper and salt. Yogurt is indispensable for Turkish tables. Most of the meals are consumed by pouring garlic or yogurt. In desserts, grape molasses is used together with sugar as a sweetener. In the table, there is no sauce afterward, and the dishes and plates are decorated.

From the past to the present, when studies on traditional foods and nutrition habits in Turkish culinary culture are examined we see; wheat grains, Keşkek, Ashoura, tarhana, grape molasses, beverages, boza, and coffee. Although Ashoura is generally mentioned as ‘Aşura’ in the documents, it has been also mentioned as “Aşure” in between. Traditionally in the kitchen of the palace, the ashoura was cooked on the tenth day of Muharram and presented to the entire Ottoman dynasty with jugs. Tarhana is in the first place among the foods that have winter preparations in Anatolia due to its features such that it is suitable for the taste of the Turks, it can be stored for a long time and easily, and it is rich in nutrients. Grape molasses is one of our traditional foods with high carbohydrate and energy sources that Turks have produced and used instead of sugar throughout history.

Koumiss fermented mare’s milk is a drink of Central Asian Turkish culture, is a fermented product made of mare milk. The concepts of Koumiss and Horse are indispensable in the cultural and social life of the Turkish tribes. Boza, another traditional drink of Turks, is a traditional fermented grain-based beverage and is obtained from grains such as barley, wheat, corn, rice. Boza and beer are considered the oldest beer, although they are different products. Boza has been produced by Turks since Central Asia. Turkish coffee is also an indispensable element of traditional Turkish Cuisine. The view that the coffee, which became a beverage towards the end of the 15th century, came to Istanbul by the Muslim merchants in the first quarter of the 16th century after the Egyptian expedition of Yavuz Sultan Selim. The Ottoman people adopted this drink and made it an object in the Ottoman culture, allowing the coffee to enter the Turkish customs and traditions.

Turkish Cuisine, which has its roots in Central Asia, is one of the largest cuisines in the world in terms of its originality, cultural richness, and product variety. When looking at today's Turkish cuisine culture, it is observed that there are difficulties in transferring this cultural heritage from the past to new generations. With the modern Turkish cuisine of the Turkish Republic Era, which has become effective in Turkish cuisine, our cultural values ​​from the past have gradually disappeared and some of the old flavors have not passed to the present day. Today, when the excessive consumption of fast food and ready-to-eat foods leads to unhealthy nutrition, the value of traditional foods of Turkish cuisine culture is more understood and there is a return to the past in dietary habits.

Turkish Cuisine has an extraordinary level of richness, from sweet to salty, from soup to kebab, from vegetables to fries. The main reason for this is the geography in which it is located. Thanks to agriculture and husbandry, we can offer great tastes to our tables in this land where all kinds of vegetables and fruits are grown.

Whatever you eat from Turkish cuisine, it is extremely healthy because it is actually close to the Mediterranean cuisine. As long as you do not consume much, you can enjoy the products that are insatiable with our country without fear.

We recommend you to be careful only in pastries. Instead of every morning consuming a donut or other pastries, you can have a more balanced diet by having a spreading breakfast some mornings.

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