April 29 – May 3, 2009 (Wednesday – Saturday)
Eveytime I travelled, I pay attention on the food! Turkish cuisine is largely the heritage of Ottoman cuisine, which can be described as a fusion and refinement of Central Asian, Middle Eastern and Balkan cuisines. In Turkey, I have tried some really nice food & drinks:
Enjoying my last glass of tea @ Canakkale!
- Turkish coffee; kahve: I tried my first cup (and the only one) in a outdoor cafe outside Sultanahmet Camil. Turkish coffee comes thick and dark in a small cup. I have to say.. I am not a big fan of it
. - Dondurma (Ice-cream that never fall down): It is made of goat milk. It is very sweet to me. Two features distinguish Turkish ice cream: texture and resistance to melting. It is much tougher and chewier than that of the ice cream used in sundaes, gelato or commercially produced ice cream; the unusual texture is produced by the use of salep and mastic resin as thickening agents, together with other flavorings. I found that it is sometimes sold from carts as street food, where the mixture is churned regularly with long-handled paddles to keep it workable!
- Turkish tea (Turkish: çay): Local drinks lots of tea everyday! Turkish tea tends to be more popular than Turkish coffee among the younger generation
- Semiz ot (Yogurt): my favourite starter – a mix of vegetables. Healthy and delicious!
- Midye Dolması – Stuffed Mussels: my favourite dish in Turkey – mussels stuffed with fried rice. It is a cold starter. It can be found anywhere in Turkey – from street cart to large restaurant. Yummy!
- Kalamar Tava: Seafood or meat specialty restaurants are full of (hot starter) meze dishes. One of my favourite is Kalamar Tava – crispy fried squid in garlic vinegar sauce … Lovely!
Turkish food culture is unique in many ways, for example, this is the only place I can see a woman in Tableside preparation for pastry/noodles, a shop packed with bricks of chocolate!
More photos @ Photo Gallery http://travel.webshots.com/album/574565651GmNhPO
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Reference:
- Turkish Coffee: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turkish_coffee
- Turkish Ice-cream: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dondurma
- How to make Midye Dolmasi: http://turkishcook.com/TurkishFoodForum/blogs/dolmas/archive/2006/09/07/Stuffed-Mussels-_2D00_-Midye-Dolmasi-.aspx
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