618278 Fri May 08 08:06:09 -0700 2009 5 52 Turkey/Greece 0 4665769 Best of Northeastern Turkish cuisine I am going on a 3 week Northeastern Turkish trip, focusing on natural scenery, and authentic local food. I would like to know the regional specialties, or foods in season (in June) for the following provinces: Van Agri Igdir Kars Ardahan Artvin Rize Trabazon I have already done some research, but I am unsure if any of the following foods are relevant to these areas, please let me know what you think of my list? Thanks Mısır Ekmeği, Pide, Lavaş, Tandır bread, Bazlama. Menemen, (beyaz peynir, tulum peynir, Otlu peynir, kaşar, Kurut and keş, süzme yoğurt Çökelek), Simit, Mahlab, Mahlepi, Pogaca, "Corek", "Kandil simidi", "Ka'kat" and Ma'amoul, Kashkak, Mantı with yogurt (especially from Kayseri) and Gözleme, şakşuka, Patlıcan kebabs, , patlıcan salatası, patlıcan dolma, patlıcan reçeli, hünkâr beğendi, imam bayildi, Bademli Tavuk, Laz böreği, Katmer, Lahmacun, Perde pilavı, Hamsili pilav, Acem pilavi, Mercimek köfte, Mücver, Çılbır, Ispanaklı yumurta, Kaygana, Mezes: * Acılı ezme * Acuka * Barbunya * Borani * Cacık * Çerkez tavuğu * Çoban salatası * Deniz Börülcesi * Fasulye pilaki * Gavurdağı salatasi * Hardalotu * Haydari * İçli köfte * Kısır * Muammara * Piyaz * Semizotu salatasi * Şakşuka * Köpoğlu * Taramasalata * Ahtapot, zeytinyağlı dolma, Fıstıklı kebap , Yayla Corbasi, Kadayif, Kunefe, Kanafeh, muhallebi, sütlaç, keşkül, kazandibi tavuk göğsü, yaz helvası, tahin helvasi, Revani, şekerpare, kalburabasma, dilber dudağı, vezir parmağı, hanım göbeği, kemalpaşa, tulumba, zerde, höşmerim, paluze, irmik tatlısı, peltesi, tatlisi, acıbadem kurabiyesi, cevizli kurabiye ay çöreği, ezmesi, Bülbül yuvası, Sütlü Nuriye, Keşkül, fıstık sarma, Çatal, Cezerye, Tavuk göğsü, "sütlac", "kazandibi", Miroloto, Bakla Çorbas Pastirma, Sucukı, Asure, Shalgum, Sahlep, şerbet, Fri May 08 08:06:09 -0700 2009 149251 saren 1 4693074 Impressive list. I am curious where you found it, there are some obscure dishes here and whether this is for a guidebook, considering that you seem to be traveling a lot based on your other posts. Mon May 18 00:13:13 -0700 2009 4665769 53259 emerilcantcook 1 4739249 OK, I am just hoping that my feedback is not going to be appropriated into some tourist guide, but here is some info: Basically, you are going to two distinct chow regions. The first five cities are inland (well Van has a humongous lake), somewhat mountainous and rough in climate where meat and grains are main food groups. The latter three are more like old fisherman towns where people subsist on fish, corn and collards. Unfortunately it might be hard to find authentic food in restaurants, most real food is cooked at home. It might be a good idea to hook up with the locals to ask them cook for you. I am going to loosely map the dishes geographically, though I might be mistaken (I am not an expert on the topic), and for some dishes (like simit and menemen) they are pretty much consumed everywhere these days. I also tried to find English explanations of some dishes, but kind of got lazy. Please ask for more clarifications if you need. Northeastern: Misir Ekmegi (skillet corn bread), Pide (topped nan style bread), Erzincan style tulum peynir (grainy ewe's milk cheese ripened in goatskin bags), otlu peynir (another ewe's milk cheese with around 20 herbs, found in Van), kurut and kes (dried yogurt cheeses), laz boregi (phyllo pastry stuffed with sweet pudding), hamsili pilav (rice with anchovies), kaygana (thin pancakes with anchovies, corn, egg and scallions), cilbir (poached eggs served with garlic yogurt and spiced butter) Northwestern: beyaz peynir (ewe's milk feta),kasar (similar to Greek kasseri), hunkar begendi, ispanakli yumurta, cerkez tavugu, piyaz, taramasalata, muhallebi, sutlac, keskul, kazandibi, tavuk gogsu, revani, sekerpare, kalburabasma, dilber dudagi, vezir parmagi, hanim gobegi, kemalpasa, paluze, irmik tatlisi, pelte, acibadem kurabiyesi, aycoregi, keskul Eastern: perde pilavi, acuka, borani South eastern: Lavas (thin bread), cokelek (dried crumbly yogurt cheese), patlican kebabi, katmer, lahmacun, acili ezme, borani, gavurdagi, icli kofte, kisir, muammara, piyaz, kopoglu, fistikli kebap, kadayif, kunefe, bulbul yuvasi, fistik sarma, cezerye, sutlu nuriye, zerde Southern: saksuka, patlican receli (baby eggplant jam/preserve), patlican dolmasi (stuffed eggplant, usually made from dried eggplants), mercimek kofte Central, eastern: Tandir bread, bazlama, manti, acem pilavi, yayla corbasi, yaz helvasi, miroloto, pastirma, sucuk, asure, salgam, hosmerim Aegean: Menemen (scrambled eggs with onions, tomatoes and green peppers), Izmir style tulum peynir, cokelek (dried crumbly yogurt cheese), patlican salatasi, imam bayildi, mucver, barbunya, deniz borulcesi, hardalotu, semizotu, ahtapot, zeytinyagli dolma, barbunya, coban salatas, fasulye pilaki, You can find simit, cacik and gozleme almost everywhere in the country (though in certain places simit might be called gevrek). Suzme yogurt is strained yogurt, not sure it is classifiable as cheese. Mahlab/mahlep is the spice known as pruni mahalebi. In Northwestern regions you can find cookies that are made with this flavoring. Sahlep is a drink made from the powdered tubers of the sahlep orchid. Ka'kat" and Ma'amoul, Kashkak sound more like Persian/Egyptian dishes, but might be wrong. The only bademli tavuk (chicken with almonds) I've eaten was a Turkish/Chinese hybrid dish, not sure if there is actually an original Turkish recipe for this. Other things that you might find on your route: Trabzon style bread, stuffed collards greens, kaymak (clotted cream), local honey in Rize, dried bean stew in Rize, pickled green beans in all Black Sea region, mihlama (melted cheese and cornmeal mush), pickled cherries, the local "Gruyere" in Kars, green lentil and noodle soup (my absolute most favorite soup ever perhaps) sometimes called "tutmac". Wed Jun 03 11:13:13 -0700 2009 4665769 53259 emerilcantcook 1 4759801 Van Agri Igdir Kars Ardahan Artvin Rize Trabazon I think list is mix of lists because there are same food with similar/wrong/different named. Explanations are given in foods about the list Mısır Ekmeği ( bread made of corn flour) Pide (shortly Turkish pizza with many kinds including meat, cheese, vegatables, miz) ; (your possible main food in small places) Lavaş, Tandır bread, Bazlama. (kings of breads with different cooking) Menemen, (meal: tomato, egg, green peper) beyaz peynir, tulum peynir, Otlu peynir, kaşar, Kurut and keş, süzme yoğurt Çökelek: kinds of cheese and dried yogurt, Simit, Pogaca, "Corek", "Kandil simidi", "Ka'kat": kinds of breads/pitas ;very comman. Kashkak, meal made by wheat, meat, onion act.(winter meal) Gözleme, :rolled vagetables, cheeseor any ingredient, rolled by insytantly prepared tiny bread leafs, şakşuka,: eggplant , tomato, greenpeper, garlic :fried and mixed Patlıcan kebabs, imam bayildi, patlıcan salatası, patlıcan dolma, patlıcan reçeli, : egplant foods. reçel means jam. hünkâr beğendi, : from istanbul /ottomancuisine , Laz böreği, Katmer, Lahmacun, Perde pilavı, Hamsili pilav,: . Acem pilavi, :Bademli Tavuk, : These are special rice food. Perde pilavi is prepared by covering rice and other ingredients by liver membrane, hamsili pilav is pilav with anchovy, bademli tavuk is chicken stuffed vith pilav vith almonds You can try these in Istanbul possibly, Mercimek köfte, : lentil, wheat, pepper paste, onion, etc. Mücver, : kind of fried vagetable egg mixture. Çılbır, : another egg meal, prepared by adding egg on biling vater and some other ingr. Ispanaklı yumurta, : spinach with eggs. Kaygana, : characteristic food of north east. learn by trying.(cheese, egg, butter, etc..) Mezes: * Acılı ezme * Acuka * Barbunya * Borani * Cacık * Çerkez tavuğu * Çoban salatası * Deniz Börülcesi * Fasulye pilaki * Gavurdağı salatasi * Hardalotu * Haydari * İçli köfte * Kısır * Muammara * Piyaz * Semizotu salatasi * Şakşuka * Köpoğlu * Taramasalata * Ahtapot, : These are apppetizers served in meyhanes. most in list are salads. zeytinyağlı dolma, : stuffed vegatable- grape leaf/grreen pepper,/eggplant/tomato/ Fıstıklı kebap , : kebab inc. pistachio Yayla Corbasi: soup of yogurt and rice Below are the mostly traditional and regional Turkish sweets: milky sweets:muhallebi, sütlaç, keşkül, kazandibi tavuk göğsü, Sweets made by semolina or flour: Revani, şekerpare, kalburabasma, vezir parmağı, hanım göbeği,kemalpaşa, tulumba,dilber dudağı,höşmerim, irmik tatlısı, Asure, yaz helvası, paluze, zerde, Sweets made by very tiny sheets of Bülbül yuvası, : Sütlü Nuriye, : kind of baklavas , acıbadem kurabiyesi, cevizli kurabiye ay çöreği, fıstık sarma, Çatal, Cezerye, tahin helvasi ,Kadayif, Kunefe, Kanafeh Miroloto ????, Bakla Çorbas :fava bean soup (not comman) Pastirma, Sucukı, : Dried meat with heavyspices -like garlic- Shalgum,(şalgam: kind of pickled wheat drink:, coloured by black carrot, ) Sahlep: drink for winter, prepared by milk and orchid seed, şerbet; fruit juices prepared by boiling. Wed Jun 10 09:00:10 -0700 2009 4665769 261756 veysal 2 4759854 Miroloto is a maize based bread with the addition of collards and other greens. I think I mistakenly classified it as a central eastern dish, it should be from the Black Sea Region considering the ingredients. Bakla corbasi (fava bean soup) is actually common in Northwestern Turkey I don't want to be rude, but can you try writing a little reader-friendly? This rambling styled non-proofread notes filled with typos and non-words are not that helpful to the visitors who are already overwhelmed by this information. Wed Jun 10 09:13:49 -0700 2009 4759801 53259 emerilcantcook 1 4826597 You must try breakfast in Van. There are several restaurants serving breakfast. You do not need to choose sthg from the menu (I doubt if there is a menu) just ask the waiter to fill the table. It is served like "meze" several local cheeses, olives, butter, bread, milk, tea. Probably you cannot find filtered coffee. For a traditional experience, try hot milk or tea. Fri Jul 03 00:27:56 -0700 2009 4665769 1088951 ACOZ