We all know how important the first meal is breakfast. The consumption of nutritious and healthy food in the first two hours after waking up provides energy, important nutrients, and has a beneficial effect on the brain and the human body as a whole. It is curious that in every country the morning meal looks different. In our country, this is most often porridge, Europeans eat breakfast cereals with milk. Today we want to introduce you to the traditions of Turkey associated with eating, and talk about how to cook a Turkish breakfast. Often the number of dishes is about 20 items.
About a meal in Turkey
In this country, the population loves a lot and tastes good. People live in an ideal climate for growing fresh and healthy products. Within a few hours, healthy and tasty produce can be delivered directly to the farmers' table from the Turks. Each meal for local residents is an important event and can last for hours. In order to enjoy the morning sun, food, each other's company, a Turkish breakfast is considered an ideal option.
Among the main products that are served for breakfast, we can distinguish:
- oil;
- canned food;
- bread;
- Jams
- olives;
- honey;
- Cheeses
- Tomatoes
- cucumbers
- fruit juices;
- yoghurts;
- tea.
Consider what a Turkish breakfast consists of. Almost everywhere in the country, eating in the morning involves eating meze and eggs cooked in different variations. Another option is “menemen” - fried eggs, which include tomatoes, onions and peppers. In addition, sliced sujuk - spicy sausages combined with various spices: fenugreek, red pepper, caraway seeds, salt and garlic are served on the table. On the table you can see cucumbers, gözleme (something between a cake and a pancake), kavut - fried porridge made from chopped flour mixed with milk, various cakes. The peculiarity of Turkish cuisine is that only the freshest ingredients are used for cooking.
Traditional turkish breakfast
This meal in the Turks is considered a special meal. In Turkish, the name of the breakfast sounds kahvalti. This phrase comes from kahve alti ("before coffee"), that is, food that precedes coffee. This name was given to breakfast at the time when the Ottoman dynasty ruled. At that time, the sultan was traditionally served a cup of aromatic coffee along with other dishes. Then the drink was considered an expensive pleasure and was not accessible to everyone. Today, coffee will not surprise anyone; its place in the Turkish breakfast has been replaced by strong hot tea.
Often, a morning meal smoothly flows into lunch. On the table there is usually an abundance of a variety of dishes: fresh vegetables, eggs cooked in various ways, cheese, ham, sausage, olives, olives, freshly baked aromatic bread. All of these products are easily digestible, therefore, a Turkish breakfast is recommended for reception by nutritionists. After a meal, it is customary to drink coffee or tea. Turks prefer to drink hot and strong tea. It is usually served with honey or jam. This is what breakfast looks like in national traditions.
Breakfast basis
Today , Turkish tea occupies a more honorable place than coffee. Black leaf is an integral part of the Turkish breakfast. Special mention should be made of the method of brewing it. This event is held in a special teapot, which consists of two parts. Water is boiled in the lower part (larger), while dry tea leaves are placed in the upper part. As soon as the water boils, it is added in a small amount to the tea leaves, then the fire is reduced to a minimum, thus it turns out that the tea leaves are languishing in a water bath. Brewing is considered complete when the last gull settles to the bottom. Tea is consumed by the Turks in large quantities. For him, special dishes are even provided - a glass cup made in the form of a pear. For residents of Turkey it is very important to see the color cast.
Turkish white bread
Turkey is very fond of homemade cakes: fragrant, lush, fresh, full of heat. Mistresses especially manage bread. In the old days, only breakfast at home made wheat bread was done in Turkey. Currently, this tradition is not so strictly observed; often Turks purchase such products in the nearest bakeries. In this country you can find bread with the addition of pistachios, seeds, dried grapes, sprinkled with sesame seeds on top.
Baking, which is especially popular with tourists, is called "simit" and is a very tasty bagel with sesame seeds.
“Take a cigar”
Turkish breakfast among the indigenous people is not complete without this amazing meal. This dish has some similarities with the usual filling pie, but has an unusual cigar shape. Deep-fried it. Before lowering the products into boiling oil, they are given such an unusual shape.
Egg Dishes
Not a single morning meal is complete without egg dishes. They are eaten a lot and in a variety of cooking options. One of the most popular dishes is scrambled eggs, which has the name "Sahanda yumurta." There are three classic Turkish fried egg recipes.
First option
This dish is the prototype of our “fried eggs”. Eggs are fried in any oil. Moreover, the proteins are fried until fully cooked, and the yolks are left a little unfinished so that you can dunk slices of bread in them.
Second way
The Turkish breakfast recipe for this method is similar to the first. The difference is that in this case, Turkish sausages are first fried in a pan. As a result, the cooked product has a meaty taste and amazing aroma of spices. Such scrambled eggs are called “Sujuklu Yumurta”. By the way, some Turks use sausages or basturma instead of dry sausages.
Third trick
The third egg dish according to the classic recipe is the Turkish menu. The difference from the others is that at the first stage vegetables are fried in a red-hot stewpan (peeled tomatoes, onions, bell peppers). Please note: they are cooked only in olive oil. After they become softer, they add a few broken eggs to them. "Menemen" during cooking should be constantly stirred. Then make sure that the eggs are only half-fried, the dish must be juicy. Turks eat this dish, dipping bread in it.
Cheese
I would like to note that cheese production is very developed on Turkish soil. The shelves of shops and local markets are bursting with an abundance of a wide variety of cheeses: salty and not so, rich yellow and snow-white, moldy and rustic, home-made. Most often, this product is made from cow or goat milk. It is included in the breakfast menu daily. In Turkey, this product is usually decorated and seasoned with spices.
Coffee
A strong aromatic drink made from coffee beans is considered an integral part of not only cooking, but also Turkish culture. Usually the meeting of the most welcome and honored guests is accompanied by a real coffee ceremony. The drink itself is unusual: along with a cup of hot aromatic drink, a glass of ice water is served. The procedure is as follows: first drink a sip of hot coffee, and then ice water. It is believed that the facets of the taste and aroma of Turkish coffee are better revealed.
Turkish beauties often guess on coffee grounds. By the way, matchmaking always ends with the preparation of a coffee drink.
Olives
A large number of Turks eat olives. It is believed that the best olive trees grow in this country. Fruits cooked according to different recipes can sometimes be served for lunch or dinner, but a morning meal can never do without them. Black and green "pearls" complement with spices, pickle and stuff. They go well with lemon juice, hot red pepper, spicy thyme.
Types of Breakfast
We offer you to find out what types of Turkish breakfast are. One of them is a breakfast plate (set breakfast).
This type is most often designed for one person - a plate for one person. Its contents may sometimes differ slightly depending on the concept of a particular institution, but some components remain unchanged: green hot peppers, cucumbers and tomatoes, several types of cheese, herbs, olives, boreks, eggs, kaymak, jam, honey. Breakfast includes tortillas, bread and black tea. An approximate plate of Turkish breakfast (pictured) we want to introduce you.
By the way, you can order one breakfast dish for two, supplementing it with an omelet or something else to your taste. Please note: the volume of servings is quite large, and perhaps a person who is not used to such a rich breakfast will not be able to overpower it on his own.
Breakfast "on the saucers"
This breakfast is most often for 2 people. All ingredients are served on small plates and saucers. In this case, breakfast may consist of vegetables and herbs - cucumbers, peppers, tomatoes, parsley, arugula. In addition, it includes ham, sausage, sausages, several types of cheese, boiled eggs, butter, fried eggs, honey, preserves, kaymak, chocolate paste, sujuk.
Buffet
A Turkish breakfast can also be this type of meal. Most often it is found in tourist areas, where the name of the dishes is written in different languages. This greatly simplifies the process of choosing a particular dish. In addition to cold and hot dishes, several types of borek are presented here, as well as delicious pastries.
Rustic breakfast
This type is similar to breakfast "on the saucers", it contains a wide variety of bowls and plates with various contents. It should be noted that this type of breakfast is very close to the rustic style. Usually it includes a large selection of greens and vegetables, eggs boiled or cooked in a pan, unusual interesting types of jam, and fresh bread.
Breakfast van
The city with this name is located in the east of Turkey. In this area, they were engaged not only in crop production, but also in animal husbandry, and therefore the cuisine is presented in a huge variety. It was here that for the first time a variety of local cheeses, butter, honey, kaymak and much more began to be served for breakfast. Today, breakfast is a generously laid table with traditional and original Turkish dishes that are admirable.
Everyone who wants to try the Turkish breakfast in Moscow and the Moscow region or other regions should know that Turkish restaurants operate in almost all major cities of our country.