Home » 4 delicious traditional Turkish foods to try while in Istanbul

4 delicious traditional Turkish foods to try while in Istanbul

When you travel abroad, there are millions of things that you want to do in order to get to know the place and to understand the different lifestyle and traditions of the locals. Especially if you’re about to travel to Istanbul, there is a plethora of guides to prepare you for your trip and articles talking about all the amazing experiences you shouldn’t miss for the world. One of them being trying out traditional Turkish foods. Check out Travooo for more food destinations

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A quick search on the internet will inform you that you must visit Hagia Sophia, the orthodox church and architectural masterpiece that dates back to the Byzantine Empire, and the Blue Mosque, the impressive Muslim shrine built in 1616, no matter what.

In this article, however, I will present to you four traditional Turkish foods that you MUST taste while you are in Istanbul. You will find many restaurants and bakeries where they offer all the dishes in this list. If you want to get from one spot to another, quickly gather the items in the list and try them all at once, you should hire a private car from Enjoy Travel so that you get to taste them as soon as possible. Now, let me introduce you to the delicious dishes you have to try in Istanbul.

Traditional Turkish Foods To Try

1. Köfte

Köfte looks a lot like meatballs. These Turkish meatballs are usually made of lamb or beef meat and a mixture of spices. Their shape may vary as they can look like small burger patties or they can take an oblong shape. Beginner Food shares that Köftes are easy to make, and they might be the main dish while there are chips, rice or vegetables on the side, or they might be one of the ingredients in a sandwich. An absolute must on the list of traditional Turkish foods to try.

2. Doner Kebab

A popular fast-food option in Istanbul and all over the world is doner kebab. Kebab is the meat of lamb (although there is the alternative of beef or chicken) grilled in a vertical rotisserie. The meat is placed inside a pita, wrap or other flatbread. Inside this sandwich-like fast-food option, you will typically find vegetables and yoghurt-based sauces besides the kebab.

3. Lokum

Lokum, or Turkish delight as it is widely known, is a Turkish dessert made from starch, sugar and water. Most times a particular ingredient is added for more flavour, like rose water, lemon, hazelnuts and so on. The Turkish delights are divided into small squares and covered in powdered sugar. Their texture is gummy, and they are very sweet. They go perfectly with a cup of coffee or tea and is one of the traditional Turkish foods you simply can’t miss.

baklava one of the most traditional turkish foods

Photo by Syed F Hashemi on Unsplash

4. Turkish Baklava

Baklava is the most popular and most famous Turkish dessert. It is made of many layers of phyllo, which is an extremely thin sheet of dough, and they are filled with nuts, usually pistachios, and covered with syrup or honey. It is a crunchy and a pretty sweet dessert. There are many variations of baklava made all over the world, but the recently invented chocolate baklava, which is mostly found in touristy areas of Turkey, is worth mentioning.

What are your favourite traditional Turkish foods?

Featured Photo by Suad Kamardeen on Unsplash

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