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Taste of Turkey
What to Eat in Turkey – Top 50 Foods
Turkish cuisine draws on Ottoman imperial traditions, Mediterranean, Anatolian, and Central Asian influences. It features a wide range of kebabs, meze, street foods, soups, vegetable dishes, and syrup-soaked sweets. Regional differences are strong: spicy southeastern kebabs, Black Sea seafood and corn dishes, Aegean olive-oil vegetables, and Anatolian dumplings and stews.
Mains, Street Food & Savory Dishes
Kebabs & Meats
Döner Kebab – Rotisserie-sliced meat, often in bread or on a plate.
İskender Kebab – Thinly sliced döner over bread with tomato sauce, browned butter, and yogurt (Bursa specialty).
Adana Kebab – Spicy minced lamb kebab on a flat skewer.
Urfa Kebab – Milder version of Adana kebab.
Şiş Kebab – Grilled meat cubes on skewers.
Köfte – Various styles of meatballs (grilled, fried, or stewed).
Cağ Kebabı – Horizontal-spit lamb kebab from Erzurum.
Hünkâr Beğendi – Lamb or beef stew over creamy eggplant purée.
Hünkâr Beğendi – lamb over smoky eggplant purée Tantuni – Spicy minced meat wrap (Mersin).
Kokoreç – Grilled sheep intestines, often in bread.
Street & Everyday Foods
Lahmacun – Thin flatbread topped with minced meat and herbs.
Pide – Boat-shaped flatbread with various toppings (Turkish “pizza”).
Pide, kebabs over pilav, Köfte Simit – Sesame-crusted bread rings.
Börek – Flaky savory pastries (cheese, spinach, or meat).
Gözleme – Thin flatbread filled and cooked on a griddle.
Balık Ekmek – Grilled fish sandwich (Istanbul classic).
Balık ekmek Midye Dolma – Stuffed mussels with rice and spices.
Kumpir – Baked potato loaded with toppings.
Çiğ Köfte – Spicy bulgur “meatballs” (often vegetarian versions).
Menemen – Scrambled eggs with tomatoes and peppers.
Soups, Vegetables & Regional
Meze Platter – Shared small dishes (eggplant salad, haydari, etc.).
Turkish Meze Platter Mercimek Çorbası – Red lentil soup.
Mantı – Tiny dumplings with garlic yogurt and butter (Kayseri specialty).
Dolma / Sarma – Stuffed vegetables or grape leaves.
İmam Bayıldı – Eggplant stuffed with onion and tomato in olive oil.
Karnıyarık – Eggplant stuffed with minced meat.
Kuru Fasulye – White bean stew.
Beyran – Spicy lamb and rice soup (Gaziantep).
Hamsi – Anchovies, fried or in pilaf (Black Sea).
Pilav – Various rice or bulgur pilafs.
Other
Sucuk – Spicy sausage.
Pastırma – Cured dried beef.
Tandır – Slow-cooked lamb.
Slow-roasted lamb Seafood Grills – Fresh fish and calamari on the coasts.
Ayran – Yogurt drink (common accompaniment).
Turkish Breakfast (Kahvaltı) – Spread of cheeses, olives, eggs, tomatoes, and more.
Çılbır – Turkish poached eggs Lentil and Grain Dishes – Everyday staples.
Olive Oil Vegetables – Especially Aegean style.
Offal Dishes – Liver, tripe soup, etc.
Regional Stews – Many local variations.
Desserts & Sweets
Baklava & Other Syrup Desserts – Layered phyllo with nuts and syrup (Gaziantep is famous). Many regional styles.
Turkish sweets – baklava, şöbiyet, lokum, helva and dried fruit Künefe – Hot cheese dessert with shredded pastry and syrup.
Lokum (Turkish Delight) – Soft confection, often with nuts or rose.
Sütlaç – Rice pudding.
Helva – Semolina or tahini-based dessert.
Maraş Dondurması – Chewy stretchy ice cream.
Revani – Semolina cake with syrup.
Ayva Tatlısı – Quince dessert.
Tulumba – Fried dough soaked in syrup.
Turkish Coffee (Türk Kahvesi) – Thick, unfiltered coffee brewed in a cezve, served with lokum.
Turkish coffee with lokum
Tips: Start with a full Turkish breakfast, try both Adana and İskender kebabs, and don’t skip Gaziantep baklava or künefe. Meze and soups are excellent light options. Regional specialties are worth seeking out—southeastern Turkey for spicy kebabs and sweets, Black Sea for seafood, and Anatolia for dumplings.
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