Turkey and food are a wonderful combination going back hundreds of years, resulting in the wonderful dishes one can see today. From the traditional Turkish food in its markets to the fine dining restaurants, going to Turkey for a food tour is a journey that will thrill one’s taste buds. The traditional Turkish foods are so much more than normal everyday meals, its history and the fascinating and unique flavor one finds while eating them, are a wonderful cultural experience in its own right.
Whether you’re craving the sweet and sumptuous Baklava and Kunefe, or the various flatbread made into sandwiches of stunning flavors, you’re guaranteed a wonderful cultural experience in one of the world’s best cuisines. In this blog we’ll be going over some of the best traditional Turkish foods for people looking to get a better idea and knowledge of this wonderful cuisine while on their trip to Turkey.
15 Traditional Turkish Foods to Try While in Turkey
Turkish foods and their deliciousness are something else in their own league. Whether you’re eating the sumptuous Cig Kofte or diving deep into the Doner Kebab with delicious Ayran, you’re guaranteed a wonderful meal at any rate in Turkey. If you’re traveling to Erzurum, Antalya, or anywhere in Istanbul, here are some of the best traditional turkish foods you should try while in Turkey:
1. Doner Kebab
Starting off with perhaps the most famous of all the traditional Turkish foods, you’ll find the Doner Kebab everywhere in Turkey and all over the world. The dish is made with meat being vertically roasted by a burner, and shaved off continuously for orders. After shaving off the meat, it is wrapped in pita bread along with slices of cucumbers, tomatoes, onions, and yogurt and then served.
2. Simit
Similar to a traditional bagel but filled with more flavor and chewier, Simit is the best street food you can grab for a quick snack. This street food is traditionally eaten with Turkish tea. It’s topped with sesame,and has been a popular dish ever since. The bread is made from flour, yeast, water and other ingredients which are shaped into a ring shape ladened with sesame seeds and then baked.
3. Cig Kofte
Koftes are a specialty of the traditional Turkish food scene and you especially see this when you take a bite of the luscious Cig Kofte. These koftas, fully cooked minced meat, are served with cucumbers and onions and are also accompanied by Ayran (a Turkish yogurt drink), combining to make one of the best experiences one can have in Turkey with tis traditional turkish food.
4. Lahmacun
A variant of the normal everyday pizza but even more delicious, you’ll forget the taste of the normal one after taking a bite of this wonderful culinary delicacy known as the Turkish pizza. Lahmacun is prepared with minced meat mixed with spices and various vegetables put on top of a flatbread and then baked.
5. Baklava
If you go to Turkey and don’t eat the wonderful pastry delight that is the Baklava, you’re missing out on the pride and joy of the dessert scene of the country. Famously known for its crispy and delicate texture, you’ll find people selling Baklava in every corner of Istanbul and in the country, making it a top traditional Turkish food. The filo dough filled with chopped, finely cut nuts and dipped in rosewater after baking is one of the top desserts of the Turkey food scene.
6. Midye Dolma 
Midye Dolma are a variety of the various dolma served in Turkey. The fascinating dish consists of mussels, which are first cleaned and then boiled in hot water to detach the shells. After boiling the mussels, various types of ingredients such as oil, spices, and rice, are stuffed in the mussels along with the meat to enhance the flavor.
7. Cag Kebab
Imported from Erzurum over the centuries, Cag Kebab is another kind of the delicious variants of Kebabs that Turkey has come to be famous for making. Cag Kebab consists of lamb that is marinated for many hours and is attached to a horizontal spit that keeps continuously roasting the meat to make it completely tender. The meat is served in the form of skewers or put in Lavash bread and drunk with Ayran to complete the mixture of wonderful flavors in one of the most famous traditional Turkish foods.
8. Manti
Mantis are small dumplings that are stuffed with ground meat and served with drinks to make one’s experience even more fantastic. They are served with a garlic sauce or yogurt, and sometimes with mushrooms other than ground meat.
9. Adana Kebap
Who goes to Turkey and doesn’t try the famous Adana kebap? Famous for the city with the same namesake, these wonderful meat skewers are a royalty in Turkish cuisine after the Doner Kebap, and are a top traditional Turkish food one must try.
10. Menemen
Menemen consists of scrambled eggs made with peppers, tomatoes and topped with sausages or cheese. They are commonly eaten at both breakfast and as a dish for dinner or lunch.
11. Pide
Flatbreads are a specialty of Turkish cuisine and a regular in the traditional Turkish foods, and one of the most famous and delicious is the Pide bread. Having a boat shaped structure, it is filled with cheese, vegetables and meat to make a fantastic sandwich.
12. Corba(Soups of Various Kinds)
Typically made with boiled meat in water or with lentils, Corba’s story goes back hundreds of years when the Turks arrived in Anatolia, making them close-to-the heart traditional Turkish food. Some of the most known are the Tarhana and Mercimek Corbasi typically made with lentils or vegetables.
13. Kuru Fasulye
Considered by some as the national dish of turkey, this dish is made with beans that are stewed along with olive oil and tomato sauce. White beans are used in this dish, along with other ingredients such as meats or vegetables in this traditional Turkish food.
14. Borek
Turkeys and pastries have a special relationship, and one can especially see this with the special pastry known as Borek. The pastry is typically filled with meat or cheese or spinach and is also a prominent traditional Turkish food, served from Ottoman times in the forms of pies that are cut into pieces to make a single portion.
15. Famous Turkish Delights
Lokum or Turkish delights, are another traditional Turkish food and one of its top food highlights in the world. They are made with gelatin mixed with many flavors, such as pomegranate, nuts, etc.
Eating Traditional Turkish Foods in Turkey: A Wonderful Adventure for Food Lovers
Turkish cuisine and its food culture are one of the best in the world, with their varieties and tastes occupying a special place in the list of the world’s different cuisines. Whether you’re trying out the traditional Turkish foods such as the Corba or taking a bite out of the tasty Adana Kebap, every bite and sip will be something unique and wonderful.
So are you ready to embark on a wonderful journey to the Gateway to Ancient Wonders, otherwise known as Turkey, where you’ll experience wonderful cultures and rich culinary delicacies, all with pre-booked accommodations and guided tours? iLinkTurkey offers a diverse range of guided tour packages for destinations in Turkey. Head over to our packages and book one of our featured Turkey packages now.
