GustoAtlas

A finely chopped mezze from Gaziantep made with tomatoes and peppers, blended with paste, vinegar, and spices; an indispensable accompaniment to kebabs.

A classic Istanbul meze consisting of small pieces of floured liver fried and served with onion salad; associated with Balkan migration heritage.

A Southeast Anatolian meze made from roasted eggplant blended with tahini, garlic, and lemon; the smoky aroma of roasting defines its identity.

An Erzurum cheese made from skimmed milk and pulled open into fine strands; also known as cecil. It is eaten at the breakfast table and alongside dried curd. It carries a geographical indication.

A hard, sharp cheese made from the highland milk of the Savak herders and ripened in a skin. As it matures it crumbles and its scent deepens. It carries a geographical indication.

A cold mezze made from cooked and mashed dried fava beans, served with dill.

A thick meze made from strained yogurt, cheese, and heated oil with mint; it retains its shape on the plate.

A common family of chickpeas, tahini, and lemon that transcends regional boundaries; in southern Turkey, it is also served warm and with butter.

A classic pan-fried dish where squeezed zucchini gains a thin crispy crust with herbs and cheese; adding more flour is not the shortcut to good fritters.

The product of a Swiss-style hard cheese tradition that settled in Kars at the end of the 19th century; large wheels ripen for months and the cut shows large eyes. It carries a geographical indication.

A table dish made with fine bulgur mixed with tomato paste, sourness, and greens; it should not be considered as small as a salad.

A breakfast classic where tomatoes, peppers, and eggs are cooked together; the debate over the inclusion of onions cannot be reduced to a single historical truth.

A meatless kebab made from legumes and grains, typically eaten by hand with lettuce leaves.

A thick mezze from Hatay-Aleppo made with walnuts, pepper paste, and bread crumbs; it is a close relative of the breakfast spread acuka.

A salad-meze made from boiled dried beans, onions, sumac, and olive oil; the tahini version from Antalya is a distinct variation.

A known example of Istanbul Armenian culinary heritage: a cold appetizer filled with tahini, onions, and spices, encased in chickpea and potato skin.

Made by folding into the curd the wild herbs gathered around Van in spring — sirmo, mendi, heliz and others; the scent of the herb passes into the cheese as it ripens. It carries a geographical indication.

This walnut chicken, associated with the heritage of Caucasian migration, has become one of the delicacies of the meze table in Turkey.

Poached eggs on garlic yogurt topped with spiced butter; a simple dish based on the contrast of temperatures.

A cold appetizer made of fried eggplant and peppers combined with a tomato-garlic sauce.