A selection from the Turkish kitchen

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When it comes to national dishes, Turkey has its own traditions and customs.
Below you will see just a few ideas.

Turkish pizza: Most places in Turkey serve pizza as we know it. The Turkish pizza is a little different but try it anyway.
The size can vary from tiny to larger than a plate. The toppings are usually beef, onion, parsley and tomato purée, which are mixed together and put on top of bread dough. It will be served with a piece of lemon to be squeezed over the pizza. Of course there are many other varieties of toppings.
The Turkish pizza has more oil than the pizza we know.

Osmanish pan: A very special dish which gets its name from the Ottoman period in Turkish history.
You can get the osmanish pan with lamb, beef or chicken. It is a stew with different vegetables and spices.
The dish is made differently depending on the area and time of the year.

When it comes to desserts, the Turkish people love anything which is sweet - especially pastries, which are often soaked in honey. Vanilla and chocolate mousse are also favourites!
Plain fresh fruit such as melons, berries and grapes are also seen on the dessert table.

The Turkish people love soup, and they will eat it even in the middle of the night. In Alanya there is a street which is called soup-street which runs from the Atatürk statue on the main street to the 25metre street.
You may notice that these soup restaurants are open almost all night. The locals like to eat soup in the middle of the night on the way home from town.
Soup made with sheep's brains or sheep's eyes are quite normal but if this doesnt tempt you go for a tasty tomato or chicken variety.

Bread: Turkish white bread is not expensive and you can buy it at all the small grocers.
Remember that the bread becomes dry easily so eat it up quickly.
You should also try a simit which is like a bagel with sesame seeds. You can buy them on the street from small carts and they too are inexpensive.