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What do people eat in Turkey?

Diet

For dessert, people usually eat fresh fruit or pudding made with milk. Rich cakes and pastries are most often eaten as snacks with Turkish coffee. Turkish Delight (lokum) is a popular sweet. Other well-known dishes are cerkes tavugu, fresh pounded chicken and walnuts, and sigara boregi, cheese, and spinach-filled deep-fried pastries. The famous kahve (Turkish coffee), a thick brew served in very small cups, is served with nearly every meal. a popular drinks are tea and ayran. Ayran is a mixture of water and yogurt with a pinch of salt. Boza is a traditional drink made from fermented bulgur wheat. The staple diet for people in rural areas is bread, eaten with onions, yogurt, olives, cheese, and occasionally pastirma, a dried spicy meat. Fresh fruit, vegetables, meat, and fish are widely available in Turkey's villages.

Mealtime

Factory workers may eat at cafeterias, so may students. Workers in the field usually bring lunch to eat during a break from work.

Many foods are eaten with the fingers. When utensils are used, the continental style of eating is followed. At the dinner table usually, everyone has his/her place. Hands should not be on the table.

Meals are usually eaten at home if the family members are close to the house. If not, children eat at school, workers eat near their workplace or mostly within the refectory of their workplace. Turkish dishes are sis kebab, sis kofte, and doner kebab. These dishes, made with fresh lamb or beef, are grilled with onion and other vegetables. Fish and rice pilaf are also popular.

During Ramadan month, food is served only during the evening and late at night, this is a tradition of Islam. In Turkey, it is believed that it is healthier to eat when sitting on the floor. Some families have the elderly members sit at the beginning of the table and mothers closer to the kitchen. Hands are mostly kept clean and above the table. Breakfast usually includes bread with jam, butter or honey, and tea. Lunch and dinner may consist of soup, rice, vegetables, macaroni, stews, or salads. Dinner is a family affair, the dishes are served on a large tray, which is placed on a low table or on the floor. The family sits on cushions and pillows on the floor around the tray. Formal Turkish meals often begin with appetizers called meze.

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