In the previous part, we introduced the court kitchen of the Ottoman Empire, and today we will have a good chat about what the supreme ruler of the Ottoman Empire, the Sultan, eat~
As the monarch of a huge empire, the sultans of the Ottoman Empire loved to eat and were very good at eating.
In the 15th century, there were 100 employees in the kitchens of Topkapi Palace, and by the reign of Suleiman I in the 16th century, this number had increased to 500. By 1600, the kitchen employed more than 1,000 people, all working hard to make the meals, desserts and drinks that the sultans ate.
However, the sultans are very concerned about "privacy" when it comes to eating, and chefs are strictly forbidden to write down recipes. The Sultan didn't want anyone else to know what he was eating.
But today, more than a century after the fall of the Ottoman Empire, some food and drinks favored by sultans can still be found on the streets of Istanbul, Turkey.
The following is the common food on the table of Sudan in the past~
Turkish barbecue
Turkish barbecue has a long history, and it is said that in the past, Turkish warriors used sabers to make barbecue.
Sultans also love delicious barbecues, and it is recorded that Sultan Abdulaziz ordered a barbecue takeaway at a famous rotisserie in the 19th century.
Now the most famous Turkish roast is the rotary roast. The roast is cut from a rotating stand-up rotisserie and eaten wrapped in pies.
Sultan's Joy
From the name of this dish, you can tell that it is very popular with Sudanese. Sultan's delight is actually a stew with eggplant sauce. An African chef reportedly dedicated the dish to Sultan Abdulaziz in the mid-19th century.
However, it is also claimed that the Sultan's Joy is the work of "Catholic chefs", most likely French or Italian chefs from the kitchens of the Ottoman court.
Stuffed papaya with lamb
It is already difficult to find this dish today, but the Ottoman sultans loved it. It is made by stuffing lamb, beef, currants and pine nuts into papaya and roasting.
Topkapi chicken
Topkapi chicken is a more complex dish in which rice is stuffed and baked. The skin of the chicken is crispy and the rice inside is fragrant.
Mutankana
Mutankana was a favorite of Mohammed II. The lamb is first sautéed in butter and spring onions, then dried fruits and almonds are added, and finally sprinkled with honey and salted wood fruit spices. Mutankana has a sweet and sour taste and is usually served with saffron rice.
Porek pie
The history of the Borek pie dates back to the time of Mohammed II in the 15th century at the latest, when the sultans began to enjoy the Borek pie. This pie comes in triangles, crescents, and squares and is stuffed with ingredients such as lamb, cheese, and vegetables.
More than 500 years ago, Mohammed II ate porek pies with chicken fillings, and other sultans probably ate pies made from other imported ingredients.
At a banquet for foreign guests in 1649, the Ottoman sultan prepared Blake pies with minced meat, dried apricots, dates and chestnuts.
Pilaf
The history of pilaf dates back to at least 1404, when Timur, the founder of the Timurid Empire, served "rice cooked in many ways" at a banquet.
By the 16th century, Turkish-style pilaf began to appear in Iran. Pilaf was a staple food in the Ottoman Empire and was also popular in the Persian Empire.
Doma/Sarma
The Ottomans loved doma and sarma, the former being food wrapped in filling with vegetable leaves and the latter food wrapped in grape leaves.
In 1453, after the Turks conquered Constantinople, Mehmed II began to fall in love with Dorma. Dorma also gradually spread from the Sultan's table to the entire Ottoman Empire.
Baclava (baklava)
Sudan has its own dedicated dessert kitchen with sweets, jams, juices and syrups. It dates back thousands of years and reached its peak in the Ottoman Empire.
In the palace of Istanbul, there are many delicious baklava in the kitchen. A kitchen notebook from 1473 records the production of Baclava. It is made from layers of thin pastry topped with nuts and honey.
Bacrava (baklava) was one of the most extravagant desserts of its time. For centuries, only the rich could afford baklava. Even today, Turks sometimes say "I don't have money to eat baklava every day."
Vizier fingers
It is a fluffy pastry made from semolina and topped with syrup.
There is a story behind Vizier's fingers. During a hunt, Vizir (a position similar to the "prime minister" in the Ottoman Empire) accidentally cut off the Sultan's finger, the Sultan was angry, but Vizier said that "everything has a good side", and Vizier was subsequently jailed. During another hunt, the Sultan encountered cannibals, who ate others outside the Sultan and let him go because the missing fingers of the Sultan were considered "defective". The Sultan picked up a life, and upon his return, pardoned the vizier and apologized to him. "There is a good side to everything," Vizier said. If I hadn't been locked up, I would definitely have been eaten by cannibals because I didn't have any defects in my body. ”
Shaped like a finger, the vizier's finger was food in difficult times for the Ottomans, a reminder to have a glimmer of hope because "there is a good side to everything".
Chickpea cinnamon bread
The Ottomans made bread a staple food, and they had at least 46 types of bread. A popular bread called "has ekmek" is a white bread sprinkled with seeds.
Court kitchen records show that bakers sometimes added fennel juice to the dough, and that Mehmed II preferred to eat bread containing animal fat.
In the 15th century, the Ottomans dipped bread in a sauce made from chickpeas, cinnamon, pine nuts and gooseberries, which is believed to be the prototype of hummus.
Sherbet
The Ottomans drank sherbet by crushing the fruit and mixing it with herbs and flowers. The Ottomans often mixed sherbet with water, ice or snow to form a sherbet.
Sherbet is usually served as a refreshing drink before or during meals. There is a recipe that makes syrup from quinces, apples, pears, peaches and apricots, which are then mixed with ice spring water.
Tea
The Ottoman habit of drinking tea came from China. At the end of the 19th century, an Ottoman governor promoted the health benefits of drinking tea. Around the same time, the Ottomans tried to grow their own tea, which became popular until after the fall of the Ottoman Empire.
The Ottoman style of making tea was actually Russian, using a pot to boil strong tea and then dilute it with water. Now, Turks add a piece or two of sugar to their tea so that the sweetness neutralizes the bitterness.
Orchid powder
The Ottomans preferred drinks made from orchid powder. Orchid Powder is a powder made by grinding the stems of wild Anatolian mountain orchids into powder and mixing them with milk, rose water, and sugar.
Orchid powder was so popular in the Ottoman Empire that they also added it to candies – the reason why it was so popular was that the Ottomans considered it an "aphrodisiac".
Turkish coffee
The Ottoman sultan's attitude towards Turkish coffee was also polarized.
In the 16th century, a governor of Yemen gave Suleiman I Turkish coffee and immediately conquered the sultan.
Turkish coffee was hugely popular in Istanbul and even throughout the Ottoman Empire – until the 17th century, when Sultan Murad IV declared coffee illegal. Murad IV called Turkish coffee an indecent drink and he would cut off the heads of all coffee drinkers.
Turkish coffee has a unique consistency and taste, it is made by grinding coffee beans and cooking them in a brass pot.
Poza
Poza is a drink that dates back centuries to the Ottoman Empire. However, as the Ottoman Empire grew, Poza grew in popularity. Poza's method is very simple, first put millet in water and boil, then sift and add sugar.
In the 17th century, Sultan Mehmed IV imposed a ban on Pozari because of his alcohol, but not everyone complied with it. By the 19th century, a new non-alcoholic pozza became more popular. Now, it is very common for Turks to drink poza, and it is even more common in winter.
Allen
Aylan is a savory yogurt drink that existed before the Ottoman Empire. Thousands of years ago, Turks mixed yogurt and water to make Aylan.
Considered Turkey's "national drink," Airan is also available at McDonald's, and is also popular in Greece, Iran and Lebanon.
The above are the food and drinks enjoyed by the sultans of the Ottoman Empire~
What is your opinion on this?