Turkish Cuisine: 23 Must-Try Dishes

While kebabs may be Turkey’s most famous dish, they’re just the beginning of the country’s rich culinary offerings.

Spanning over 300,000 square miles, Turkey’s diverse and flavorful cuisine is a direct result of its varied landscapes.

From plateaus and plains shaped by ancient volcanoes to towering snow-capped mountains and fast-moving rivers, Turkey’s geography enriches its culinary variety.

This includes olive oil-based dishes from the Mediterranean, hearty pastries from Central Anatolia, delicate spices from the East and Southeast, and much more.

Traditional Turkish cuisine focuses less on heavy seasonings and more on using fresh, high-quality ingredients that are carefully prepared with skill, attention, and passion.

The love for food runs so deep in Turkey that it even inspires songs. For instance, the classic tune 'Domates, biber, patlican' by Anatolian rock legend Baris Manco is all about tomatoes, peppers, and eggplants.

Here are 23 incredible Turkish dishes that go beyond the well-known kebab:

Piyaz

Antalya’s piyaz salad is a local favorite, and its star ingredient is the humble bean, which gives this dish its unique flavor.

These aren’t just any butter beans; they’re the small, special variety known as candir, named after the region where they’re cultivated.

Tender and full of flavor, candir beans are combined with tahini diluted with water, lemon juice, vinegar, garlic, salt, flat-leaf parsley, and olive oil for a delicious mix.

In the classic version of this dish, a soft-boiled egg is chopped up and stirred in just before serving for an added richness.

Ezogelin Soup

According to the tale, the dish was invented by a woman named Ezo, who, dissatisfied with her marriage, hoped to win her mother-in-law’s approval through her cooking.

She crafted a flavorful soup made with red lentils, tomato paste (either sweet or spicy), fresh grated tomatoes, and onions, topped with dried mint and chili flakes.

Although there’s no evidence it worked, the dish, known as ezogelin (meaning 'bride Ezo'), which hails from a village near Gaziantep, remains a popular choice for brides-to-be.

Saksuka

Turkish cuisine boasts a wide array of vegetable-based dishes known as zeytinyagli yemegi, or 'foods cooked in olive oil.' Many of these include ingredients like green beans, artichokes, and eggplants.

One of the standout eggplant dishes is saksuka, where tender eggplant cubes are simmered with zucchini, garlic, tomatoes, and chili—though the spiciness varies by region.

Kisir

Kisir is a classic Turkish salad crafted from fine bulgur wheat, tomatoes, garlic, parsley, and mint.

There are many variations of kisir across Turkey, with the Antakya version adding nar eksisi (sour pomegranate molasses) and pul biber (hot red chili flakes) for a spicy kick. The southern regions love their heat!

Mercimek Kofte

Made with red lentils, fine bulgur, salt, finely chopped onion, scallions, tomatoes, hot red pepper paste (aci biber salca), and crushed cilantro, these tasty morsels are served in bite-sized pieces.

To enjoy, simply place one of these flavorful nuggets on a lettuce leaf, squeeze a bit of lemon juice over it, roll it up, and savor every bite.

Mercimek Kofte

Yaprak Dolma

In Isparta, yaprak dolma is made with rice cooked in a mix of tomatoes, parsley, onions, garlic, tomato paste, olive oil, black pepper, salt, and water.

A spoonful of this fragrant rice mixture is carefully placed on a vine leaf, which is then folded and rolled by hand into tight, neat little parcels.

While vine leaves can be found in most street markets, the finest ones come from a neighbor's tree, typically harvested at midnight.

Yaprak dolma is a staple of Turkish Aegean cuisine and sometimes includes a hint of cinnamon, a nod to the Rum people, the Greek community born in Turkey.

Inegol Kofte

In Turkish cuisine, meatballs are more than just ground meat; each variety tells its own unique story.

One of the most famous is Inegol Kofte, created by Mustafa Efendi, a Bulgarian immigrant who settled in Inegol, northwest Turkey, in the 19th century.

Unlike other Turkish meatballs, his version uses only ground beef or lamb, mixed with breadcrumbs and seasoned with onions.

Iskender Kebab

Bursa, located in northwest Turkey, is renowned for three things: silk, the ski slopes of Uludag, and its famous Iskender kebab.

Legend has it that a man named İskender first created this dish for laborers at the Kayhan Bazaar in Bursa in 1867.

Thin slices of doner meat are carefully arranged over soft pide bread, generously covered with fresh tomato sauce, topped with sizzling melted butter, and served with a side of tangy yogurt, grilled tomatoes, and green peppers.

Cag Kebab

The people of Erzurum are passionate about their meat, so much so that they will wait over 12 hours for a tender, flavorful slice of lamb cag kebab.

The process begins by rubbing the meat with a blend of onions, salt, and black pepper, then allowing it to marinate for half a day. The marinated lamb is then skewered and cooked horizontally over a wood fire.

Cag Kebab is delicious on its own, but it’s also served wrapped in soft lavas bread, accompanied by slices of tomato, white onion, and long, thin green peppers known as sivri.

Hamsili Pilav

Hamsi, or European anchovy, is a beloved ingredient in the Turkish Black Sea region. In the city of Rize, these slender fish are paired with rice to create the iconic Hamsili Pilav.

The dish is cooked in a flavorful stock made from fried onions, butter, peanuts, Turkish allspice, and raisins, which is then mixed with fresh parsley and dill. Filleted anchovies are laid over the rice before everything is baked together in the oven.

Perde Pilav

Hailing from Siirt, Perde Pilav, or 'curtain rice', is a rice-based dish wrapped in a rich buttery crust, baked to perfection, and served hot.

Traditionally served at weddings, Perde Pilav is made with chicken, currants, almonds, pine nuts, and butter, seasoned with salt, oregano, and pepper.

The shape of the dish is believed to symbolize the formation of a new home, with the rice representing fertility and the currants symbolizing future children.

Manti

Among the many styles of Manti, the ones from Kayseri are considered the most popular and beloved.

This version from Central Anatolia features small parcels of minced meat, though in other regions, cheese is used instead. The manti are boiled and then topped with yogurt and pul biber (chili flakes).

Legend has it that a skilled Turkish housewife can make the dumplings so tiny that 40 of them fit onto a single spoon.

Testi Kebab

This dish, a specialty from the Nevsehir region, is traditionally cooked in pottery crafted in Avanos, using red clay sourced from the famous Kizilirmak River.

The clay pot is first filled with beef, tomatoes, bell peppers, garlic, and a lump of butter. Its opening is sealed with a slice of potato, wrapped in aluminum foil, and then baked in a wood-burning oven.

Once the dish is ready, the chef must hold the foil-covered lid with one hand and a small hammer with the other to break open the pot.

The trick is to strike the thin ring around the pot, located about three-quarters of the way up the vessel.

Gözleme

Also called sac böreği, this dish is cooked on a hot, convex metal plate called a sac. Gözleme are thin, flat pockets filled with cheese, spinach, or minced beef.

Although often considered peasant food, making gözleme requires skill, especially when rolling out the delicate dough without causing tears.

The word 'göz' means 'eye,' and the name 'gözleme' is thought to be inspired by the dark spots that appear on the pastry as it fries on the sac, resembling 'eyes.'

Pide

Loved throughout Turkey, pide is particularly famous in the Black Sea region. The dough is stretched into a long, boat-shaped base and topped with a selection of savory fillings.

One of the most beloved versions is sucuklu yumurta, featuring spicy Turkish sausage and egg with melted kasar cheese, though ispanakli kasar, a mix of spinach and cheese, is also a popular choice.

It’s the crust that elevates pide to greatness. Baked in a wood-fired oven, the intense heat creates a crisp, crunchy base that perfectly complements any filling.

Su boregi

Borek, a savory treat made from multiple layers of a delicate filo-like dough called yufka, is especially popular in the highlands of central Anatolia.

Brought to Turkey centuries ago by nomadic herders, variations of this dish can be found across the country as well as throughout Central and Eastern Europe.

Su boregi, or 'water borek,' is the most widely available variety, relying on a simple yet flavorful combination of white cheese, butter, olive oil, and salt.

Simit

If any food could be said to power a nation, simit would be Turkey’s lifeblood. These circular sesame-crusted breads are sold everywhere—by street vendors, in bakeries, at transport hubs, and even on ferries.

Though it’s believed that simit originated in the kitchens of Sultan Suleyman the Magnificent during the 1500s, there are no official records to confirm its royal roots.

In October 2019, the Oxford English Dictionary officially added the word 'simit,' marking an important milestone in its global recognition.

Lahmacun

The name lahmacun comes from the Arabic term 'lahm-i acinli,' as noted by the Ottoman explorer Evliya Celebi, who traveled extensively in the 17th century.

This pastry gets its name from 'lahm,' meaning meat in Arabic, and 'ajin,' meaning paste. The paste is a mixture of lean minced meat, tomato paste, garlic, and spices, spread over a thin circle of pita dough. It can be made spicier upon request.

Traditionally served with fresh parsley and a dash of lemon juice, this dish has been enjoyed by Turks for over 300 years.

Cig kofte

Cig kofte hails from Sanliurfa, and its name comes from the traditional method of using raw (cig) ground beef mixed with bulgur, tomato paste, onions, garlic, pepper, and Turkish spices.

The mixture was kneaded until it passed the 'ceiling test'—a piece was thrown at the ceiling, and if it stuck, the dish was ready.

Today, the meat has been entirely replaced by bulgur and occasionally ground walnuts, creating a healthier but still delicious version of the dish.

Baklava

In Gaziantep, or Antep, in southeastern Anatolia, the best baklava is crafted in a dimly lit room with a controlled temperature ideal for layering the 40 sheets of delicate, tissue-thin pastry that make up this iconic Turkish dessert.

Each sheet of baklava is meticulously brushed with butter, and a generous layer of ground pistachios is added between every few layers. Once assembled, the pastry is drenched in a sweet honey syrup and baked to a golden perfection.

There are several enticing variations of baklava with names like twisted turban, nightingale’s nest, and saray or palace baklava, all equally tempting. It can be served plain or with a dollop of kaymak, Turkey's rich and creamy version of clotted cream.

Dondurma

Where else can you find ice cream that requires a knife and fork to enjoy?

The answer is Kahramanmaras, the birthplace of traditional Turkish dondurma. This unique ice cream, whose name means 'freezing' in Turkish, is crafted from milk and two special ingredients: sahlep and mastic.

Sahlep, a flour made from orchids, lends a smooth, velvety texture to the ice cream, while mastic, a natural resin, imparts a distinctive chewy quality.

Lokum

Lokum, or Turkish Delight, has been around for centuries, but it wasn’t until the mid-1800s that it gained popularity among the Ottoman sultans.

This surge in popularity came after the invention of cornstarch, when Istanbul's famed confectioner Haci Bekir began adding it to his recipe.

This simple treat, made by boiling water, starch, and sugar together, results in delicate cubes flavored with rosewater, pistachio, and other delights that continue to enchant.

Ekmek kadayifi

This traditional dessert from Afyonkarahisar is made with a special type of dried bread that has a texture similar to crumpets.

The bread is arranged on a large tray, soaked in water to make it puff up, then drizzled with a syrup made from sugar, water, and lemon, and simmered gently on the stove.

As the syrup is ladled over the bread, it absorbs the sweet, sticky liquid. Once ready, the bread is flipped onto a serving dish and topped with kaymak, rich Turkish clotted cream.