From Turkish Food Culture
I was fascinated since childhood of the medieval period in history. It is an attraction, I cannot explain; perhaps a past life or a connection that haunts me from time to time. My love for food and the Dirilis Ertugrul TV series has captured a part of me that is pushing me to write this post. Turkish food was not so only about Turkish delight and Turkish coffee, but food was simple and humble!
From what I have spotted from the episodes of Dirilis Ertugrul, bread and milk was the most common food for the medieval period. Meat was reserved for special occasions like a wedding or a victory in battle. Pastirma was also served to the Alps which clearly acted as a source of protein for them to fight their enemies.
Halime Sultan warming up some milk!
As we can see here, bread is an integral part along with some meat and rice pilaf. There is also a bowl of milk for everyone.
The Ottoman cuisine is highly stylized in the reign of Suleiman and Hurrem Sultan. However during the medieval period it was far more simple. Sultan Mehmet of the Seljuq offered only Burani (a vegetable dish with garlic yoghurt) and Helva to its guests. Even the statesmen and the king himself survived on simple pleasures so far food is concerned.
It is understood that the classification seen in Mevlevi places in the 13th century and which improved in Mehmet the Conqueror’s time, from the personnel in the palace kitchen to include; bread makers, dessert makers, helva makers, pickle makers and yogurt makers.
In the words of Trépanier provides the portrait of a world that is much less simple and monolithic than we would suspect. His choice of using food as an entry point allows him to make complex issues accessible to us, while helping us to better appreciate how food, rather than just being the reflection of a society, actually constitutes one if its main engines."
