Sultan's Kitchen. Ozcan Ozan
I dedicate this book to my wife Faith Ozan
for all her patience, support, and encouragement;
to my sons, Evren and Aydin Ozan, and to
my mother Müserref Ozan.
Published by Periplus Editions (HK) Ltd.
Copyright© 1998 Özcan Ozan
Photographs copyright© 1998, 2001 Carl Tremblay
First paperback edition 2001
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without prior written permission from the publisher.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Ozan, Özcan
The Sultan's Kitchen: A Turkish Cookbook / by Özcan Ozan; photographs by Carl Tremblay. - 1st ed.
p. cm.
Includes index.
ISBN: 978-1-4629-0639-0 (ebook)
1. Cookery, Turkish. 2. Sultan's Kitchen (Restaurant: Boston. Mass.)
1. Tide.
TX25.T8092 1998
64 1.59561-dc21 97052132
CIP
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Printed in Singapore
15 14 13 12 11 14 13 12 11 10 1105CP
CONTENTS
~~~~~~~~~~~
Suggested Menus
Turkish Ingredients
Sauces And Condiments
Desserts, Fruit Compotes, And Drinks
PREFACE
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
AS A CHILD GROWING UP ON THE AEGEAN SEA, I was naturally more interested in the business of childhood than in appreciating my surroundings. Now, however, reflecting back as an adult living in another country, I am very appreciative of the myriad Aegean influences that shaped my early years and especially thankful for ones that fostered my passion for good food.
İzmir, the city where I was born and raised, is ancient Smyrna. Greek and Roman ruins that are mostly taken for granted by the residents are dotted throughout the city. Similarly, the grandeur of the Ottoman Empire left its mark on the city's art and architecture, on the lifestyle of its people, and on its cuisine.
Turkish cuisine ranks as one of the three great world cuisines (along with French and Chinese) and has a long and complex history. The result has been the development of a varied array of dishes with flavors that are both familiar and surprising to the Western palate. Despite its ancient roots, the Turkish diet is a very healthy one, even by today's standards, with its emphasis on eating a variety of foods and using fresh ingredients.
The typical Aegean arrangement of daily shopping at small specialty groceries and shops creates a lot of noisy, colorful, and aromatic hustle and bustle that is the fabric of day-to-day life. Sharing evening meals is at the core of Turkish family life. Countless seaside and outdoor cafes and restaurants provide backdrops for the enjoyment of food, drink and conversation. So, as I look back with some nostalgia, I think that the natural beauty of the region, the classical and Ottoman aesthetics, the panoramic presence of food, and food's critical role in family and society have all contributed to my becoming a chef by profession.
As is true for many professional chefs, my first teacher was my mother. I was raised modestly and traditionally, and we lived simply on my father's wages and my mother's domesticity. Having come to İzmir from a nearby village, my mother brought rural, traditional recipes to the city along with her incomparable standards for freshness and variety and respect for food. She often took me with her on shopping expeditions (sometimes lasting for hours) as she inspected and chose vegetables, fruits, cheeses, olives, grains, edible wild greens, herbs, spices, poultry, and fish. Returning