Pastirma

Pastirma

Pastirma is a highly seasoned, air-dried cured meat, typically water buffalo or beef. and found in multiple Caucasian, Balkan and Mediterranean cuisines under a variety of names.

Etymology and history

The dish has multiple names in a variety of cuisines. It is known as or pasterma, ^[1] pastarma, ^[2] pastırma, pastrma, pastourma, ^[3] basdirma, ^[4] basterma, ^[5] basturma, ^[6] or aboukh. ^[7]

The word Pastırma and it's derivatives derive from the Turkish verb bastırma/bastırmak meaning to press. ^{[8] [9] [10]}

A version of Basturma existed in ancient Armenian cuisine, where it was known as aboukh' (Armenian : աբուխ). ^{[11] [12] [ full citation needed ]} The word abookhd (Classical Armenian apukht) was already used in the Armenian translation of the Bible, in the fifth century AD, meaning “salted and dried meat”. ^[13] According to T. Durham, basturma is of Armenian origin and is still prepared in the Middle East according to old family recipes. ^[14]

Pastırma is mentioned in Mahmud of Kashgar 's Diwan Lughat al-Turk and Evliya Çelebi 's Seyahatname. ^{[15] [ better source needed ]} According to Turkish scholar Biron Kiliç, the term is derived from the Turkic noun bastırma, which means "pressing". ^[16] The Oxford Encyclopedia of Food and Drink writes that pastırma is the word the Ottomans used for a type of Byzantine cured beef that was called paston (παστόν). ^{[17] [18]} According to Johannes Koder, an expert in Byzantine studies, paston could mean either salted meat or salted fish, while akropaston (ἀκρόπαστον) means salted meat. ^[19] Andrew Dalby gives the definition of paston as "salted fish" and akropaston apakin as "well-salted fillet steak". ^[20] Gregory Nagy gives the definition of akropaston as "smoked", describing apakin as "a kind of salami sausage, probably similar to pastourma". ^[21] The Oxford Companion for Food says that a Byzantine dried meat delicacy was "a forerunner of the pastirma of modern Turkey". ^[22]

The English word pastrami came by way of Yiddish and perhaps combined with the word salami . ^{[23] [24] [25]}

Preparation and usage

Pastirma with three eggs, a common breakfast dish

Pastirma is usually made from water buffalo or beef, but other meats can also be used. In Egypt, it is known as Basterma and is made not only with beef, but with the meat of water buffaloes as well. ^[26] Some pastirmas are made with horsemeat. ^[27] Different cuts of meat may be used; a single cow can produce 26 different "types" of pastirma. Fillet, shank, leg and shoulder cuts are used for the best quality pastirmas. ^{[16] [15]} It is usually made during the months of October and November. ^[28]

To make pastirma, the meat is rinsed and salted before being dried and pressed. After the first drying period, the meat is cold pressed for up to 16 hours. This aids the process of removing moisture from the meat. After the first pressing, the meat is dried for several days, during which the fats melt and form a white layer. The second press is a "hot press". ^[29] Finally, the dried and pressed meat is covered with a spice paste called cemen . Cemen is made from a paste consisting of caraway, paprika, blue fenugreek, fenugreek, black pepper, allspice, cumin, cayenne, salt ^[30] and mashed garlic. ^{[31] [32] [33] [34]} The dried product is covered with the wet paste and left to dry again. The entire process takes approximately one full month. ^[15] Pastirma is classified as an "intermediate moisture food". Lowering the moisture level is a form of food preservation that hinders the growth of microorganisms, and the cemen paste "is used to control surface mold growth during storage". ^[31] Other functions of the cemen include improved flavor, characteristic red coloring, prevention of further drying, and antimicrobial effects. ^[35]

Cuisines

Pastirma, or a variation of it is present in the cuisines of Turkey, Greece ,Armenia , Bulgaria, Azerbaijan, Egypt and the Arabs. A similar cured beef product that doesnt use chemen called Suho Meso, is popular in Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia and Croatia, while pastrama/pastrami is popular in Romania and amongst Jews. ^{[36] [37] [38] [39] [40] [41] [42] [43] [44]}

Armenia

Further information: Armenian cuisine

The cured meat, which resembles Italian bresaola, is called basturma (բաստուրմա) or aboukht (ապուխտ) by Armenians. ^[45] Some Armenian pizzerias in cities like Yerevan, Boston and Los Angeles serve basturma topped pizza. ^[45] Armenian restaurants also serve basturma topped burgers, ^[46] basturma can be added to salads, ^[47] and basturma with omelette is also a common breakfast item in Armenia. ^[48] Basturma, or a basturma omelette can also be wrapped inside a lavash, alongside other ingredients like tarragon, chechil cheese, and garlic matzoon. ^[49]

According to Nigol Bezjian, Armenians who survived the 1915 genocide brought basturma with them to the Middle East. Bezjian recalls that his grandmother used to prepare "basturma omelets fried in olive oil with pieces of lavash bread". He notes that Armenians from Kayseri were particularly renowned basturma producers. ^[45]

Arabs mocked Armenians with phrases like "It smells like there is basturma here", referring to the strong smell of basturma that is produced by the garlic and fenugreek mixture that the meat is coated in during preservation. Shoushou, a well-known Lebanese comedian of the 1960s–1970s, portrayed a caricature of an Armenian basturma seller; he retired the character after local Lebanese Armenians complained. ^[45]

In Palestine, Armenian families gather on New Year's Eve and eat traditional foods including basturma, chi kofta and a traditional Armenian confection called kaghtsr sujukh (քաղցր սուջուխ). ^{[50] [51]}

Bulgaria

Pastarma (as it is called in Bulgaria) is popular among Bulgarians. Specific products include Пастърма говежда / Pastarma Govezhda, which was registered as a Traditional Speciality Guaranteed in the EU in 2017. ^[2]

Egypt

Further information: Egyptian cuisine § Cured_meats

In Egypt bastirma (بسطرمة) is customarily made from lean cuts of beef or water buffalo, ^[26] such as the eye of round or tenderloin. These cuts are first cured with salt to extract excess moisture. Following the curing process, the meat is enveloped in a wet paste made with a blend of spices, including fenugreek, paprika, cumin, black pepper, and garlic, which creates a flavorful crust. The meat is then left to air-dry until it reaches a firm texture, a duration that varies with its size, and is ultimately served in thin slices. ^[52] It is often eaten with eggs for breakfast or as a topping in other dishes, like savory versions of feteer.

Turkey

Further information: Turkish cuisine

In Turkish cuisine pastırma can be eaten as a breakfast dish, and it is a common ingredient in omelettes, menemen (Turkish-style shakshouka ) or a variation of eggs benedict. ^{[53] [54] [55]}

Pastırma can be used as a topping for hummus, ^[56] pide bread, ^[57] hamburgers, ^[58] and toasted sandwiches with either cheddar cheese or kasar cheese. ^[59] It can be as a filling for a börek that is made with kadayıf instead of the traditional filo dough. ^[60] It may be combined with potato to make a filling for traditional böreks as well. ^[61]

It can also be used as an addition to vegetables, such as spinach (pastırmalı ıspanak). ^{[62] [63]}

Production

Turkey produces around 2041 tons of pastirma each year. ^[16] The pastirma from Kayseri is particularly well known. In their 1893 report the British Foreign Office note that Kayseri, which they call Cesarea, "is specially renowned for the preparation of basturma". ^[64]

See also

• Food portal

• Biltong  – Form of dried, cured meat from South Africa
• Cecina  – Salted and dried or cured meat
• Jerky  – Lean meat dried to prevent spoilage
• Montreal-style smoked meat  – Smoked style of corned beef created by Jewish immigrants in Montreal, Quebec
• List of dried foods
• Pastrami  – Meat preserved by partial drying, seasoning, smoking, and steaming

References

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2. "Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2017/1106 of 21 June 2017 entering a name in the register of traditional specialities guaranteed (Пастърма говежда (Pastarma govezhda) (TSG))". Official Journal of the European Union. 2 June 2017. Retrieved 5 May 2025.
3. Clifford Wright (26 September 2003). The Little Foods of the Mediterranean: 500 Fabulous Recipes for Antipasti, Tapas, Hors D'Oeuvre, Meze, and More. Harvard Common Press. p. 291. ISBN   978-1-55832-227-1.,
4. Sameh Wadi (14 April 2015). The New Mediterranean Table: Modern and Rustic Recipes Inspired by Traditions Spanning Three Continents. Page Street Publishing. p. 82. ISBN   978-1-62414-104-1.
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6. harry g. levine (2007). "pastrami land: the jewish deli in new york city". Contexts. 6 (3): 67–. doi: 10.1525/ctx.2007.6.3.67 . JSTOR   41801065. S2CID   60894880.
7. "How Do You Say Basturma in Armenian?". The Armenian Prelacy. 8 July 2016.
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14. T. R. Durham. Salt, Smoke, and History // Gastronomica , Vol. 1, No. 1 (Winter 2001), pp. 78-82.

    In the Middle East, basturma - spiced and wind-dried beef - is still made according to old family recipes. Of Armenian origin, this seasoned meat was carried by Turkish horsemen who allegedly wedged it between saddle and horse for extra salt and savor.

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36. PASTIRMA Also known as pasterma, pastarma or pastourma. Mutton, beef or goat meat marinated with strong taste, pastirma forms part of Turkish and Greek mezze and is eaten like dried ham. For more see: New Larousse Gastronomique, Hachette UK, 2018, ISBN 0600635872, p. 562.
37. The Bulgarians and Serbs call it pastarma; the Greeks, pastourmas; the Azerbaijanis, bastirma; the Arabs, basterma; and the Romanians, pastrama. For more see: Robert Sietsema, New York in a Dozen Dishes, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2015, ISBN 0544454316, p. 112.
38. The stuffing consists of what the Greeks call pastourma, known to the Turks as pastırma and to the Arabs as basturmā. For more see: Clifford Wright, Little Foods of the Mediterranean: 500 Fabulous Recipes for Antipasti, Tapas, Hors D'Oeuvre, Meze, and More, Harvard Common Press, 2003, ISBN 1558322272, p. 291.
39. The Greeks of Cappadocia have contributed in modest but distinct ways to the general food culture of modern Greece, reinforcing and adding their own nuances to the special foods of the major Christian festivals. They also claim pastirma as one of their specialities. In spite of such Byzantine precursors as apokti, it is true that the pastirma tradition has deep roots in the nomadic culture of the medieval Turks. It is highly probable that they transmitted the idea to the Cappadocians alongtime before Constantinople was conquered, and, although Constantinople knew all about pastirma from the seventeenth century onwards, it is certain that after the population exchanges of 1923 modern Greece acquired its knowledge of pastirma from the Capadocians. For more see: Gifts of the Gods: Andrew Dalby, Rachel Dalby, A History of Food in Greece, Foods and Nations, Reaktion Books, 2017, ISBN 1780238630, p. 149.
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Bibliography

• Alan Davidson, The Oxford Companion to Food. Oxford University Press, Oxford 1999. ISBN   0-19-211579-0.
• Maria Kaneva-Johnson, The Melting Pot. Balkan Food and Cookery, Prospect Books, 1995. ISBN   0-907325-57-2.

External links

• Media related to Pastirma at Wikimedia Commons