Turkish cuisine is the cuisine of Turkey and the Turkish diaspora. The cuisine took its current form after numerous cultural interactions throughout centuries, descending from earlier stages of Turkish cuisine, Ottoman cuisine and Seljuk cuisine. Turkish cuisine with traditional Turkic elements such as yogurt, ayran, kaymak, exerts and gains influences to and from Mediterranean, Balkan, Middle Eastern, Central Asian and Eastern European cuisines.
A skewer is a thin metal or wood stick used to hold pieces of food together. The word may sometimes be used as a metonym, to refer to the entire food item served on a skewer, as in "chicken skewers". Skewers are used while grilling or roasting meats and fish, and in other culinary applications.
Shashlik, or shashlyck, is a dish of skewered and grilled cubes of meat, similar to or synonymous with shish kebab. It is known traditionally by various other names in the Caucasus, Eastern Europe and Central Asia, and from the 19th century became popular as shashlik across much of the Russian Empire and nowadays in former Soviet Union republics.
Kebab, kabob, kebap, kebob, or kabab (Kashmir), is a variety of roasted meat dishes that originated in the Middle East.
Doner kebab, also spelled as döner kebab, is a dish of Turkish origin made of meat cooked on a vertical rotisserie. Seasoned meat stacked in the shape of an inverted cone is turned slowly on the rotisserie, next to a vertical cooking element. The operator uses a knife to slice thin shavings from the outer layer of the meat as it cooks. The vertical rotisserie was invented in the 19th-century Ottoman Empire, and dishes such as the Arab shawarma, Greek gyros, Canadian donair, and Mexican al pastor are derived from this.
Ćevapi or ćevapčići is a grilled dish of minced meat found traditionally in the countries of southeast Europe. It is considered a national dish of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia, with Bosnia and Herzegovina taking steps in branding and placing them on the list of intangible heritage, with a nomination for inclusion on the UNESCO List of Intangible Cultural Heritage. Ćevapi are also common in Albania, Bulgaria, Slovenia, Croatia, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Western Romania.
Sosatie is a traditional South African dish of meat cooked on skewers. The term derives from sate and saus. It is of Cape Malay origin, used in Afrikaans—the primary language of the Cape Malays, and the word has gained greater circulation in South Africa. Marinated, cubed meat is skewered and cooked by braaing (barbecued) shish kebab style. Sosatie recipes vary, but commonly the ingredients can include cubes of lamb, beef, chicken, dried apricots, red onions and mixed peppers.
Kofta is a family of meatball or meatloaf dishes found in South Asian, Central Asian, Balkan, Middle Eastern, North African, and South Caucasian cuisines. In the simplest form, koftas consist of balls of minced meat—usually beef, chicken, pork, lamb or mutton, or a mixture—mixed with spices and sometimes other ingredients. The earliest known recipes are found in early Arab cookbooks and call for ground lamb.
Barbecue varies by the type of meat, sauce, rub, or other flavorings used, the point in barbecuing at which they are added, the role smoke plays, the equipment and fuel used, cooking temperature, and cooking time.
Seekh kebab is a type of kebab, native to the Indian subcontinent, made with Indian subcontinent spices, spiced minced or ground meat, usually lamb, beef, or chicken, formed into cylinders on skewers and grilled. It is typically cooked on a mangal or barbecue, or in a tandoor. Seekh kebabs are prepared in homes and restaurants throughout South Asia. It is a signature dish in Indian metro cities like Kolkata, Bhopal, Delhi, Hyderabad, Lucknow and in Pakistan and Bangladesh.
Kokoretsi or kokoreç is a dish of the Balkans and Anatolia, consisting of lamb or goat intestines wrapped around seasoned offal, including sweetbreads, hearts, lungs, or kidneys, and typically grilled; a variant consists of chopped innards cooked on a griddle. The intestines of suckling lambs are preferred.
Shish kofta (Turkish) is a type of kebab-style kofta dish in Turkish cuisine.
Shish taouk or shish tawook is a traditional marinated chicken shish kebab of Ottoman cuisine that later became part of Middle Eastern cuisine. It is widely eaten in the Middle East and Caucasus. A similar dish in Persian cuisine is the traditional jujeh kabab. It is also served in kebab houses in many cities around the world.
Cağ kebabı is a horizontally stacked marinated rotating lamb kebab variety, originating in Erzurum Province, Turkey.
Patlıcanlı kebap is a Turkish kebab that may be prepared according to various traditions.
Çöp şiş is a type of lamb shish kebab eaten throughout Anatolia in Turkey.
