Who could resist being tempted by a Lady's navel or trying to find out why the Imam fainted? Imam bayildi is the Turkish name of the dish which caused the Imam to lose consciousness. It consists of large aubergines, stuffed with onions and tomatoes and stewed in oil. He didn't faint from delight, he didn't faint from food poisoning either. The poor man fainted from dismay when he found out that his wife used an entire bottle of the most expensive olive oil to prepare the dish of eggplant, thus literally burning a huge hole in the household budget.
Lady's navel is, as could be expected, a sweet dessert. A light, sweet dough is prepared; lumps of it are formed into small balls and deep fried in oil. It's eaten either warm or cold, but always smothered with honey, and sold in stalls at every street corner. The ball has a little hole in the middle which probably explains the name.
Another legend surrounds the well known Döner Kebab. Döner is the Turkish word for "to turn" and refers to the side of meat, traditionally milk lamb but now also beef or even veal, which is grilled on a skewer in front of an open fire and frequently turned to cook it evenly. As it cooks, thin stripes are sliced off with a very sharp knife and served in pide (pita, or Turkish flat bread) bread with toppings of tomatoes, lettuce, yoghurt and sometimes butter. About 130 years ago, a restaurant owner from Bursa by the name of Iskender came into his kitchen, contemplated the horizontal spit and had the bright idea to upend the whole thing and cook it vertically. He had invented the Iskender döner, to this day a speciality from Bursa where his great grandchildren still run the family business.
Tarhana is another Turkish speciality, the preparation of which is laborious. It's made from cracked wheat or flour, mixed with yoghurt, cooked vegetables, salt and a special blend of tarhana spices and is then left to ferment. The resulting paste is dried, ground, sieved and stored as dry food. Tarhana preserves milk protein for a long time and is used when needed, mostly in the form of soup. In modern times, tarhana is available ready made from supermarkets, but many a self respecting Turkish housewife still prepares tarhana from scratch.
Yoghurt is widely used in Turkish cuisine. In fact the English word yoghurt derives directly from the Turkish word "yogurt" which is pronounced leaving the "g" mute. Yoghurt accompanies meat, minced meat, fish and vegetable dishes alike and, in rural areas, is often eaten with rice or bread in lieu of butter.
A very refreshing summer drink is ayran, made of yoghurt mixed with cold water and salt. However, some Turkish people are of the opinion that too much ayran causes drowsiness and therefore do not consume it when about to drive.
So far, ayran has not been given a poetic name, but who knows what the future holds.