Nutritionist and co-founder of the Istanbul Food Workshop, Sharon Croxford reveals how she got hooked on Ottoman cookery traditions
I remember walking across Taksim Square one clear, sunny morning. It was a Sunday and instead of the busy business traffic, families were out walking together. In front of me was a young boy, perhaps three years old, his clammy hands high in the air, clasped firmly between Mum and Dad’s. Ahead of him was the ubiquitous sign of Istanbul’s streets, a simit vendor. The round sesame seed bread rings were stacked high in the glassed cabinet. He wrestled his hands free and ran forward. “Simit, simit” he yelled excitedly. His parents reacted quickly, gathering him up, tearing him away from the stand. He shrieked, the distress in his young voice ringing out for all to hear.
Istanbul is one of the few cities where you can buy a peeled cucumber to munch on from a man with a barrow and if you like corn, you have a choice of boiled or char-grilled. Along with this fabulous street food, I love the fact that Turks understand citrus fruit are predominantly winter fruits and stone fruits belong to summer. Not only is food in season a richer source of nutrition, it simply has taste. Tomatoes taste like tomatoes in summer just as Jerusalem artichokes are tender yet sweet at the beginning of winter. Added to this are the roving street markets where the produce alone tells me whether it is early, mid or late summer.
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