An Investigation of Kebabs in Turkish Cuisine According to Cookbooks Written Between 1730-1930 and Their Current Familiarities

Abstract

Nutrition is one of the primary needs of human beings defined within the physiological needs, and it is often a matter of curiosity how people were fed in the past. The aim of this study is to determine the kebabs in the cookbooks written between 1730-1930 and to investigate the current familiarity of these recipes. Qualitative research technique was used in the research. During the data collection process, 5 books written between 1730 and 1930 were examined using the document analysis method and interviews were conducted using a semi-structured interview form. In the books that are the subject of the research, 116 kebab recipes were found. Accordingly, the most preferred butchery animals for kebabs are sheep/lamb/ram, chicken for poultry and mackerel for fish. The most preferred spices and condiments in kebabs are salt, onion, black pepper and cinnamon. Grilling on charcoal (barbecue) is the most preferred cooking method. Tomatoes began to find a place in recipes at the beginning of the 20th century. It was determined that all kebabs except Hacı Osman kebab, mazruf kebab and kaytan kebab were known by the participants. It has been determined that cinnamon, which is one of the most used spices in the recipes in the books, is never used in today's kebabs and the cooking technique in the cutlet recipes has completely changed, except for fish.