In France, I tasted many foods that bring a pained expression to my fellow Americans faces.
Change being the buzzword of the week, what bigger change to your average snacking habits could you bring than trying things such as Kokoreç .
I first heard about this favorite Turkish snack last week on the radio, The World to be precise. As part of their Geo Quiz on Istanbul they asked local bloggers Idil Jans and Erkan Saka to pick some favorite foods.
One of them was Kokoreç (sheep intestines) which they say is the thing to eat after a night out.
In Intestinal fortitude is pride of Turkey, The Age (Australia) tells us more about the locals fascination for it and informs us that Greece has the kokoresti, a sandwich almost identical to the kokorec, enjoys a similar place in the country’s culinary heart.
Turkish Expat site My Merhaba offers more Turkish Fast Food options (I quote them) such as Döner, compressed lamb and beef combination slowly spinning as it grilled on a vertical rotisserie by open flame or Lahmacun, a delicious Turkish pizza, on a thin layer of pastry mince meat is spread – with tomato, onion, salt and parsley – spiced with red pepper from mild to hot and last their version of Crepes, Gözleme, a very thin wrapped sheet of dough, similar to crepes baked on a curved sheet of metal and then filled with cheese and lettuce, potato, spinach, sausages.
So there must be some truth in Istanbul being The place to go for Foodies in 2008.
I hope none of this turned your stomach.
I have to offer a Bouchon Lyonnais episode in the future.
Recent Eat Local story: Could ‘Hairy Crabs’ go from Hong Kong craze to World food stars?