With the official start of the pomegranate season, Turkey's two-week picking window has also been opened. This sweet and sour fruit has begun to be placed on tables all over the country. From the east to the west, it is the star of many traditional delicacies.
Pomegranate has always been one of the most respected fruits in Turkey. It is not only considered as a symbol of luck and good luck, but also one of the most nutritious and delicious fruits in the world. One of the glory of autumn is to prepare the popular pomegranate molasses for the food storeroom in winter, drink its ruby juice and enjoy its gem like seeds.
Pomegranate has been cultivated in Mediterranean countries since ancient times, and its significance is multiple. In Turkey, pomegranate is called “NAR” in Turkish and is regarded as a symbol of prosperity and abundance. Almost every household will have some kind of pomegranate sculpture decoration. It is an unswerving tradition to smash pomegranates on the ground on New Year's Eve or wedding in the hope of bringing good luck.
In Islam, the pomegranate tree is considered to be part of the garden of Eden, and this fruit is mentioned three times in the Koran. In Christianity, pomegranate represents resurrection, and its symbolic significance is obvious in pious statues and paintings. In Judaism, pomegranates are eaten during religious festivals in roshathana because they symbolize abundant fruits. People believe that pomegranates have 613 seeds, representing the commandments of the law.
Although most of us are more familiar with the popular blood red varieties, in Turkey, there are red pomegranate trees and white pomegranate trees, which are sweeter and contain softer pods, known as aril. Although the fruit is available from late summer to spring, towns across Turkey will begin extensive preparations for “narpekmezi” (pomegranate molasses) next month. Local women get together to prepare this special sauce in a large pot, which is usually a community activity. Many adana restoranları will serve this kind of food. You can eat it in adana restoranları if you don't want to do it yourself. However, pomegranate molasses can also be easily prepared for comfort at home.
Molasses is made from pomegranate because it is more bitter and has a rich red hue. Traditionally, syrup is prepared without any additives, except that a teaspoon of salt is added to about 5 kilograms (11 pounds) of pomegranate. The most arduous part of this process is to separate the aril from the ginkgo flesh, which brings bitter taste. The aril is pressed, the juice passes through a sieve, and then boiled for at least an hour until it reaches a syrup like consistency. Sometimes, sugar is added to increase the taste. Pomegranate molasses have two names in Turkish called NAR ekisi and NAR pekmezi, the latter representing the sweeter variant. In addition, we should also pay attention to the common “NAR ekili SOS” varieties in supermarkets. It not only contains much lower content in real pomegranates, but also contains a high proportion of sugar or other sweet syrups.
Pomegranate molasses is an important ingredient in Turkish cuisine. It can be used to match almost every salad. It can also be used as a sweet and delicious seasoning to match spicy dishes such as I kfte. This pie is a drum pie mixed with spices. It can be eaten in tortilla flat bread called lavash or simply wrapped with lettuce leaves. Pomegranate molasses is an indispensable accompaniment to this popular vegetarian street food. In the past, it was made from raw meat.
