Spanish vs Turkish food & cuisine

Unlike in Southern Europe, Turkish breakfast is a real social custom of family gathering that sometimes goes beyond a dinner. Fresh bread is at the center, followed by cheeses, olives, eggs, jams, sometimes sausages, and dried cured beef pastirma.

Lunch is often the main cooked meal of the day, consisting of a starter such as a lentil or yogurt-based soup, followed by bean dishes with bulgur or rice pilaf, fresh bread, stews, and salad. It is common to prepare a few staple dishes in bulk to be on hand at home for family meals.

In the afternoon, it’s usual to have a small snack, with tea or coffee, which, interestingly, both are integral to Turkish culture. This black sweet tea is served in small tulip-shaped glasses, consumed throughout the day, and is a part of Turkish hospitality. Turkish coffee is strong, finely ground, and brewed with water and sugar in a special pot called a cezve.

Dinner is also an extensive meal in Turkey; it consists of meze – small appetizer dishes meant for sharing, grilled vegetables or meat, casseroles, pilafs, yogurt dishes, and bread. Meals often end with sweet desserts.

Beyond bread, wheat in Spanish cuisine features sweat and savory pastries, like churros, empanadas, empanadillas, ensaimadas. Spanish cooks use wheat flour for the light coating on fried fish and seafood and turn stale bread into breadcrumbs for crispy croquettes. While Spaniards don’t eat pasta like their Italian neighbors, they do have fideuà, which is basically paella made with noodles instead of rice, and sopa de fideos, a homey, comforting noodle.

Only a few countries in Europe treat rice as an essential staple, as Spain and Portugal do. Both Iberian Peninsula neighbors are top consumers of rice in Europe. This popularity mostly has to do with the Moors, who, back in the 8th century, popularized rice in Spain. Plain rice is not a frequent Spanish choice; they’re more often found in dishes like paella, arroz negro, arroz con costra, and creamy rice desserts. Mostly, short-grain rice is preferred for its ability to absorb flavors while retaining a distinct bite.

Interestingly, despite their similar culinary traditions, corn is much less popular in Portugal, despite their otherwise similar culinary. While Spain also had colonies in the corn-rich Americas, Spanish cooking customs were already well-established when corn arrived, and the new grain had to compete with existing staples. Corn simply never gained the widespread acceptance that wheat and rice already possessed.

For thousands of years of traditions, bread has been the most repetitive component of every meal – eaten even if not particularly suited for the meal. Turkish people eat the most bread in the world, 199.6 kilo per person per year (source).  Somun ekmek (fluffy and golden loaf bread), bazlama ekmek (leavened circular bread), yufka ekmek (phyllo bread), pide (pita bread with rich toppings), lavas (flatbread, thicker than yufka, but thinner than pide), misir ekmegi (cornbread), simit (circular bread encrusted with sesame seeds, quintessential street food) are prevailing types of bread.

Chewy, nutty bulgur is the most-eaten wheat product in Turkey’s mainland, commonly used to make pilaf, added to soups, or mixed with meat for dolma (stuffed) and sarma (filled) veggies.

The Eastern part of Turkey near the Black Sea is not so well suited for wheat due to heavy rains. This led to corn and cornflower meals, known as mısır in Turkish. While corn is not native to Turkey and wasn’t part of traditional cuisine, it has been integrated into bread, pilafs (mısır pilavı), soups (mısır çorbası), puddings (mısır helvası). 

Rice is a primary companion in stuffed meat and vegetable dishes. Still, most frequently, it is served in the form of pilaf, for which people have very high standards. While making a Turkish pilaf, use medium to long grain rice, sauté in butter or oil with onion and garlic, spice with cumin, cinnamon, and allspice, and then cook with broth. Pilafs often come plain as a side but can also be enriched with chickpeas, nuts, dried fruits, and sometimes meat for a standalone dish.

One of the star vegetables in Spanish cooking is tomato, mostly harvested in southern Andalusia. Tomatoes show up everywhere – in cold gazpacho and salmorejo soups and as the heart of sofrito – the base of slowly cooked tomatoes, onions, and garlic that starts nearly every Spanish stew and paella.

Peppers enhance dishes with colors, like in smoky escalivada – smoky grilled veggies; add depth to rice and meat preparations; season in the form of smoked powder, or are served alone, like grilled pimientos del padrón. Mild, green pepper guindillas, crunchy and marinated with wine vinegar, are popular as a part of small snack pintxos – various ingredients served on a toothpick.

Artichokes are a big deal in Valencia, where locals go crazy for them – you’ll find them grilled over flames or stewed with chunks of ham until tender. Down south, eggplant rules, thanks to the Moors who brought them centuries ago. Try berenjenas con miel – crispy fried eggplant drizzled with honey.

Zucchini and asparagus show up everywhere since they love the Spanish climate. As for legumes, they’re the backbone of comfort food. Chickpeas are a clear favorite, but you’ll also find white beans, pintos, and favas often hanging out with ham and other cured meats in rustic stews.

Turkish specialty is stuffed vegetables:  dolma or sarma. Both stuffed with a mix of rice, minced meat, herbs, and spices. Dolma is more generic and refers to any stuffed vegetable – bell pepper, zucchini, eggplant, or tomatoes. Sarma, specifically, is a roll of grapevine leaves. All sarma can be considered dolma, but not all dolma are sarma.

Artichokes, broad beans, and eggplants are extremely popular. Salads vary from the simplistic watercress in yogurt to a salad of garlic-infused smoked eggplant. Grilled sivri biber – long, green pepper of mild heat will likely add a smoky flavor to kebabs and grilled meats. It is common to meet grilled sivri biber and sumac-flavored onions on the same kebab plate.

Tursu – pickled vegetables in garlicky brine is a traditional appetizer. In some families, no meal is considered complete without a bowl of tursu on the table (source).

Potatoes are indeed used in Turkish cuisine, but they are not as central as bread, rice, and bulgur. Turkish cuisine loves stuffed vegetables, so it comes as no surprise that the famous potato dish also comes stuffed – kumpir, baked potatoes with toppings. While in Western countries, it is expected to have boiled, fried, or baked potatoes as a side dish, it is not as common here. Turkish cooks creatively incorporate potatoes in a salad (with olive oil and lemon or vinegar-based dressing and includes pickles, red peppers, and parsley), mashed and in combination with eggplant in dishes like hünkar beğendi (eggplant puree with mashed potatoes) or musakka (sliced potatoes, layered with eggplant, ground meat, and a tomato-based sauce).

Fruits are local, plentiful, and cheap, eaten after meals to refresh the palate (cubes of watermelon, for instance) and as a dessert.  What differs in fruit consumption from Western cuisines is that Turkish cuisine generously incorporates dried apricots, figs, grapes, dates, mulberries into everyday diet. During weddings, engagements, or religious celebrations, offering guests various dried fruits is a must. Also, during the holy month of Ramadan, when Muslims fast from sunrise to sunset, dates, a natural nutritious sweet, are often consumed to break the fast. Dried fruits feature savory dishes, like ayva dolması – stuffed quince, çağla aşi – a fresh almond dish with lamb, fruit, yogurt, garlic, yeni dünya kebab – lamb stuffed loquat fruit.

As a Mediterranean country, Turkey produces lots of grapes, and they are either eaten fresh, dried to raisins or made into Turkish special grape molasses, called pekmez. Before sugar became widely available, honey and pekmez were used to sweeten the traditional Turkish ration.

Sideways to hams go sausages – the spicy red chorizo, with its smoky taste from paprika, the air-dried lomo, and milder salchichón are popular tapas, often served in thin slices.

Fresh pork is also appreciated from nose to toe. Signature dishes are wine-braised cheeks, a cochinillo sado roasted suckling pig from Segovia, and secreto ibérico, a hidden cut of marbled pork.

Spain has a long tradition of sheep herding, especially with breeds churra and manchega, raised for both meat and cheese. Meat is usually prepared rustic style: chuletas de cordero a la brasa – grilled lamb chops, cordero asado – grilled lamb over an open fire, lechazo  – suckling lamb roasted in a wood-fired oven.

Beef also has a tradition in Spain, though it is less central than pork or lamb. Raising and consuming oxen in Spain dates back centuries – their strength was used for plowing fields or transporting goods, and meat consumed after in dishes like carrillade de buye – ox cheek stew, ternera gallega – Galician beef, rabo de toro– slow-cooked ox tail in tomato and wine sauce. Some beef in Spain is also dry-cured, like cecinea de leon.

Speaking of the game, rabbit is pretty popular. You’ll find it in garlicky conejo al ajillo and in authentic paella Valenciana where rabbit (not seafood) is actually a traditional ingredient.

Kebabs are quintessential, especially when there is an open flame to grill the meat, and if there is none, Turkish people will find a way to get it done. Over time, different regions within Turkey developed their unique styles of kebabs. Kebabs refer to a food group of well-seasoned, marinated, grilled, or roasted meat served on skewers with vegetables and bread. Traditionally, kebabs would have been done with lamb, but with evolving tastes and regionalities, meats have extended to beef, chicken, offals, fish, and vegetables. The serving may also differ – on a plate, in a sandwich, or in lavash. There are close to a hundred varieties of kebabs, for the most widespread in Turkey, visit our iconic dishes section.

Other than kebabs, koftes are also popular; it refers to seasoned patties or meatballs from minced or ground meat, mixed with onions, garlic, and herbs; shaped into balls, patties, or elongated forms and can be cooked in different ways, including grilling, frying, or baking.

Offals have a special place in Turkish cuisine as they are cheaper than other animal parts and also very nutritious. Most offal dishes have thyme, chili, and garlic flavoring and are served with bread as a rich and hearty meal. Offal dishes in Turkey include brain salad, fried brains, grilled spleen, liver, kidney, sheep intestines, tripe soup, trotter soup, etc. – there are even restaurants that specialize in serving these dishes!

Even inland, seafood is major: paella de marisco – seafood paella, zarzuela de mariscos – seafood stew, pulpo a la gallega – octopus with smoked paprika, bacalao al pil pil – salted cod with olive oil, boquerones en vinagre – vinegary anchovies, and gambas al ajillo – garlic shrimp, are iconic Spanish dishes. Fish markets are bustling with variety, and Spaniards have great respect for the quality and freshness of their catch.

The coastline areas, though, do have their beloved underwater ingredients: the Black Sea areas are famous for their anchovies, which are a beloved fried; horse mackerel is caught from the Marmara Sea; sardines of the Dardanelles and sea bream from the Aegean Sea are preferred fishes. Fish preparations will most frequently be grilled fish balık, seafood mezes, and stuffed mussels midye dolma. Balık ekmek, a grilled fish sandwich, is a popular street food along the coasts.

One of the most famous is manchego, made from sheep milk. Its rind has a unique crisscross pattern created using wooden molds. Manchego comes in various aging stages, from young and mild to aged and sharp.

Spain produces Europe’s priciest cheese: cabrales, aged in specific caves. At auction, they can fetch over €15,000 per wheel, setting world records for cheese prices.

Spain also has some truly unusual cheeses, such as torta del casar. This cheese is intentionally made using an enzyme from thistle flowers instead of animal rennet, which gives it a bitter taste and an extremely runny texture. It’s eaten by cutting off the top and scooping out the interior.

Turkish yogurt is rich, creamy, usually plain, strained yogurt (straining is a process when whey is removed from yogurt, resulting in a creamy and dense texture). Strained Turkish yogurt and strained Greek yogurt are pretty similar, both are known for thick and creamy textures. However, the straining duration and methods may vary, leading to slight differences in texture. Some people claim that Turkish yogurt has a milder taste compared to its Greek counterpart. The taste may vary based on the specific bacterial cultures used and the source of the milk.

Cheese in Turkish daily practice is not as popular as in Greek, Italian, or Spanish cuisines. Distinctively from Western tradition, Turks like to add herbs and other flavorings to the cheese. Some local Turkish cheeses include beyaz peynir, white brined, crumbly cheese, kaşar, semi-hard, similar to cheddar, used in borek, pide, tulum cheese, a unique variety aged in animal skin, giving it a distinctive flavor, otlu peynir, herbed cheese.

Lots of vegetable oils are used in Turkish cooking. Olive oil is a major component of many dishes in the western part of the country, where olive trees grow. There is actually a whole group of foods in Turkish cuisine named zeytinyağlılar, which translates to olive oil dishes.

According to the World Best Olive Oils rankings, Spanish extra virgin olive oils hold the top positions and garner the most awards and recognition globally (source).

Spanish desserts tend toward simplicity compared to the elaborate pastries of France or the richness of American desserts. They are often made of a few high-quality ingredients with minimal processing.

Almond dominance distinguishes local desserts on a global scale. Spain is the second-largest consumer of almonds, incorporating them into turrón —almond nougat—marzipan from Toledo, countless cakes, and cookies. There is even an almond-based soup called ajo blanco, in which almonds are combined with garlic, bread, and vinegar to create an elegant soup (or sauce).

Other nuts, such as pines, hazelnuts, and walnuts, are used in cakes, pastries, marzipans, cold soups, and drinks, like horchata de chufa.

The Mediterranean trifecta of honey, citrus, and olive oil frequently appears in Spanish desserts. Honey often replaces refined sugar, and the use of olive oil in desserts predates butter-based pastries in Spanish cuisine.

A defining feature is the layering of textures. From the crisp phyllo dough of baklava to the delicate, chewy strands of kadayıf, Turkish sweets often play on the contrast between crunchy exteriors and soft fillings. Cheese, especially in desserts like künefe, adds a savory layer and a unique salty-sweet experience. Spices and aromatics – rosewater, orange blossom, mastic –  give Turkish desserts a floral and fragrant dimension rarely seen in European desserts.