Suebye

One of the richest parts of Western Anatolian cuisine, which is one of the first things that comes to mind when it comes to healthy life today, is the food culture brought with them by the Jews of Izmir when they came from the Iberian Peninsula in 1492. As a result of Sultan Bayezid II's hospitable and far-sighted approach, most of them (about 120 thousand people) were accepted into the Ottoman lands. Thus, the Ottomans got to know the Sephardic culture and today a 500-year-old Sephardic culture continues to live in Turkiye.

What are the characteristics of Sephardic dishes? At first glance, it doesn't seem to differ from other cuisines. However, the kosher rules that have been applied for years make these dishes a little different. This difference is due to the health measures described in the Torah and can be said to be similar to the halal rules in Islam. Sephardic cuisine is especially rich in salty pastries. Empanadas in Spanish and Sephardic cuisine are similar to some types of pastry (boerek) in Turkish cuisine.

The well-known food from Sephardic cuisine that cost Izmir is the boyozes. The name of another similar salty pastry with a round shape, boyoz or boyikos, is derived from the Spanish word bollos, meaning ball. Boyozes sold on the streets of Izmir are plain. Jews, on the other hand, make boyoz with spinach, cheese and tahini halva.

An interesting example from the cuisine of the Jews of Çanakkale; It is another pastry that is almost the same as boyos, but its name comes from Turkish manti and is called mantikos. Of course, although the ravioli dish does not comply with Jewish rules, since meat and yoghurt are together, only the Turkish name of the ravioli, which is a common pastry in the region, was taken and given to another pastry.

There is also Izmir's famous suebye, maybe you've heard of it before? It is a sweet soft drink made by straining from the melon seeds that have been crushed into flour. It is nutritious and especially heavily loaded with vitamin E. It can be seen as the legacy of the Jews today.

Melon seed shrub, called Suebye, is a refreshing drink that is mostly prepared with worthless melon seeds and is generally served cold. Although it is the Ottoman cuisine that allows us to know it, it is actually brought to the Ottoman lands by the Sephardic people who had to immigrate from Iberia. If you want to easily prepare and taste the suebye at home, you can get delicious results by applying the recipe below. The longer you have the chance to dry the melon seeds, the more delicious its flavor and consistency will be. But If you are one of those who say

I can't wait that long, you can catch a fresh and delicious taste in a much shorter time with the following recipe. Let's start.

Ingredients for Suebye:

• Seeds of 2 medium melons
• 8-10 tablespoons of granulated sugar (You can increase or decrease the amount of sugar according to your taste, if you do not want to use sugar, you can use honey)
• About 2 liters of water

How to make Suebye shrub?

• Scrape the seeds of the melons well with the help of a spoon and put them in a bowl.
• After collecting all the seeds in the same bowl, wash them thoroughly and place them on a clean tray.
• Let it dry by leaving it in a clean area where it can see the sun. (If you don't want to wait to dry the melon seeds, which can be dried up to one year in the original recipe, you can dry them in dryer machine and use them immediately)

• Let the light-colored beverage you have obtained, first stand at room temperature, then chill it in the refrigerator for a total of four days and serve it. Enjoy your meal.

p.s. If you are going to use honey instead of granulated sugar, it will be enough to boil the melon seeds well and cool them at room temperature, then add the amount of honey you have determined according to your taste and mix well. Be careful not to put honey in it while it is hot. For a more pleasant aroma, you can add a few drops of drinkable rose water or cinnamon powder before serving.

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