Ask Mehmet

  • Published
  • By Mehmet Birbiri
  • 39th Air Base Wing Public Affairs host nation advisor
INCIRLIK AIR BASE, Turkey --  Question: Mehmet, my Turkish co-workers bring their food for lunch from home. From time to time they ask me to join them when they bring something special. Recently, they brought a desert that I've never seen or tasted before. It contained some fruit and spices. What is it? 

Answer: The dish you are speaking of is called "asure" in Turkish. Asure is one of the greatest indicators of the cultural richness of this country and dates back thousands of years. It's believed that asure has been cooked since Noah's time in this country. . 

As some believe, Noah sailed in his ark for 40 days and nights after the big flood. During those 40 days, the people in the ark ate almost all the food. Noah gathered all the remaining food from the corners of the ark and bottom of sacks, put it in a huge pot and cooked it altogether. The result was the delicious dish asure. It lasted until the ark landed and the waters withdrew. 

It's believed that Noah's Ark landed on top of Mount Ararat, located in eastern Turkey. Mount Ararat is called "Agri Dagi" in Turkish. 

It is also believed that the Ark landed on top of the mountain around the tenth day of the tenth month, according to the lunar calendar. 

Every year on this day, in appreciation to God and commemoration of the ark's landing, asure is cooked and shared with friends and neighbors. 

Depending on the cook, there may be slight differences, but generally asure is cooked the same way. Here is my family's recipe: 

· The main ingredients are two pounds of de-husked wheat, one pound of chickpeas, one pound of white beans and five pounds of sugar.
· The secondary ingredients are mostly dried fruits such as raisins, apricots, figs, plums, etc.
· Place the chickpeas and beans in water and soak separately for one day. This way, they absorb water and become ready for cooking. The wheat is then put in a big pot with lots of water. When it starts to boil, add the sugar, chickpeas and bean.
· Stir continuously and add water as needed.
· Add the dried fruit. If desired, the dried fruit may be soaked in water for a while before adding them to the pot. If the pieces are large, they can be cut into smaller pieces. 

A glass of milk could be added to the mixture. Some people add various fragrant and tasty spices to the pot, while others boil spices separately and pour their extract into the pot. 

Once the mixture becomes jelly-like, pour it onto plates. The dish is served cold and cinnamon and crushed walnuts are added before serving.