Dondurma

Description

Two qualities distinguish Turkish ice cream: hard texture and resistance to melting, brought about by inclusion of the thickening agents salep, a flour made from the root of the early purple orchid, and mastic, a resin that imparts chewiness.

The Kahramanmaraş region is known for Maraş dondurması, a variety which contains distinctly more salep than usual. Tough and sticky, it is sometimes eaten with a knife and fork.

Consumption and culture

Dondurma is commonly sold from both street vendors' carts and store fronts, where the mixture is churned regularly with long-handled paddles to keep it workable. Vendors often perform magic tricks and practical jokes, with examples including presenting the ice cream cone on a long stick or pole, and then taking away the dondurma by rotating it around, or serving it with an extra cone that comes away from the actual cone when the stick is lifted. These tricks serve the additional purpose of attracting prospective customers, as well as entertaining people waiting in line.

As of 2010, the average rate of consumption in Turkey was 2.8 liters of ice cream per person per year (compared to the United States at 14.2 liters per person and world consumption leader Australia at 17.9 liters in 2010).

The popularity of salepli dondurma has caused a decline of wild orchids in the region and led to a ban on exports of salep.

Α distinct variation of dondurma is also consumed in Greece, especially in the north of the country, where it is called "dudurmas" or "kaimaki".

Notes

References

References

1. "Maras Dondurma: Traditional Turkish ice-cream unlike any other". [[Turkish Radio and Television Corporation.
2. Crowley, Chris. (2017-08-10). "Dondurma Is the Chewy, Stretchy Ice Cream You Need to Know About".
3. "Dondurma: The Turkish ice cream eaten with a knife and fork".
4. (27 September 2022). "Turkish Ice Cream Tricks".
5. "Ice cream consumption grows by a third in 2010".
6. (2010). "The World Scene".
7. (5 August 2003). "Ice cream threatens Turkey's flowers". BBC News.
8. Zoumpopoulou, Georgia. (December 18, 2020). "Kaimaki ice cream as a vehicle for Limosilactobacillus fermentum ACA-DC 179 to exert potential probiotic effects: Overview of strain stability and final product quality". International Dairy Journal.