taste

Meat and cereals are important in Sivas cuisine and dairy products are also frequently used. The fact that the climatic characteristics of the city allow different vegetables, fruits, and legumes to be grown in different regions increases the diversity of the local cuisine.

Winter preparations have an important place in shaping the cuisine culture of the city. It is an essential necessity to make preparations at the end of summer for the forthcoming long and difficult winter in Sivas. Food prepared for the winter include flour, bulgur, cracked wheat, braised meat, pescutan yoğurt, butter, cheese, noodles, kadayif, and pickles.

When the flourishing spring arrives at Sivas, natural flavors that are longed for begin to enter the kitchens. Especially the herb called "madımak" (knotweed) is important in local cuisine. Madımak, which is used in many dishes from soups to chilis, from braised meat to rice pilaf, is so loved in this city that it has been made the subject of folk songs.

When the cuisine of Sivas is referred to, an extremely rich cuisine culture starting from Ottoman cuisine to the present day comes to mind. Sivas meatballs registered in the name of the city, Sivas kebab with vegetables, Sivas meat bread, pescutan soup, pezik pickles, pickle omelet, bakery katmer and buns, madimak rice pilaf, Divriği pilaf, baked head, hurma (sweet pastries) dessert, hıngel, cauldron bagel are just a few of the flavors that linger on the palates from this rich cuisine.

Within the scope of the "Sultan of Cities, Safe Food Land" project, many businesses operating in the food industry and fulfilling the requirements have been awarded the “Safe Food Certificate”.

Peskütan Soup 

Peskütan is a kind of yoghurt prepared with fresh milk in spring to be consumed during winter in Sivas. This flavor from Sivas has made a name for itself throughout Türkiye thanks to its long shelf life. It is a regional flavor with high nutritional value, which is prepared by the addition of onion sauce called soharıç after cooking the cracked wheat and green lentil boiled with pescutan, which is then whipped to give it thickness.

Sivas Kebab with Vegetables

Sivas Kebab with vegetables, which is one of the bazaar dishes, is cooked in open-top hearths, which resemble tandoori ovens. The hearth is elevated using bricks. An eggplant, a pepper, a tomato are placed on skewers with an inclined tip in the shape of a cane, and the prepared meats are placed on separate skewers. The skewers are fried vertically on wires on the open-top hearth.

Sivas Meatballs

Sivas Meatball, which is a special bazaar food unique to our city, is a brand product of the city, which has been awarded a "Geographical Indication" by Turkish Patent Institute.

 Sivas meatball is a special flavor registered in our country in 2011. One of the main features that make Sivas meatballs really special is that the ingredients are only minced meat and salt, and the other special feature is that the kneaded mince is kept in the fridge for a day and then ground again.

Pickle Omelet 

It is a winter dish made with pezik pickles. The branches of the beets, which are removed one by one from the fields and separated from their roots and leaves, are boiled in giant cauldrons and turned into "pezik pickles". Pezik Pickle Omelet, which is prepared by roasting pezik pickle with onions and then fixing it with eggs into an omelet, is a special dish that comes to the table after soups in Sivas table tradition.

Madımak Herbs

The region is rich in herbs that grow spontaneously in nature. With the spring, various dishes are made from naturally grown herbs, especially the famous madımak. Madımak is distinguished among these herbs. Madımak emerges as the herald of spring after a harsh winter. Although it is known in many parts of Anatolia, madımak is accepted as a taste unique to Sivas.

Divriği Pilaf (Alatlı Pilaf) 

This rice pilaf, which is one of the important dishes of Divriği district, carries the memories of the Seljuk Sultans. In Divriği, the capital of Mengücek, this rice pilaf, which the shahs had prepared for holidays and weddings for the people of the whole city and the surrounding villages, is a dish that has been cooked for eight hundred years without any modifications to its recipe. Being cooked slowly over a wood fire as well as the ingredients used, which include lamb, onion, chickpeas, currants or raisins, allspice, butter, and pine nuts, give the rice an unforgettable taste.

Hurma Dessert (Sweet Pastries)

Desserts have an important place in our traditional cuisine culture, not only in terms of taste but also because of their high nutritional value. In Sivas, there are always desserts available on the table according to the season during special days; because a dinner table without dessert is considered incomplete. One of the traditional desserts of Sivas, Hurma Dessert, which is mostly made on holidays and special days, is a dumpling with sherbet.

Pezik Pickle

It is a local pickle made from beet branches in the fall. The beet branches are finely divided and boiled in hot water. The pickles are put in a bowl, subsequently vinegar, garlic, chili peppers, and saltwater are added to prepare the pickles.

Sivas Cauldron Bagel

It is made by Turkish bagel (simit) vendors in the bazaar. The bagels are shaped after the dough, which is prepared with flour, salt, and fresh yeast, is fermented. Subsequently, the bagels are tossed into a cauldron containing boiling molasses water. When the bagel dough rises to the surface of boiling water, it is taken out, sesame is added on top, and it is baked in the oven. A cauldron bagel should be baked in a stone oven using hornbeam wood.

Sivas Oven Bun

Sivas oven bun, which is among the food products that the locals consume the most on a daily basis in Sivas, is a type of pastry that is generally preferred for breakfast but can be consumed at every meal. Melted butter and milk are mixed with yeast, salt, and flour. After giving shape to the bun, egg yolk is applied on top and then it is baked in an oven. Walnut buns are prepared by adding a cup of walnuts to the same dough.

 Sivas Flaky Pastry

Sivas flaky pastry, prepared from a mixture of water, flour, oil, fresh yeast, egg yolk, and salt, is a traditional flavor registered by the Turkish Patent and Trademark Institute with its distinctive feature in kneading and cooking techniques. It is especially consumed during breakfast and tea times.

Sheep’s Head in the Oven 

This meal is one of the important elements of the local food culture of Sivas. It dates back centuries and is also known as "head breaking" because the head of the sheep is broken with an ax. The oven-fried head is consumed in Sivas, especially for breakfast. The head, known as the traditional delicacy of Sivas for about 200 years and cooked in stone ovens for 16-17 hours in airtight cookers in the embers of a wood fire, attracts more attention in the winter months.