How to make your own Turkish delight

Last Updated on Thursday, 21 April 2011 11:10 Thursday, 27 September 2007 11:25

Written by Administrator

Throughout the Western world, Turkey is pretty much synonymous with Turkish Delight. Unfortunately in Australia the distance to Turkey became an inconvenience for "Lokum" lovers. Lebanese or Greek "Turkish Delight" don't really match "the real thing" and the $2.5 a piece "Lokum"s are corner kebab shops are either stale or too sweet.

Candies and deserts play an important role in Turkish culinary culture. Lokum has served as a symbol of Turkey in light of the fact that Turks have a sweet tooth as evidenced by other Turkish favorites including baklava. Turks in Australia, brought many things with them but real "lokum"; the lokum that you can buy in different colors, flavours, shapes, textures back home is still a dream in Down Under.

So why can't we make our own Turkish delight? Here is a recipe we compiled for our curious readers.

Necessary Ingredients :

For 500gr Turkish delight
250 ml cold water
25 gr powder gelling agent
400 grs white sugar
¼ desert spoonful of citric acid (E330)
1 desert spoon of liquid Vanilla
2 desert spoons of Rose oil (Gulsuyu)
1-2 drops of Food Coloring Additive
50 gr Powedered sugar
25 gr Corn Starch

You can also add strawberries, oranges, lemon, crème de menthe and roasted nuts(wallnuts,hazelnut, pistacchio or peanuts)

Mix the water in a large container with your choice of gelling agent. Stir the mixture for a minute and leave it to settle down for 15 minutes.

Add sugar and the citric acid agent and cook the mixture on minimum fire until everything melts. When the mixture reaches the boiling point you can stop stirring it. Leave it boiling on fire for 20 minutes.

Get your mixture off the fire and leave it to cool for 10 minutes. You can, if you want, add your roasted nuts now.

Add liquified vanilla, rose oil and food coloring additive. Pour the mixute into a 15x15cms cake mold (make sure the cake mold is wet).

Leave it in fridge for a day.

Cover the base of a large flat tray with parchment paper. Cover the paper with powdered sugar.

Mix some powdered sugar with corn starch in a bowl

Cut the big block of Turkish delight into little cubes and dip it into your powdered sugar and corn starch mixture before putting them on the tray.

Your "lokum" is ready.

turkish delight - various