are tea, fruit drinks (sharbat), and coFFee for spe-
cial occasions. Cooling yogurt-based drinks are
popular in tUrkey, iran, and india.
Persian culinary culture has ancient pre-
Islamic roots and is distinguished by its variety of
rice dishes (especially pilafs), its mild sweet and
sour flavor combinations, its preference for fresh
herbs, and its soups. Persia greatly influenced the
culinary cultures of the Arabs, the Turks, and the
peoples of northern India.
Arab cuisine, which has pre-Islamic bed-
oUin origins, is noted for its spicy lamb dishes,
vegetable and meat kabobs, meat stews, stuffed
vegetables, and tasty condiments and salads such
as hummus (a mashed chickpea and sesame paste
dip) and tabbouleh (a parsley, cracked wheat,
and tomato salad flavored with onion, lemon,
mint, and olive oil). The high culture of medieval
baghdad played a major role in the interweaving
of Arab food traditions with those of Persia and
the East. A popular fried and stuffed appetizer
known as sanbusak was introduced to the Arab
Middle East there. Among North African peoples,
the most typical staple food is couscous, which
consists of little grains of semolina wheat dough
that are steamed and served like rice with meats,
vegetables, and savory sauces.
Turkic peoples, like the Arabs, started out as
nomads. Their food traditions developed gradu-
ally as a result of interactions with Persians,
Arabs, Greeks, and peoples of eastern Europe. The
palace kitchens of the Ottoman sultans in Istan-
bul contributed significantly to the creation of a
cosmopolitan cuisine in east Mediterranean lands
and eastern Europe after the 15th century that
continues today. Typical elements in Turkish cui-
sine include kabobs, meat casseroles and pastries
made with fine layers of filo dough, and wide-
spread use of yogurt and cheeses. They rival the
Persians in the variety of elegant rice dishes they
prepare, especially pilafs and dolmas (vegetables
stuffed with rice and meat). The most common
staple for Turks, however, is bread, which they
also call “the food of friendship.”
The culinary traditions of South Asia are both
ancient and diversified, with deep pre-Islamic
roots that extend geographically throughout India
to Persia and aFghanistan, the Indian Ocean
basin, and Southeast Asia. South Asia is home
to great Hindu and Buddhist civilizations, and
Islamicate civilization flourished there with them
after the 12th century. The historical interrela-
tions between these civilizations are reflected in
the region’s culinary cultures. Typical elements
found on north Indian and Pakistani Muslim
tables include wheat bread (naan or chapatti) as
a basic staple, a variety of tasty lentil and bean
dishes called dal, batter-fried vegetable and meat
appetizers (pakoras), curries, and spicy dishes of
layered or mixed meat, rice and vegetables called
biryanis. Masala, a combination of dry spices, is
used to flavor meats and vegetables, while spicy
mint and sweet mango chutneys are used as
condiments. In southern India (Kerala and Tamil
Nadu), molded rice dumplings served with a
fiery chili soup called sambar is very popular, as
are dosas, a pancake made of a mixture of lentil
and rice flour. Shrimp and fish dishes are also
favorites. Coconut milk is used in cooking, and
coconut chutney is the preferred condiment in
the region. For the people of West Bengal and
bangladesh, the favorite foods are local rice and
fish dishes, but they are also fond of north Indian
cuisine. Indeed, historical scholarship has shown
that the Islamization of this region was partly a
result of the conversion of its forest lands east
of the Ganges to wet rice agriculture in the 17th
and 18th centuries by Muslims and Hindus who
immigrated from north India.
There are many different regional culinary
cultures in Southeast Asia, too, where the largest
Muslim population in the world is located today.
The influence of Indian and Chinese culinary
cultures can be found there, but there are also
indigenous ones that have distinctive dishes,
especially those featuring taro and cassava root
products, sago palm flour, and seafood. Rice has
lately become an important food staple, however,food and drink 249 J