Turkish Maras Dondurma ice cream is much more than a cold dessert: it is an emblematic symbol of the country, like raki or meze. And often, it serves as a pretext for playful interaction with customers, especially if they are children or foreign tourists. In the following lines, we will explain why this is so, and upon discovering its ingredients, you will undoubtedly understand.
What Turkish Maras Dondurma Ice Cream is Like
Turkish Maras Dondurma ice cream takes its name from a region in southern Anatolia (Kahramanmaraş), where it is believed to have originated centuries ago. In fact, its recipe was considered so special that it remained a state secret for the Ottoman Empire, only to be subsequently revealed in the 19th century and introduced to Syria and other eastern regions.
This ice cream has a dairy base, specifically goat’s milk, which imparts a distinctly stronger and more intense flavor. This characteristic is, in any case, tempered by another fundamental and logical ingredient: sugar. However, neither of these can conceal the aroma of another essential element: the orchid, from which sahlep is made, and which is also present in these ice creams.
But without a doubt, what makes Turkish Maras Dondurma ice cream even more special is mastic, also often known as almáciga: a type of resin obtained from the mastic tree that possesses an extremely viscous texture. In this manner, Turkish ice cream acquires a solid yet elastic and sticky consistency simultaneously. This is why it cannot be served with a classic ice cream scoop, as it adheres to it… and to any other conventional utensil. Indeed, less experienced (or more comfortable) ice cream vendors simply resort to a knife. However, the traditional method involves a type of elongated spatula.
In addition to these four ingredients, other ‘general’ components are employed to achieve the definitive flavor, such as chocolate, strawberry, or vanilla, to cite three of the most common.
Where and How to Find It
Turkish Maras Dondurma ice cream became so popular that it transitioned to industrial production, with various brands manufacturing it on a large scale and marketing it throughout the country. Consequently, it is easily found in supermarkets, for example.
However, this ice cream is strongly associated with street stalls: during the summer season, it is common to find it at fairs and in bustling areas, where street vendors set up their refrigerated carts and offer this refreshing sweet to both adults and children.
Turkish Ice Cream, Transformed into a Spectacle
Enjoying it on the go from a street stall is a very popular and traditional choice. But if you wish to go a step further, do not hesitate to become the ‘victim’ of the most talented vendors: these experienced and audacious ice cream makers use their spatula to serve the ice cream and engage in playful antics with the customer, deploying all sorts of tricks: they place the scoop on the cone and then surprisingly withdraw it, they turn the cone upside down to make you believe it will fall, they serve the entire container from the tub because they know how to make it stick to the spatula…
It is a full display of ingenuity and humor that brings a smile to children and foreign tourists who do not expect the game, demonstrating that a Turkish Maras Dondurma ice cream is much more than a simple summer treat.
This is our belief at Exclusive Turkey and across the other agencies in our group, Mandala Tours, where we conceive gastronomy as an inseparable cultural aspect of each destination. Therefore, we invite you to savor the local dishes and the confectionery secrets of every country where we operate: Jordan, Egypt, China, Morocco…
