In autumn and winter, eat testi kebab cooked in a sealed clay pot, Kayseri mantı and yağlama, pastırma and sucuk, Nevşehir potatoes from the rock stores, and simple soups such as lentil and tarhana, then warm up with salep or tea. Late October to mid-November is fresh pastırma season.
In short
- Testi kebab is cooked in a sealed clay jug, which is broken open at your table.
- Kayseri, about an hour's drive from Göreme, is the home of mantı, yağlama and pastırma.
- Pastırma is traditionally made from late October to mid-November, a spell locals call the "pastırma summer".
- Nevşehir potatoes are harvested in October and kept in more than 1,300 rock-cut stores.
- Soups, salep and dried fruit carry the region through December to February.
What is testi kebab and how is it served?
Testi kebab is meat and vegetables slow-cooked in a sealed clay jug (testi) that is cracked open at your table. The jug is closed with dough or foil and left in the oven for a long time, so the meat cooks in its own juices. When it arrives, the jug is tapped until the neck breaks off cleanly, and the stew is poured onto your plate, usually with rice or bread. In many restaurants the staff do this for you; some let you try.
The dish fits the place. Avanos, on the Kızılırmak river, has been a pottery town for centuries, and its workshops still shape the river's red clay. On our Red Tour you stop at an Avanos pottery workshop, watch a potter at the wheel and can try it yourself.
Two practical points. Some kitchens ask you to order testi kebab in advance because it cooks slowly, so mention it when you book a table. The usual filling is lamb or beef; if you do not eat meat, ask whether a vegetable version is available.
Which dishes come from Kayseri?
Kayseri, about an hour by road from Göreme, gives the region its best-known winter dishes: mantı, yağlama, pastırma and sucuk. You will find them on menus across Cappadocia, but in Kayseri they are everyday food.
Kayseri mantı
Tiny dumplings filled with spiced minced meat, served under garlicky yogurt with melted butter and red pepper on top. Size is a point of pride. The smaller the dumplings, the more skilled the cook, and an old local saying claims forty should fit on one spoon. Treat it as a main course, not a starter.
Yağlama
Thin flatbreads stacked with a spiced minced meat sauce between the layers, topped with yogurt and cut into wedges like a cake. It is a sharing dish, often made for family gatherings.
Pastırma and sucuk
Pastırma is salted, pressed and air-dried beef coated in çemen, a paste of fenugreek, garlic and red pepper. Sucuk is a dry, garlicky sausage, usually beef. At breakfast both are often fried with eggs in a small pan.
Pastırma is traditionally made in the "pastırma summer", from late October to mid-November, when mild days and cold nights suit slow drying. That makes this the season for fresh pastırma. If you fly home from Kayseri Erkilet Airport, which sits close to the city, a short shopping stop before your flight is easy to fit in.
Why are Nevşehir potatoes stored inside rock?
Nevşehir potatoes are harvested in October and kept in natural cold stores carved into tuff, which stay at around 4-8°C all year without using any energy. Nevşehir province has more than 1,300 of these stores, holding about 2 million tonnes of potatoes a year. Lemons are kept in the same rock depots.
For visitors the result is simple: local potatoes are on the table right through winter, fried, baked with meat, in stews or folded into gözleme. Some of the doors you see cut into rock faces along country roads belong to these stores.
Which soups and hot drinks help on a cold day?
A bowl of lentil soup or tarhana is the quickest warm-up on a cold day, and almost every lokanta (a simple restaurant serving home-style food) has at least one of them. Neither is unique to Cappadocia. Both are winter staples across Anatolia.
- Mercimek: red lentil soup, served with lemon and bread.
- Tarhana: a dried mix of yogurt, flour and vegetables, prepared in late summer and cooked as a slightly sour soup in winter.
- Salep: hot milk thickened with ground orchid root and dusted with cinnamon, sold in cafés once the weather turns.
- Tea, which comes all day in small tulip glasses and is often offered in shops and workshops.
If you avoid meat, ask about the soups, as some kitchens use meat stock.
What about dried fruit, walnuts and pekmez?
Dried fruit, walnuts and pekmez (grape molasses) are what households here traditionally put by for winter, and village shops and markets sell them through the cold months. Raisins from local vineyards and walnut sweets made with pekmez are typical. Many hotel breakfasts include pekmez, often mixed with tahini and eaten with bread.
Pekmez is boiled down during the grape harvest. How it is made, and why the fresh version tastes different, is covered in our grape harvest season guide.
Where can you try these dishes?
Most of these dishes are on ordinary menus in Göreme, Ürgüp, Avanos and Uçhisar, while Kayseri has the widest choice of mantı, yağlama and pastırma.
| Dish | What it is | Where to try | Season note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Testi kebab | Meat stew sealed in a clay jug | Restaurants, cave restaurants | All year; order ahead in some places |
| Kayseri mantı | Tiny meat dumplings with yogurt | Lokantas, Kayseri | All year, best on cold days |
| Yağlama | Layered flatbread with meat sauce | Kayseri, some local restaurants | All year |
| Pastırma, sucuk | Cured beef, garlicky sausage | Kayseri delis, breakfast tables | Fresh pastırma late Oct to mid Nov |
| Nevşehir potatoes | Rock-stored local potatoes | Home-style dishes, gözleme | Harvested in October |
| Lentil soup, tarhana | Warming soups | Any lokanta | Winter staples |
| Salep | Hot milk drink with cinnamon | Cafés | Autumn and winter |
What a meal costs varies widely between a village lokanta and a terrace with a view. Our Cappadocia trip cost guide gives realistic food budgets. On our Red Tour and Green Plus Tour, lunch is already included.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Cappadocian food spicy?
Mostly not. Heat usually comes from red pepper flakes on the table or in the butter poured over mantı, and you can ask for less. The çemen coating on pastırma is strong on garlic and fenugreek, with some heat.
Can vegetarians eat well in Cappadocia in winter?
Yes, with a little asking. Potato dishes, gözleme with cheese or potato, vegetable stews and lentil soup are easy to find. Just check whether the soup is made with meat stock.
Can I take pastırma home?
Shops in Kayseri commonly vacuum-pack pastırma and sucuk for travel. Rules on bringing meat products into other countries differ, so check your own country's rules before you buy.
Do restaurants stay open in winter?
Most do, because tourism carries on all year. Some smaller seasonal places close or shorten their hours, so check on the day, especially in January and February.
Cold days here are a good excuse to eat slowly. If food is high on your list, our page on the Cappadocia gourmet tour explains how we plan food-focused days. For anything specific, such as a stop in Kayseri, mention it in a custom tour request and we will check what fits your plan.
