Lokum
Turkey
Also known as Turkish Delight
About Lokum
Lokum, known in English as Turkish Delight, is a soft, chewy sweet made from starch and sugar, flavored with rose water, lemon, orange or mint, and often studded with pistachios or hazelnuts. Small cubes are dusted with powdered sugar to stop them sticking.
The sugar syrup and cornstarch are cooked slowly and stirred for hours until the mixture becomes thick and jelly-like. It is then poured into trays, left to set and cut into cubes.
Lokum has been made in Istanbul since the Ottoman era, and the confectioner Hacı Bekir helped make it famous in the 18th and 19th centuries. It is offered to guests with Turkish coffee and given at holidays.
Ingredients
- cornstarch
- sugar
- water
- rose water
- lemon juice
- pistachios
- powdered sugar