AYLİN ÖNEY TAN

Which olive oil is yours AYLİN ÖNEY TAN

Which olive oil is yours?

When one traces the coasts of the Mediterranean there is one taste shared but not agreed upon: Olive oil. Every single country around the Mediterranean coast uses olive oil, but each of them has its own variety, and, of course, each varietal performs differently in every other region.

May 06 2018
Past forward AYLİN ÖNEY TAN

Past forward

There is always a dilemma facing gastronomy students. They become competent in classics, but their hearts are set in creating tomorrow’s masterpieces.

April 29 2018
Children of power AYLİN ÖNEY TAN

Children of power

Today is Children’s Day in Turkey. When I was a child, Mother’s Day was not that significant, or better to say, not that commercial, but we always had a children’s day celebrated throughout the country.

April 22 2018
Fifty shades of pink and purple AYLİN ÖNEY TAN

Fifty shades of pink and purple

Most of the northern hemisphere welcomed spring with unexpected snowfalls. April photos picturing cities covered with a white blanket of frost was shared with frustration, because normally April must be the month when this white blanket has to be a formed by a bed of flower petals.

April 15 2018
Borage is not boring AYLİN ÖNEY TAN

Borage is not boring!

No, this not a phrase made up just for the sake of a catchy title! This must have been the perception of the plant Borago officinalis in 16th and 17th century England.

April 08 2018
The golden key to development: Gastroeconomy AYLİN ÖNEY TAN

The golden key to development: Gastroeconomy

What do Denmark, Peru and South Korea have in common? This question has an obvious answer for anyone who is in the gastronomy sector. They have all created a miraculous revolution in acquiring worldwide recognition for their cuisine within a matter of a few years. Their success fascinates many others, especially countries in economic despair, in hopes that gastronomy will save their economies and promote tourism. Turkey is no exemption, the tourism sector has been suffering greatly in recent years, so those who seek ways to reverse the situation see gastronomy as a wizard’s wand in rescuing the ailing tourism industry. 

March 25 2018
Alla franca versus alla turca AYLİN ÖNEY TAN

Alla franca versus alla turca

Imagine a feast featuring a myriad of dishes bearing names such as potage crème royale, burek, paupiette à la reine, croustade de foie gras à la Lucullus, kebab du Savoy, Ali Pasha pilaf. A chef’s confusion at its finest? Maybe not, but such a feast surely gives clues about the mode of an era. These were some of the dishes that were served at banquets in the last era of the Ottoman Palace.

March 18 2018
Farewell to the Hittite queen AYLİN ÖNEY TAN

Farewell to the Hittite queen

It was the day before International Women’s Day when I heard the news about the funeral of our Hittite Queen Puduhepa.

March 11 2018
Elephants, skiers and power AYLİN ÖNEY TAN

Elephants, skiers and power

Looking up at the mighty mountains I couldn’t help but think: How could he do that? How could that happen? How did all those elephants cross the Alps?

February 18 2018