Loukoumathes
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Lokma, also known by their Greek name, loukoumades, are pastries made of
leavened Bread is a staple food prepared from a dough of flour (usually wheat) and water, usually by baking. Throughout recorded history and around the world, it has been an important part of many cultures' diet. It is one of the oldest human-made food ...
and deep fried dough balls, soaked in syrup or honey, sometimes coated with
cinnamon Cinnamon is a spice obtained from the inner bark of several tree species from the genus ''Cinnamomum''. Cinnamon is used mainly as an aromatic condiment and flavouring additive in a wide variety of cuisines, sweet and savoury dishes, breakfa ...
or other ingredients. The dish was described as early as the 13th century by al-Baghdadi as ''luqmat al-qādi'' (), "judge's morsels".


Etymology

The Arabic word () (plural ), means ''morsel'', ''mouthful'', or ''bite''. The dish was known as () or "judge's morsels" in 13th century Arabic cookery books, and the word ''luqma'' or ''loqma'' by itself has come to refer to it. The
Turkish Turkish may refer to: *a Turkic language spoken by the Turks * of or about Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities and mi ...
name for the dish, , is derived from the Arabic, as is the Greek name ().


History

The recipe for ''Luqmat al-Qadi'', yeast-leavened dough boiled in oil and doused in honey or sugar syrup with
rosewater Rose water ( fa, گلاب) is a flavoured water made by steeping rose petals in water. It is the hydrosol portion of the distillate of rose petals, a by-product of the production of rose oil for use in perfume. Rose water is also used to flavour ...
, dates back to at least the early medieval period and the 13th-century Abbasid Caliphate, where it is mentioned in several of the existent cookery books of the time. It is also mentioned in the ''
One Thousand and One Nights ''One Thousand and One Nights'' ( ar, أَلْفُ لَيْلَةٍ وَلَيْلَةٌ, italic=yes, ) is a collection of Middle Eastern folk tales compiled in Arabic during the Islamic Golden Age. It is often known in English as the ''Arabian ...
'', in the story ''The Porter and the Three Ladies of Baghdad''. The explorer and scholar
Ibn Battuta Abu Abdullah Muhammad ibn Battutah (, ; 24 February 13041368/1369),; fully: ; Arabic: commonly known as Ibn Battuta, was a Berbers, Berber Maghrebi people, Maghrebi scholar and explorer who travelled extensively in the lands of Afro-Eurasia, ...
in the 14th century encountered the dish he knew as ''Luqaymat al-Qadi'' at a dinner in Multan, during his travels in medieval India, where his hosts called it ''al-Hashimi''. It was cooked by palace cooks in the Ottoman Empire for centuries and influenced by other countries cuisines of the former countries of the Ottoman Empire in the Balkans, Middle East, and the Caucasus.


Preparation

The thick and smooth yeast batter rises and has a very soft and foamy consistency. The batter is usually dropped into hot oil and fried to a golden brown color, but some are doughnut-shaped. Lokma are served with honey and, occasionally, cinnamon. Traditionally, the batter was leavened with yeast but modern variations sometimes use baking powder.


Regional varieties


Arab countries

Today, in Iraq it is called ''lokma'' or ''luqaymat'' and they differ both in size and taste across the country. While in Arab countries of the Persian Gulf, ''luqaymat'', sometimes spiced with cardamom or saffron, are little changed from the 13th-century recipes. In parts of the Middle East they may also be called () meaning "swimmer", or (), with numerous spelling variations, though the latter term may also refer to a similar dish made in a long spiral or straight baton shape. They are traditionally included in times of religious observances; for example in the Levant by Muslims at
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, Jews at Hanukkah, and Christians at
Epiphany Epiphany may refer to: * Epiphany (feeling), an experience of sudden and striking insight Religion * Epiphany (holiday), a Christian holiday celebrating the revelation of God the Son as a human being in Jesus Christ ** Epiphany season, or Epiph ...
alike.


Cyprus

The pastry is called () and () in Cypriot Greek. They are commonly served spiced with cinnamon in a honey syrup and can be sprinkled lightly with powdered sugar.


Greece

The dish called () is a mainstay of Greek cooking, in particular in the south of Greece, and is a popular street food served with any combination of honey, cinnamon, walnuts and chocolate sauce. Its original name in ancient Greek literature is "honey tokens", and, according to Callimachus, they were given as small gifts (charisioi) to the victors of the Olympic games. In Byzantine times the pastry was likely called spongoi or sfongoi from the ancient Greek word for sponge, [] or [] in Ionian dialect, which is also the origin of the Arabic (isfanj). This term was also used by the Romaniotes (History of the Jews in Greece, Greek Jews) as the name for loukoumades., who call them ''zvingoi'' (), and make them as Hanukkah treats. Pontic Greeks who migrated from the Black Sea as a result of the Lausanne Conference call them ''tsirichta'' ().''Tsirichta'' are served at Pontian weddings.


Turkey

There are different types of lokma in Turkey. Dessert lokma are made with flour, sugar, yeast and salt, fried in oil and later bathed in syrup or honey. In some regions of Turkey lokma are eaten with cheese, similar to breakfast bagels.Ayfer Tunç "Bir maniniz yoksa annemler size gelecek: 70'li Yıllarda Hayatımız" sf. 284, Yapı Kredi Yayınları (2001). ''İzmir lokması'' are doughnut shaped with a hole in the middle. The spherical one is called the Palace Lokma (Turkish: ''Saray lokması''). In the Güdül-Ayaş regions of Ankara, there is a type of lokma known as ''bırtlak''."Türkiyede Halk Ağzından Söz Derleme Dergisi" cilt. 1 sf. 201, Maarif Matbaası (1939). Traditionally, forty days after someone passes away, close relatives and friends of the deceased cook large quantities of lokma for neighbours and passersby. People form queues to get a plate and recite a prayer for the soul of the deceased after eating the lokma.


See also

*
List of doughnuts Doughnuts are a type of List of fried dough foods, fried dough food. The following is a list of doughnut varieties. Variations and specialties by region The terms below constitute either names for different doughnut types created using local r ...
*
Bolinho de chuva Bolinho de chuva (translates roughly as “rain scone”) is a dessert both in Portugal and Brazil. It is made from flour, eggs, milk and baking powder or baking soda. The doughnuts are deep-fried and sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar. The name ...
*
Kemal Pasha dessert Kemal Pasha dessert (Turkish: Kemalpaşa tatlısı)
Turkish Ministry of Culture is a Turkish
*
Boortsog Boortsog or bawïrsaq ( ba, бауырһаҡ, kk, бауырсақ; baýyrsaq , ky, боорсок , mn, боорцог , uz, boʻgʻirsoq , tr, kabarcık, pişi, bişi, tuzlu lokma, halka, tk, pişme) is a type of fried dough food fou ...


References


Further reading

* A.D. Alderson and Fahir İz, ''The Concise Oxford Turkish Dictionary'', 1959. * Γ. Μπαμπινιώτης (Babiniotis), Λεξικό της Νέας Ελληνικής Γλώσσας, Athens, 1998 {{Doughnut Arab cuisine Egyptian cuisine Levantine cuisine Greek desserts Kurdish cuisine Bosnia and Herzegovina cuisine Doughnuts Jewish cuisine Hanukkah foods Turkish desserts Pontic Greek cuisine