1. Etymology and history

2. Preparation and usage

3. Cuisines
    Armenia  Turkey 

4. Production

5. See also

6. References

7. Bibliography

8. External links

Pastırma or basturma,^[1] also called pastourma^[2] bastırma,^[3] as well as basterma,^[4] is a highly seasoned, air-dried cured beef that is part of the cuisines of a number of countries.

Etymology and history

The word pastırma comes from the Turkish verb bastırmak which means "to press".^[5][6]

Other scholars have given different accounts of the historical origins of the Ottoman pastırma. The armies of settled, agricultural peoples had cereal based diet, and some Turkish and Bulgarian scholars have written that certain medieval fighters who kept dried and salted meat under their saddles had an edge over opponents who ate mostly cereals. Ammianus Marcellinus wrote that the Huns warmed this meat by placing it between their legs or on the backs of their horses.^[12] Clifford Wright, a recipient of the James Beard Cookbook of the year award has written that pastırma is "originally from Turkey or Armenia".^[13] Pastırma is mentioned in Mahmud of Kashgar{{'}}s Diwan Lughat al-Turk and Evliya Çelebi{{'}}s Seyahatname.^[14]

The word pastrami may be a Yiddish construction that combined salami with pastırma or one of the similar linguistic variations of the word (pastramă in Romanian, pastromá in Russian and basturma in Armenian).^[15]

Preparation and usage

To make pastırma the meat is salted and rinsed before being dried and pressed. After the first drying period the meat is cold pressed for up to 16 hours. This aids the process of removing moisture from the meat. After the first pressing, the meat is dried for several days during which the fats melt and form a white layer. The second press is a "hot press".^[19] Finally, the dried and pressed meat is covered with a spice paste called çemen. Çemen is made from a paste of ground fenugreek seeds, Turkish red pepper^[20] and mashed garlic.^[21][22] The dried product is covered with the wet paste and left to dry again. The entire process takes approximately one full month.^[14] Pastırma is classified as an "intermediate moisture food". Lowering the moisture level is a form of food preservation that hinders the growth of microorganisms, and the çemen paste "is used to control surface mold growth during storage".^[21] Other functions of the çemen include improved flavor, characteristic red coloring, prevention of further drying, and antimicrobal effects.^[23]

Cuisines

Armenia

The cured meat, which resembles Italian bresaola, is called basturma or abouhkd by Armenians.^[27] According to the LA Times Sahag's Basturma, an Armenian deli in East Hollywood, is "best place to try basturma in Los Angeles, and possibly anywhere". The owner of Sahag's says that his family, who first began making basturma in Lebanon, have made basturma for three generations. His shop serves basturma as a sandwich on french bread with pickles and onions.^[28] Some Armenian-owned pizzerias in cities like Yerevan, Boston and Los Angeles serve basturma topped pizza.^[27]

According to Nigol Bezjian, Armenians who survived the 1915 genocide brought basturma with them to the Middle East. Bezjian recalls that his grandmother used to prepare "basturma omelets fried in olive oil with pieces of lavash bread". He notes that Armenians from Kayseri were particularly renowned basturma producers.^[27]

Arabs mocked Armenians with phrases like "It smells like there is basturma here", referring to the strong smell of basturma that is produced by the garlic and fenugreek mixture that the meat is coated in during preservation. Shoushou, a well-known Lebanese comedian of the 1960s-70s, portrayed a caricature of an Armenian basturma seller; he retired the character after local Lebanese Armenians complained.^[27]

In Palestine, where Armenians have lived for 1,500 years, Armenian families gather on New Year's Eve and eat traditional foods including basturma, çiğ köfte and a traditional Anatolian confection called kaghstr sujukh ({{lang|hy|քաղցր սուջուխ}}).^[29][30]

Turkey

In Turkish cuisine pastırma can be eaten as a breakfast dish and it is a commonly ingredient for omelettes, menemen (Turkish-style shakshouka) or a variation of eggs benedict.^[31][32][33] Pastırma may also be served as a meze small plate appetizer accompanied by alcohol like the traditional anise-flavored liquor called rakı.

It is also a common addition to many of the traditional vegetable dishes, especially the tomato and fava bean stew called {{lang|tr|kuru fasulye}}, but also cabbage ({{lang|tr|pastırmalı lahana}}), chickpeas ({{lang|tr|pastırmalı nohut}}), asparagus ({{lang|tr|pastırmalı kuşkonmaz}})^[39] and spinach ({{lang|tr|pastırmalı ıspanak}}).^[40][41] It can also be used to make cheesy pull-apart bread.^[42]

Production

Turkey produces around 2041 tons of pastırma each year.^[5] The pastırma from Kayseri is particularly well known.^[43] In their 1893 report the British Foreign Office note that Kayseri, which they call Cesarea, "is specially renowned for the preparation of basturma (pemmican)".^[44]

In Kastamonu, which produces around 200 tons of pastırma each year, çemen is made using garlic that is locally produced by the farming villages of Taşköprü.^[45]

See also

• {{annotated link|Biltong}}
• {{annotated link|Cecina (meat)|Cecina}}
• {{annotated link|Jerky}}
• {{annotated link|Pastrami}}
• {{annotated link|Montreal-style smoked meat}}
• {{annotated link|List of dried foods}}

References

Bibliography

• Alan Davidson, The Oxford Companion to Food. Oxford University Press, Oxford 1999. {{ISBN|0-19-211579-0}}.
• Maria Kaneva-Johnson, The Melting Pot. Balkan Food and Cookery, Prospect Books, 1995. {{ISBN|0-907325-57-2}}.

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