Kadayıf

Kadayıf
Type	Dessert
Place of origin	Middle East

Kadayıf is a traditional Middle Eastern dessert.^[1] Several varieties exist, including tel kadayıf, yassı kadayıf and ekmek kadayıf.

Preparation

Kadayıf is made by pouring liquid wheat dough onto a rotating hot plate, after which sweeteners are added and the preparation is baked or fried.^[2] Kadayıf can also be used as the base for pudding, or prepared as noodles.

Etymology and history

Kadayıf comes from the plural of the Arabic word “qatifah” the plural for velvet. The same ingredient is though called “kunafa” in Arabic, which refers to another dessert similar to kadayıf but stuffed with cheese.^[1] The name first appeared in an Ottoman translation of the Arabic cookbook Kitab al-Tabikh translated by Muhammed bin Mahmud Şirvani, a 15th century Ottoman physician.^[1] According to oral tradition in Diyarbakır, the first kadayıf vendor in the city was an Armenian shop owner named Agop.^[3]

A version filled with walnuts or pistachios flavored with cinnamon was traditionally served by the Sephardic Jewish community of Jerusalem during Rosh Hashanah and Purim.^[4]

Varieties of Kadayif

In the first Ottoman printed cookbook Melceü't-Tabbâhîn, various different kadayif recipes are given.^[5]

Tel kadayıf
Kadife, Kenîfe
Saray tel kadayıfı
Beyaz kadayıf
Kaymaklı kadayıf
Yassı kadayıf
Yağsız kadayıf
Yufkalı kadayıf
Ekmek kadayıfı (Şam Kahki)
Fodula kadayıfı
Burma Kadayıff, which is made from kadayıf twisted around nuts.^[6]

Taş kadayıf

Taş kadayıf (Stone kadayıf) (Turkish: Taş kadayıf) is a Turkish dessert commonly served during the month of Ramadan, a sort of sweet dumpling filled with walnuts. Adana Taş Kadayıf; is porous. It is a dessert with syrup, which is folded in a circle of 9-10 cm and fried with walnuts in between. Adana Taş Kadayıf was registered by the Turkish Patent and Trademark Office on 06.01.2021 and received a geographical indication.^[7]