In Topkapı Palace, which was built by Sultan Mehmed II, the conqueror of Istanbul, between 1460-1478, special shopping would be done for the sultans' private kitchen (matbah-ı has, aviary), separate from the other kitchens. The expenses of this shopping would be covered by the sultan. We can see these in the accounting books belonging to the palace. When we look at the book, on a Sunday (yevmü'lehad) between 18 August and 16 September 1471, the following were placed in the private kitchen;
· 80 pieces of lemon pickle (tart-i limon)
· Caviar
· Oysters
· Prawn
Dried fish ( mah-i khusk)
· Eel (it is a special fish)
· Cod fish (be special side)
· Thyme for eel and cod (giyah-ı thyme)
· Pure oil (raw oil)
· Honey (baha-i asel)
· Sugar (sukker-i mükerrer) has been taken.
What draws our attention is that Fatih Sultan Mehmet Khan consumed a lot of fish, caviar, shrimp and oysters. We can see that seafood entered the palace in large quantities during this period and that the sultan paid very large amounts for these seafood. We know that caviar was brought from Kefe and 40 gold coins were paid, and 32 gold coins, approximately 2000 silver coins, were paid for shrimp. We can conclude that the reason why Sultan Sultan Mehmet Khan contracted gout (nikris), commonly known as dropsy, was because he consumed a lot of seafood.
Not only the sultan, but also the pashas of that period were frequently affected by gout. Because these seafood products caused an increase in the amount of uric acid and triggered gout. The preservation of seafood brought to the palace may also raise a question mark in minds. Freezers were used in the palace to preserve these products. Ice came here from Keşiş Mountain (Uludağ). In fact, once the icemen who set out to bring ice were kidnapped by bandits but were saved after a long struggle. We also know from these accounting books that Fatih ate tarhana (terine) very often. The tarhana that came to the Sultan's table was prepared as follows;
“Some of the bread is taken, a 100 dirham bag of yoghurt is put in it, it is pounded properly in a stone mortar, after one night it is slowly crushed with chicken or meat broth in a pot, and after cooking for 1-2 hours on a moderate fire, they cut pieces of that bread in butter the size of Turkish delight and put them on top. They put clotted cream in the tarhana.” It is also known that when it is made on some days, tarhana is cooked with cheese and eggs and eaten.
In another recipe;
“Lamb meat, a few onions and salt will be placed on mild coals, the lid of the pot will be half open and some water will be added. After cooking for 3 hours, tirit will be made from the water.”
After these recipes, another important issue is where the seafood was brought to the palace. We see in the documents that caviar came from Kefe. However, Selman Efendi, the grandson of Hüseyin Fahrettin Efendi, who was born in the Beşiktaş Mevlevi Lodge on October 3, 1854, said that very large and chunky shrimps and oysters came out in front of the Bahariye Mevlevi Lodge on the Golden Horn. Thus, it is obvious that these seafood were supplied to the palace from different points in Istanbul.
As a result, Fatih Sultan Mehmet Khan consumed fish, shrimp, caviar, chicken, goose, turkey, head and feet, and tripe in abundance, and suffered from gout (nikris) due to excessive protein.
I respectfully remember Sultan Mehmet Han, who gifted us Istanbul, the heart of Turkey.
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