09 Jun Karaman and Silifke Trip
Before the summer break, the Gastronomic Society of Türkiye embarked on its final culinary journey of the season, this time to Karaman and Silifke. One of the most unforgettable highlights of the trip was the descent into a natural sinkhole located 40 meters beneath the surface, where Karaman’s renowned Divle Obruk Tulum Cheese—made from 70% sheep and 30% goat’s milk—is aged. Exploring the unique geography of Divle village and tasting the cheese offered a rare opportunity to experience this regional treasure firsthand.
The regional cuisine of Karaman, where bulgur plays a central role, was well represented through dishes such as Toyga soup, gıcıdık, batırık, and bulgurca, along with various types of cured meats. A standout dish was Erikli—a palace-style lamb stew with plums—prepared by the chefs of Karaman Grand Hotel.
After visits to the Tartan Mansion, Çeşmeli Church, Hatuniye Madrasa, Karaman Museum, and the historical grain silos of Taşkale, the group crossed the Taurus Mountains via the Sertavul Pass to reach the Mediterranean shores of Silifke. There, they visited Tekir Farm, originally purchased in 1925 by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. This farm later became home to Turkey’s first agricultural credit cooperative, with Atatürk as its number one founding member. The 36-member cooperative played a key role in the region’s development, especially in rice and cotton farming and later in livestock.
Although dormant for many years, Tekir Farm has been revitalized thanks to the efforts of the Mersin Metropolitan Municipality. At the restored original building, members learned about the farm’s historical role in agricultural development and tasted locally produced strawberry juice—a specialty of Silifke—in its gardens. There are ongoing plans to restore other buildings on the site and transform them into visitor spaces, women’s cooperatives, and workshops.
In Silifke, the group enjoyed a variety of seafood dishes, including local blue crab, at the well-known Baba Restaurant. The journey continued with a visit to Selefkia Wines, located in a high-altitude village at 1,400 meters in the Taurus Mountains. There, they tasted Aküzüm, Göküzüm, and the high-altitude Patkarası wines. The 2020 vintage of Patkarası, in particular, stood out for its impressive aging potential.
At Silifke Culinary House, the group experienced a wide spectrum of traditional dishes—from keşkek to kulak soup, from stews to içli köfte—capped off with the local sweet specialty mekik tatlısı.
Divle Sinkhole and the Importance of Geographical Indication
In this region shaped by nomadic Yoruk culture and where sheep and goat farming still thrive, dairy products such as sheep yogurt and tulum cheeses—essentially methods of preserving milk—play a key role in local gastronomy. According to Ministry of Agriculture Inspector Feyzal Duru Kandemir, 6 of Karaman’s 17 dairy producers are located in Divle village, 4 of which make Divle Obruk Cheese. The only cave in the region that meets the strict microbiological criteria for producing this cheese is located in Divle and can store up to 40 tons of cheese. The cheeses, currently resting in the cave, will “awaken” on October 29.
Unlike the general trend in Turkey, the livestock population in Divle and the Karaman-Ayrancı region has remained stable. This sustainability is credited to the strong protection of geographical indication and its effect on rising milk prices.
With the support of Gastronomic Society of Türkiye member Ahsen Çabuk Toktay, the group visited her Ala Dükkanı shop, where they also sampled İhsaniye Tulum cheese, made by Sarıkeçililer nomads in the higher-altitude village of İhsaniye. During the tasting, guests learned more about the traditional cheese-making process.
Following visits to the Alahan Monastery and Çatakhöyük archaeological site, this rich and flavorful four-day journey came to a close, with the group expressing their wishes to return to this remarkable region again soon.
