Traditional food and sweets of North Cyprus

Sources describe dishes such as şeftali kebabı, molehiya, kolokas, hellimli, pilavuna and magarina bulli. Visit North Cyprus and a 2022 Eastern Mediterranean University thesis list meze, meat, herb dishes, pastries and sweets as part of the local kitchen.

Sources describe ceviz macunu (green walnut preserve), gullurikya, paluze, basdiş, gırbaç and Kıbrıs tatlısı. A 2022 thesis lists many of them, and Visit North Cyprus describes ceviz macunu as a spoon sweet often served to guests.

Visit North Cyprus describes meze as the small dishes that start a meyhane meal, with cold plates first and then warm ones such as grilled hellim in pitta. It says there is no menu and dishes keep arriving until diners stop.

Visit North Cyprus describes molehiya as leaves of Corchorus olitorius cooked with tomato, onion, garlic and lemon juice, with lamb or chicken. The leaves are picked and dried in summer, and a vegetarian version is mentioned.

A 2022 thesis describes pilavuna as a yeasted pastry filled with grated hellim, semolina, egg, raisins and dried mint, topped with sesame and nigella seeds. Visit North Cyprus says recipes vary by region and can be salty, semi-sweet or sweet.

Visit North Cyprus describes hellim as a semi-hard, un-ripened brined cheese made from goat's and sheep's milk, sometimes with cow's milk. It is eaten fresh, grilled or barbecued, and used in pastries such as hellimli and pilavuna.

Cumhuriyet's 2014 glossary gives golyandro as coriander (kişniş), with the leaves used as an herb and the seeds as a spice. Yemek.com and Hürriyet name its seeds with çakıstez olives, and the thesis lists fresh golyandro in bulla and bidda fillings.

A 2022 thesis lists karpuz kabuğu macunu among Cypriot macun types: the white part of the watermelon rind soaked in lime water and cooked in a syrup with cinnamon and cloves. Cumhuriyet (2014) also lists watermelon among macun varieties.

A 2022 thesis says hawthorn (alıç) grows wild in rural areas and that the fruit is made into macun and jam, spread on bread at breakfast. Cumhuriyet (2014) lists alıç murabbası among homemade preserves sold at a Lefke market.

Yenidüzen (2013) describes bidda as flattened dough, cooked and rolled around fried potatoes, with variants adding hellim or köfte. Cumhuriyet's 2014 glossary defines badadez as potato, so the name reads as bidda with potato.

Yemek.com describes gullurikya as flour, water and a little salt cooked in molasses, with carob (harnup) molasses as the key ingredient. The 2022 thesis gives it as small dough pieces cooked in carob molasses and water, served warm or cold.

The thesis and Visit North Cyprus describe minced lamb with onion and parsley wrapped in lamb caul fat and grilled over charcoal. Yemek.com states that it contains no peach, and Visit North Cyprus gives two explanations of the name.

The thesis defines macun as preserved fruit or vegetables kept firm, often soaked in lime water, and served to guests with a glass of water. Unlike jam, which is eaten at breakfast, macun is eaten at any time of day.

Sources list different items. Yemek.com names hellimli, şeftali kebabı, molehiya, kolakas, pirohu, gullurikya, samarella, ceviz macunu, paluze, çakıstez and pilavuna. Hürriyet adds karayağ, peksemet and oven pasta, and the thesis classifies many more dishes by type.

As of 27 October 2026, sources say it does not. Yemek.com states there is no peach in it; the dish is minced meat with onion and parsley wrapped in caul fat. The origin of the name is debated: Wikipedia and Yemek.com mention a pink colour or a corruption of "Şef Ali kebabı".

As of 27 October 2026, Yenidüzen (2013) treats hırsız kebabı (Turkish Cypriot) and kleftiko (Greek Cypriot) as two names for one slow-cooked lamb or kid dish, and describes küp kebabı as a version cooked in a clay jar. Visit North Cyprus lists "Kup Kebab" as another name for kleftiko.

As of 27 October 2026, Yenidüzen (2013) describes a wood-fired clay oven: embers pushed aside, branches laid down, the meat placed on them and the opening sealed with a straw-and-mud mix, ready after about two hours. Foil-sealed tray versions and a clay-jar version are also mentioned.