Diyarbakir Metropolitan Municipality organized the 1st Diyarbakir Herbs and Sherbet Festival to promote dishes made with local herbs and sherbet.
In the festival held by the Department of Tradesmen and Artisans Affairs, dishes made with local herbs, which are the source of healing and flavor, grown in the fertile lands of Diyarbakır with the spring rains, and sherbets were presented and served.
In the festival, which was held for the first time this year, plants from the foothills of Karacadağ and Hevsel Gardens were collected and transformed into local delicacies.
Ahmet Salduş, Head of the Department of Tradesmen and Craftsmen, said that they organized a food and sherbet festival made from various herbs of Diyarbakır.
Stating that they collected 150 kinds of herbs from the foothills of Karacadağ and Hevsel Gardens, Salduş stated that they made 38 kinds of meals from these herbs.
Salduş stated that they aim to introduce Diyarbakır herbs to both Diyarbakır residents and Turkey.
Emphasizing that the city was the place where agriculture was first practiced and that it was at an important point in gastronomy, Salduş said:
“There is a great interest in the festival. Herb food festival is held for the first time. Some of the participants eat Diyarbakır herbs for the first time, they are very satisfied.”
“We have a lot of herbs in the rural kitchen”
Dicle University Culinary Program Lecturer Cüneyt Ateş emphasized that the festival aims to introduce the rich food culture of the city.
Ateş expressed the following: “The aim of the Herb Festival, which we organized for the first time, is to tell people the importance of herbs in Diyarbakır. We have a lot of herbs in the rural kitchen. It can be consumed at almost every meal. That's why we organized such a festival through our municipality for people to learn and taste them. Geographical indications of our dishes prepared with different herbs have already been taken. We made these kinds of dishes and presented them to people.”