The dish that is dearly loved by the people of Menemen (town in İzmir) gradually began to be tasted by newcomers to the town, and their appreciation of it spread to other cities across Anatolia.
If you ask what the staple of Anatolian cuisine is, one would say it’s the tomato. Tomato adds flavor to almost every Turkish recipe. Turkey is one of the world’s most important producers of tomatoes, which originated in the Americas and entered Europe and the culinary world in the 16th century under the name “Golden Apple.”
Does it Originate in Menemen Town?
Tomatoes, which were not officially recorded in Turkey until the 20th century, began to be cultivated in the early 1900s in Adana. According to records from the Trade and Grain Exchange in İzmir, tomatoes started being grown in the city and were specifically mentioned as being produced in the Menemen district.
An article titled “First Crop in Menemen” published in the Hizmet Newspaper on May 25, 1927, confirms that tomato production was underway in the area. The report states: “Just like across Turkey, the district of Menemen is a fully agricultural region.” So much so that farmers placed great importance on their first harvest and demonstrated this value in various ways. One example from Menemen dates to 1927, the founding year of the Trade and Grain Exchange. The first tomato crop in Menemen was grown by Nizamizade Kadri Efendi. Kadri Efendi brought one okka (1.282 kg) of tomatoes to Taşhan and put it up for auction, which was awarded to Gardener Hafız Mustafa Efendi for 300 “kuruş” (cents). Though debates over whether or not onions belong in it often stir up controversy, menemen is one of those rare dishes that, while not luxurious, enriches any breakfast. In some regions, it’s the only cooked item served for breakfast. In truth, the story of menemen is one of migration and scarcity.
Replacing Meat and Potatoes with Onions and Eggs
The end of World War I in 1918 also marked the beginning of a population exchange process. The wave of migration that began with Turks in Greece returning to their homeland and Greeks in Turkey moving to Greece also led to the relocation of certain culinary traditions.
As Greeks in İzmir and Cretan Turks in Crete swapped places, the Turks from the island brought with them a dish known as “tomatoes with meat.” This dish, made by sautéing tomatoes and then adding potatoes and red meat, inevitably changed as a result of the shortages caused by the war. Due to the poverty and deprivation following the war, meat and potatoes were removed from the dish, replaced by more affordable but nutritious ingredients: eggs and onions.
A Dish That Has Its Place at Every Table
This dish, cherished by the people of Menemen, eventually came to be tasted by newcomers and admired by others, spreading to towns across Anatolia. It entered culinary literature as the “Menemen dish” and became a meeting point of rich and poor, workers and bosses, East and West alike.
Menemen is a migration story. And today, December 18, is International Migrants Day. Our elders came to these lands, bearing the longing brought on by that wave of migration at the end of the war. As we eat menemen, we remember its story.
