çorba

Çorba is the Turkish term for soup and a staple in Turkish cuisine. Served hot as a starter or a light meal, çorba encompasses a wide range of recipes that rely on stock, legumes, grains, vegetables, and sometimes meat or yogurt. In Turkey, it is commonly prepared at home, offered in restaurants, and often consumed in winter or during Ramadan.

The word çorba derives from the Persian shorba and related forms in Arabic and other Turkic languages, entering Turkish through Ottoman usage. Over centuries it became the generic name for soup in modern Turkish.

Common varieties and ingredients include mercimek çorbası (red lentil soup) and tarhana çorbası (made from a fermented yogurt- and grain-based powder). Ezogelin çorbası is a spiced red lentil soup named after a Turkish storyteller. Other well-known soups are yoğurt çorbası (yogurt soup), işkemme çorbası (tripe soup), kelle paça çorbası (head-and-foot soup), tavuk suyu çorbası (chicken broth), and arpa şehriye çorbası (barley and vermicelli soup). Many çorbas use onion, garlic, tomato, and herbs such as mint, dill, paprika, or red pepper flakes, and may be thickened with flour, bulgur, or yogurt.

Serving and cultural role: Çorbas are typically served with bread, lemon wedges, and sometimes chili flakes or crushed red pepper. They are a common everyday dish and are also featured in festive meals, roadside eateries, and Ramadan iftar tables. The diversity of çorba reflects regional tastes and seasonal availability across Turkey.