Ayran

	Email		Print
	Bookmark		Link

Ayran

Ayran or airan (from Turkish

Turkish language

Turkish is a language spoken by over 63 million people worldwide, making it the most commonly spoken of the Turkic languages. Its speakers are located predominantly in Turkey and Cyprus, with smaller groups in Iraq, Greece, Bulgaria, the Republic of Macedonia, Kosovo, Albania and other parts of Eastern Europe....
ayran ) is a drink made of yoghurt

Yoghurt

Yoghurt, yogurt, yoghourt, youghurt or yogourt , is a dairy product produced by bacterial fermentation of milk....
and water, popular in Turkey

Turkey

Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country that stretches across the Anatolian peninsula in southwest Asia and Thrace in the Balkans region of Southern Europe....
, Armenia

Armenia

Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in South Caucasus between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea....
, Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan , officially the Republic of Azerbaijan , is the largest and most populous country in the South Caucasus, located partially in Eastern Europe and partially in Western Asia....
, Iran

Iran

Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran and formerly known internationally as Persian Empire until 1935, is a country in Central Eurasia, located on the northeastern shore of the Persian Gulf and the southern shore of the Caspian Sea....
, Lebanon

Lebanon

Lebanon , officially the Republic of Lebanon or Lebanese Republic , is a country in Western Asia, on the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea....
, Bulgaria

Bulgaria

The state of Bulgaria , Scientific transliteration Balgarija, officially the Republic of Bulgaria has played a significant role in the Balkans in south-eastern Europe for over fourteen centuries....
and other parts of the Balkans

Balkans

The Balkans is the historical name of a geographic subregion of southeastern Europe. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains, which run through the centre of Bulgaria into eastern Serbia....
, the Middle East

Middle East

File:GreaterMiddleEast1.pngThe Middle East is a region that spans southwestern Asia, western Asia, and northeastern Africa. It has no clear boundaries, often used as a synonym to Near East, in opposition to Far East....
, and Central Asia

Central Asia

Central Asia is a region of Asia from the Caspian Sea in the west to central China in the east, and from southern Russia in the north to northern India in the south....
. It is similar to Armenian , Indian lassi
Lassi

Lassi is a popular and traditional South Asian drink originating from North India. It is made by blending yoghurt with water, salt, pepper, ice and spices until frothy....
, and Iranian doogh
Doogh

Doogh , also called dugh, shlombay, sheneena , mastao , abdug, or tahn —and even dough—is a yogurt-based beverage popular in Iran, Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Armenia....
, though doogh can be naturally-carbonated

Carbonation

Carbonation occurs when carbon dioxide is solvation in water or an aqueous solution. This process yields the "fizz" to carbonated water and sparkling mineral water, the Beer head to beer, and the cork pop and bubbles to Champagne and sparkling wine....
. In Cyprus

Cuisine of Cyprus

Cypriot cuisine is the cuisine encountered on the island of Cyprus, located in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Cypriot cuisine is shaped by the island's Mediterranean climate, geography, and history....
, it is referred to as ayrani.

Ayran is a mixture of yoghurt, water

Water

Water is a common chemical substance that is essential for the survival of all known forms of life. In typical usage, water refers only to its liquid form or States of matter, but the substance also has a solid state, ice, and a gaseous state, water vapor or steam....
, and salt

Salt

A salt, in chemistry, is defined as the product formed from the neutralisation reaction of acids and base . Salts are ionic compounds composed of cations and anions so that the product is electrically electric charge ....
. It is thought to have originated as a way of preserving yogurt by adding salt.

It can also be made with cucumber

Cucumber

The cucumber is a widely cultivated plant in the gourd family Cucurbitaceae, which includes squash , and in the same genus as the muskmelon....
juice in place of some or all of the water, or flavored with garlic

Garlic

Allium sativum L., commonly known as garlic, is a species in the onion family Alliaceae. Its close relatives include the onion, shallot, leek, and chive....
.

Discussion

Ask a question about 'Ayran'

Start a new discussion about 'Ayran'

Answer questions from other users

Full Discussion Forum

Encyclopedia

Ayran or airan (from Turkish

Turkish language

Yoghurt

Yoghurt, yogurt, yoghourt, youghurt or yogourt , is a dairy product produced by bacterial fermentation of milk....
and water, popular in Turkey

Turkey

Armenia

Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in South Caucasus between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea....
, Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan

Iran

Lebanon

Lebanon , officially the Republic of Lebanon or Lebanese Republic , is a country in Western Asia, on the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea....
, Bulgaria

Bulgaria

Balkans

Middle East

Central Asia

Carbonation

Cuisine of Cyprus

Water

Salt

Cucumber

Garlic

Allium sativum L., commonly known as garlic, is a species in the onion family Alliaceae. Its close relatives include the onion, shallot, leek, and chive....
. It may be seasoned

Seasoning

Seasoning is the process of imparting flavor to, or improving the flavor of, food. Seasonings include herbs, spices, and all other condiments, which are themselves frequently referred to as "seasonings"....
with black pepper

Black pepper

Black pepper is a flowering plant vine in the family Piperaceae, cultivated for its fruit, which is usually dried and used as a spice and seasoning....
, although this is uncommon in Bulgaria, where ayran is also often served without salt. Another recipe popular in some regions includes finely chopped mint leaves mixed into the ayran. In countries such as Bosnia and Herzegovina, extra salt is added to give the drink the flavour of salt water and is often consumed in large quantities at Turkish eateries.

Ayran is so popular in Turkey that it rivals the sales of the juice

Juice

Juice is a liquid naturally contained in fruit or vegetable tissue. Juice is prepared by mechanically squeezing or Maceration fresh fruits or vegetables without the application of heat or solvents....
and soda

Soft drink

A soft drink is a beverage that does not contain alcohol. Carbonated soft drinks are commonly known as soda, soda pop, pop, coke or tonic in various parts of the United States, pop in Canada, fizzy drinks in the United Kingdom and Australia and sometimes minerals in Ireland....
industries. International fast-food companies, such as McDonald's

McDonald's

McDonald's Corporation is the world's largest chain of fast food restaurants, serving nearly 58 million customers daily. McDonald's primarily sells hamburgers, cheeseburgers, chicken products, French fries, breakfast items, soft drinks, milkshakes, and desserts....
, include Ayran in their standard menu. In Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan

Iran

Syria

Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is an Arab-majority country in Southwest Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Israel to the southwest, Jordan to the south, Iraq to the east, and Turkey to the north....
, Iraq

Iraq

Iraq , officially the Republic of Iraq , is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros Mountains, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
and Lebanon

Lebanon

Lebanon , officially the Republic of Lebanon or Lebanese Republic , is a country in Western Asia, on the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea....
, it is available in most restaurants and fast-food shops. In other countries, it may be found at döner kebab

Döner kebab

D?ner is a Cuisine of Turkey dish made of lambmeat cooked on a vertical spit and sliced off to order.Alternative names around the world include Donair, ?t??e?, Doner or sometimes Donner....
outlets. In the United States

United States

The United States of America is a Federal government constitutional republic comprising U.S. state and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its Contiguous United States and Washington, D.C., the Capital districts and territories, lie between the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Oceans, Borders of the U...
, it is available in Turkish, Persian, Armenian and other Middle Eastern stores under the names ayran, doogh, or .

In rural areas of Turkey, ayran is offered as a standard drink to welcome guests.

Ayran is served cool, and is a common accompaniment to döner, kebab

Kebab

Kebab refers to a variety of meat dishes in Middle Eastern cuisine, Mediterranean cuisine, Cuisine of Africa, Central Asian cuisine, and South Asian cuisine cuisines, consisting of Grilling or broiled meats on a skewer or stick....
, banitsa, gözleme

Gözleme

G?zleme is a savoury traditional Turkish hand made and hand rolled pastry. Fresh pastry is rolled out, filled and sealed, then cooked over a griddle....
, or pastry

Pastry

Pastry is the name given to various kinds of baking made from ingredients such as flour, butter, shortening, baking powder or Egg s. Small cakes, tarts and other sweet baked goods are called "pastries"....
. Some forms of fresh ayran are foamy.

Ayran

See also

External links