Wikipedia

Walnut sujuk

Walnut sucuk is a sweet made from walnuts and grape must found in several West Asian cuisines. It is made running a string through a group of walnuts before covering them in grape must that is thickened by flour before leaving the confection to dry.[1][2]

Walnut sucuk
Walnut sucuk being left to dry in Turkey
Alternative namesMalban
TypeFruit preserves
CourseDessert
Region or stateWest Asia
Serving temperatureRoom temperature
Main ingredientsGrape must, walnuts
VariationsChurchkhela, sharots
  •  Wikimedia Commons logo Media: Walnut sucuk

Etymology

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Sucuk means sausage in the Turkish language, the name is derived from the shape of the confection.[1][3]

Preparation

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Walnut sucuk is prepared by coating strings of walnuts or other nuts in a thickened grape must mixture and allowing them to dry until firm. The grape juice is first concentrated and combined with flour or corn starch to produce a dense, pudding-like coating. Strings of walnuts are produced by running a string through the walnut with a sewing needle. Strings of nuts are repeatedly dipped into the warm mixture, with successive layers added to increase thickness and create an even outer covering. After coating, the strings are hung in a ventilated environment for several days or weeks to dry.[3][4][5]

History

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A confection called malban has existed in the medieval Middle East; 14th century traveller Ibn Battuta described malban in his travelogue titled The Travels of Ibn Battuta, malban was made in Damascus from grape syrup thickened with a powder with almonds and pistachio embedded in it.[6][7] According to historian Nawal Nasrallah, this malban was "shaped like sausages, the way they are made today".[7]

Food historian Priscilla Mary Işın [tr] notes that walnut sucuk was produced in Anatolia as early as the 15th century.[8] 17th century Ottoman traveler Evliya Çelebi noted that grape sausages were made in Gaziantep, Manisa, and Euboea.[8]

A section about Arab cuisine from the 1889 proceedings of the 8th International Congress of Orientalists describe malban (ملبن) of stringed walnuts coated in flour-thickened grape must, which were left to dry for 20-30 days.[9] They are also described under the name سجوقات (sujuks) in an 1844 Egyptian & Syrian Arabic-French dictionary by Swedish Orientalist Jacob Berggren [sv].[10][9]

A 1904 report by the US Bureau of Manufactures described sujuk (rojik in Armenian, according to the report) being made in Turkey, alongside kessme and basduk, all from grape must, and commented saying:

Sujuk (rojik, in Armenian).- The meats of walnuts are strung closely together on pieces of stout twine a yard long. These strings are immersed in the mixture of grape molasses and flour described above, and after receiving a coating about one-fourth of an inch in thickness are withdrawn and hung up to dry. [They] are preserved for a few months in jars...

These [are] excellent articles of food [...they] offer much nutriment in a compact form, and are exceptionally well adapted for the needs of the oriental traveler. In these days of "grape cures," when unfermented grape juice is prepared on a large scale for the use of invalids and the anemic during the months when fresh grapes are not easily obtained.[11]

Regional varieties

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Turkey

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Different flavors of cevizli sucuk from Turkey

In Turkey, cevizli sucuk (lit. 'Walnut sujuk') is made alongside pestil and other confections.[1][3] In Mardin, cevizli sucuk is traditionally prepared for Eid al-Adha.[12]

In 2022, the Turkish Patent and Trademark Office issued a Geographical indication for walnut sucuk to the city of Beypazarı, Ankara Province.[13][4] According to the patent, 250kg of grapes are reduced to 100kg of grape juice thickened with wheat flour, which is used to coat 90-100 strings of walnut kernels weighing 10 kg (22 lb), each string around a metre long.[4] The result is dried for 10-15 days and is reported to last 7-8 months in storage.[4]

In 2023, TRT Haber reported 40 tons of cevizli sucuk being produced by a single village in Sason District, Batman.[14]

Cyprus

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Packaged Cypriot soutzoukos

In Cyprus, it is known as soutzoukos (Greek: σουτζούκο[15]),[2][16][17] the name derived from the Turkish sucuk (sujuk).[18] Cypriot soutzoukos commonly include almonds or rose water.[18][19] They are traditionally made by dipping the threaded nuts into the thickened grape mixture (called paluze) 3 to five times over several hours then they are left to dry for 5-6 days. It is traditionally prepared during the grape harvest season, around September.[19][20]

Armenian

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Armenian sujukh

In Armenian cuisine, sucuk is called sujukh (derived from sujuk) or sharots.[21][22]

Iraq

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Sucuk is made in a variety of flavors like mastic in the Iraqi Kurdistani cities of Erbil, Sulaymaniyah, and Mosul. Sujuk is a common gift given to those living in other cities when visited.[23][24]

Syria

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In Syrian cuisine, walnut sucuk is known as juq malban (Arabic: جق ملبن), borrowed from Turkish, as well as many other local names. Its made by dipping stringed-together walnuts into grape molasses over several rounds before coating them in starch to pevent them from sticking.[5][25] A Cilician custom was to gift malban to relatives and friends when visiting Aleppo.[5] It is also known as okudah (عقودة),[26] and is imported into Syria from Gaziantep.[27]

Lebanon

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Armenians in Lebanon make sweet sucuk from grape molasses and walnuts.[22] Lebanese people in Sidon also make a similar sweet called malban for Eid al-Fitr, influenced by Ottoman cuisine, of walnuts stringed together and dipped in thickened sugar and flour.[28][29][30]

Georgia

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The Georgian churchkhela is a variety of sucuk made from a variety of flavorings.[31][32]

See also

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References

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  1. 1 2 3 Ergil, Leyla Yvonne (14 January 2021). "Going nuts for nuts: Deciphering Turkey's 'kuruyemiş' shops". Daily Sabah. Retrieved 25 April 2026.
  2. 1 2 Βασιλείου, Καλλιόπη (15 November 2025). "Tsoubekí: The Secret 'Power Bar' of Ancient Greece | Travel.gr/en". travel.gr. Retrieved 25 April 2026.
  3. 1 2 3 Coşkun, Ayla (24 October 2021). "4 walnut recipes to drive you nuts the good way". Daily Sabah. Retrieved 7 May 2026.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "Beypazarı Cevizli Tatlı Sucuk" [Beypazarı Walnut Sweet Sausage]. Coğrafi İşaret Platformu (in Turkish). 2022. Retrieved 7 May 2026.
  5. 1 2 3 Khayr al-Din al-Asadi (1981). موسوعة حلب المقارنة [Comparative Encyclopedia of Aleppo] (in Arabic). p. 885. Retrieved 4 May 2026.
  6. ↑ رحلة ابن بطوطة تحفة النظار في غرائب الأمصار وعجائب الأسفار [Ibn Battuta's Journey: A Masterpiece for Observers on the Wonders of Cities and the Marvels of Travel] (in Arabic). 29 January 2020. p. 100. Retrieved 7 May 2026.
  7. 1 2 Nasrallah, Nawal (27 November 2017). Treasure Trove of Benefits and Variety at the Table: A Fourteenth-Century Egyptian Cookbook: English Translation, with an Introduction and Glossary. BRILL. p. 485. ISBN 978-90-04-34991-9. Retrieved 7 May 2026.
  8. 1 2 Priscilla Mary Işın [in Turkish] (2010). Osmanlı Mutfak Sözlüğü [Ottoman Culinary Dictionary] (in Turkish). KiTAP YAYINEVI. pp. 339–349. Retrieved 4 May 2026.
  9. 1 2 International Congress of Orientalists (1891). Actes du huitième congrès international des orientalistes tenu en 1889 à Stockholm et à Christiania [Proceedings of the Eighth International Congress of Orientalists held in 1889 in Stockholm and Christiania] (in German and Arabic). Brill. pp. 366, 410. Retrieved 7 May 2026.
  10. ↑ Berggren, Jakob (1844). Guide français-arabe vulgaire des voyageurs dt des francs en Syrie et en Égypte: avec carte physique et géographique de la Ssyrie et plan géométrique de Jérusalem ancien et moderne, comme supplément aux voyages en orient [A French-Arabic guide for travelers and Franks in Syria and Egypt: with a physical and geographical map of Syria and a geometric plan of ancient and modern Jerusalem, as a supplement to travels in the Orient] (in Arabic and French). Leffler et Sebell. p. 269. Retrieved 7 May 2025.
  11. ↑ Reports from the Consuls of the United States (varies Slightly). U.S. Government Printing Office. 1904. pp. 1117–1118. Retrieved 6 May 2026.
  12. ↑ "Geleneksel yöntemlerle hazırlanan cevizli sucuk bayramda da damakları tatlandıracak" [Walnut sujuk, prepared using traditional methods, will delight palates during the holiday.]. Anadolu Ajansı (in Turkish). June 5, 2025. Retrieved 7 May 2026.
  13. ↑ "Beypazarı'nın cevizli sucuğu tescillendi" [Beypazarı's walnut sausage has been registered as a protected geographical indication.]. TRT Haber (in Turkish). 19 April 2022. Retrieved 7 May 2026.
  14. ↑ "Batman'da yoğun talep gören cevizli sucuk, yüzlerce ailenin geçim kaynağı oldu". TRT Haber (in Turkish). 18 September 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2026.
  15. ↑ "Με παλουζέ, σουτζούκο και ζιβανία το Φεστιβάλ Στατού – Αγίου Φωτίου" [The Festival of Statos - Agios Photios with palouze, soutzouko and zivania]. Cyprus Times (in Greek). 22 September 2024. Retrieved 7 May 2026.
  16. ↑ Michael Shally-Jensen (2015). Countries Peoples and Cultures. Salem Press. p. 164. Retrieved 29 April 2026.
  17. ↑ Darra Goldstein (2015). The Oxford companion to sugar and sweets. New York, NY : Oxford University Press. pp. 310, 363, 413. ISBN 978-0-19-931339-6. Retrieved 29 April 2026.
  18. 1 2 "S̆ous̆oukkos, soutz̆oukkos". Cyprus Food Museum. Retrieved 4 May 2026.
  19. 1 2 "Σουτζιούκος" [Soutzioukos]. Deputy Ministry of Tourism (in Greek). 5 November 2015. Retrieved 7 May 2026.
  20. ↑ Οικονομίδου, Τατιάνα (23 October 2020). "Σουτζούκος, ο κυπριακός" [Soutzoukos, the Cypriot]. cantinamag.gr (in Greek). Retrieved 7 May 2026.
  21. ↑ Duguid, Naomi (2016). Taste of Persia : a cook's travels through Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Iran, and Kurdistan. New York : Artisan. ISBN 978-1-57965-548-8. Retrieved 4 May 2026.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: publisher location (link)
  22. 1 2 "How migration has changed Lebanon's food scene over the past century: Armenian cuisine". L'Orient Today. 5 June 2024. Retrieved 4 May 2026.
  23. ↑ "يباع في أسواقها منذ أكثر من 70 عاما.. تعرف على السَّجَق أشهر حلويات أربيل" [Sold in its markets for over 70 years... Learn about sujuk, Erbil's most famous sweet.]. Al Jazeera (in Arabic). Retrieved 4 May 2026.
  24. ↑ "كوردستان.. رواج سوق المكسرات والحلويات خلال نوروز (صور)" [Kurdistan: Nuts and sweets market booms during Nowruz (photos)]. Shafaq News (in Arabic). 2021. Retrieved 7 May 2026.
  25. ↑ زكور, محمد ياسر (1 January 2018). اصطلاحات الطب القديم [Ancient medical terminology] (in Arabic). Dar Al-Kotob Al-Ilmiyah. p. 544. ISBN 978-2-7451-8928-8. Retrieved 4 May 2026.
  26. ↑ Tadros, Mariz; Khouri, Mtanos Al; Issa, Maya (31 January 2026). "Syrian Christian Heritage: Legacy and Impact". Institute of Development Studies. p. 337. Retrieved 25 April 2026.
  27. ↑ ""العقودة".. حلوى تقليدية تميز احتفالات رأس السنة في الحسكة" ["Al-Aqouda"... a traditional sweet that distinguishes New Year's celebrations in Al-Hasakah]. Enab Baladi (in Arabic). 19 December 2023. Retrieved 4 May 2026.
  28. ↑ ""الملبن العثماني".. حلوى العيد في صيدا اللبنانية" ["Ottoman Malban"... an Eid sweet in Sidon, Lebanon]. Turk Press (in Arabic). 16 July 2015. Retrieved 4 May 2026.
  29. ↑ "الملبن اللبناني يتربع على عرش الحلويات في عيد الفطر" [Lebanese malban reigns supreme among Eid al-Fitr sweets.]. Al-Ain News (in Arabic). 4 May 2026. Retrieved 4 May 2026.
  30. ↑ "«ملبن العيد» حلوى لبنانية تصنع يدوياً «أباً عن جدّ»" ["Eid sweets" are a Lebanese dessert made by hand "from father to son".]. Asharq Al-Awsat (in Arabic). 2024. Retrieved 4 May 2026.
  31. ↑ "Why you need this Turkish breakfast staple on rotation in your kitchen". SBS Food. 30 September 2024. Retrieved 4 May 2026.
  32. ↑ "Local Vancouver company introduces Georgian churchkhela to B.C. foodies". Vancouver Sun. Feb 23, 2024. Retrieved 4 May 2026.
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