Turkmen Sweets

Turkmen sweets are similar to the traditional sweets of many countries in Central Asia, Turkey and the Caucasus.

Bekmes is a natural syrup or concentrated fruit juice. It is made with no added sugar and is often referred to as fruit honey. This is a very tasty Turkmenistan drink which is often served as a dessert. Each Turkmen tribe has its own recipe for bekmes which takes into account the available berries and fruits in their region.

Nabat (navat, quinoa-shakeri) are sucrose crystals of varying sizes which are grown on threads. The nomads consumed nabat as sugar and used it as a sweetener. Nabat is produced by way of recrystallization of sucrose from syrups saturated with sugar. This is a pure organic product without any additives and the Turkmens widely believe that it has healing properties.

Halva is a traditional dessert in almost every country in the East. It is made from sugar, nuts and either wheat flour or oil seed crops. The most common type of halva is sesame halva, made from ground sesame seeds.

Sherbet is a traditional drink in many mid-eastern countries. Back in the old days, sherbet was prepared from Cornelian cherries, rosehips or rose, with the addition of spices. Today sherbet is made using fruit juices, spices and ice cream.

Baklava (pakhlava) is a traditional oriental confection of syrup-soaked flaky pastry and walnuts. This tasty treat is made for Navruz in Turkmenistan.
In addition to traditional Eastern sweets, special pastries of Turkmenistan which are loved by the people should also be noted.

Pishme are diamond-shaped wedges of dough which are fried in oil. These Turkmen sweets resemble small doughnuts, minus the coating of sugar.

Chapada is a bread the size of a small plate which is made from a thick dough and fried until golden brown.

After a hearty meal, one of the best Turkmen desserts is melon. With many sweet and juicy varieties, local melons are a favorite among the Turkmen people and are often eaten in place of sweets.