A Unique Umami System: The 'Layered' Flavor Design in West Asia and the Middle East

A Culinary Culture Beyond Just 'Dashi' and 'Spices'

Western bouillon, Japanese dashi, and Chinese tang. These 'dashi cultures' are based on the preparation of a liquid extracted from ingredients to provide umami before cooking begins. In contrast, Indian cuisine in South Asia has perfected a 'spice culture' that builds multi-layered flavors by infusing the volatile aromas of spices into oil.
Standing alongside these massive existing culinary spheres, the 'West Asian and Middle Eastern cultural sphere,' including Turkey, the Arab world, and Persia, has undergone a completely different and unique evolution. While the custom of preparing a separate 'dashi' is rare in the cuisine of this region, it does not mean that umami is undervalued. Rather, they employ an extremely rational and dynamic method that transforms the cooking process itself into an 'umami extraction process.'

The Foundation of Sautéed Onions

Their technique should be called a 'culture of cultivating umami within a single pot.'
At its core is the creation of a foundation using 'sautéed onions.'

For example, in Turkish cuisine, a generous amount of onions is sautéed, and then 'salça,' a rich paste made by boiling down tomatoes or peppers, is added. This salça is truly a 'crystal of umami.' Meat or vegetables are added to this and sautéed further, and finally, water is poured in. As a result, the umami from the sautéed ingredients dissolves into the water, and by the time it is finished simmering, the liquid itself has transformed into a rich 'dashi.'
In Arab cuisine (such as in the Levant region), sautéed onions, garlic, and meat fat are blended with 'baharat' (mixed spices) to sublimate them into a 'maraq' (soup) where the protein of the meat, the essential oils of the spices, and the sweetness of the vegetables are fused together.
Persian cuisine shows even more unique refinement. Starting with 'piaz-e dagh' (golden sautéed onions), layers of herbs, dried limes, and fruit pastes are added one after another. By simmering slowly over time, the fresh umami and acidity of the herbs blend with the richness of the meat, resulting in a sauce with unfathomable depth.

The Flavor Canvas of 'Water in the Pot'

In this cultural sphere, water is not merely a heating medium. It is a 'canvas' for drawing out and capturing the full potential of ingredients that have been sautéed and condensed.
It is a constructive beauty—'building layers of umami right there in the pot'—that differs from East Asia and the West, which make extensive use of 'pre-extracted umami liquids,' and from South Asia, which focuses on the 'construction of aroma.' This is the other 'true nature of deliciousness' that this vast cultural sphere located on the western side of the Eurasian continent boasts.