What Turkish delight is made of
At its simplest, Turkish delight, lokum in Turkish, is sugar and starch cooked slowly with water until the mass sets into a soft, chewy gel. That base takes flavour and texture from what is added: rose or lemon in the classic cubes, whole pistachios or hazelnuts in the rolls, coconut, pomegranate or spice on the outside. It is dusted with icing sugar or starch so the pieces do not stick, or coated in chocolate.
Gaziantep’s contribution is the pistachio. The city is the centre of Turkish pistachio, and the workshops here fill rolls with whole kernels and cut them to order. That is what most of the world means when it says pistachio Turkish delight.
The main types
- Classic cubes: plain, rose, lemon and fruit flavours, pasha cubes with nuts, rolled slices. The shelf and gift-box staple. See the Turkish delight page.
- Finger rolls: long rolls filled with whole pistachio, hazelnut or almond, coated in coconut, kadayif or chocolate, cut to order.
- Aleppo-style rolls: firmer, darker, with pomegranate, nut and spice coatings.
- Double-roasted: a longer cook, a denser bite, with pistachio or hazelnut.
- Chocolate-covered Turkish delight: cubes and bundles under milk or dark chocolate. The chocolate changes how it travels; see below.
- Special lokum: baklava-style layers, moon bundles, royal pieces and roulades, sold by weight from the counter. A category of its own on the special lokum page.
Why it is called Turkish delight
The English name is a nineteenth-century export label: the confection reached Britain from Ottoman Istanbul and was sold as a delight from Turkey. The Turkish word lokum is older and simply names the sweet. Both words are used today; on this site we use Turkish delight for the product pages and lokum where the trade does.
How it is packed for wholesale
Bulk lokum travels in cartons, typically by weight, and is repacked by the importer or sold from the counter. Retail formats are window boxes and vacuum pouches; both can carry a private label. Each format has its own case size and pallet plan, which the offer states per line.
How it travels
Plain and dusted Turkish delight travels in a dry container all year. Chocolate-covered pieces follow the chocolate rule: chocolate and chocolate-coated products travel at a controlled temperature, and for a mixed container in the warm months a reefer is quoted. The mixed-container page explains how temperature is handled on a mixed load.
For the United States, the label is in English with the allergen declaration, and our factory holds the food-facility registration. Everything else about the entry is on the United States page.
What to send
Send the references from the turkish delight page and the special lokum page, the quantity per line and the destination port. The written offer follows within two working days, the case weight and the minimum stated for each.
Samples come free from our running production; the courier is on your account and paid before dispatch. The united states: what stays the same on every offer page lists what stays the same on every offer, and the private label page covers putting your own name on the pack.
Does Turkish delight contain gelatin?
Traditional lokum sets with starch, not gelatin. Ingredients are stated per product on our technical data sheet, which comes with the quotation.
Can it be made under our brand?
Yes, as one of our core services; retail boxes and vacuum pouches can carry your label.
What is the difference between Turkish delight and special lokum?
Turkish delight covers cubes and rolls sold by the box; special lokum is the counter range sold by weight: baklava-style, moon bundles, royal pieces and roulades.
