Dondurma Fıstıklı

Turkish mastic and salep ice cream studded with Antep pistachios, pulled and stretched from the paddle

Origin: Kahramanmaraş and Gaziantep, Turkey

From the journey of Pistachio.

Dondurma (from 'dondurmak', to freeze) is the Turkish ice cream tradition, and it is unlike any other in the world. Two ingredients give it its defining properties. Salep, a flour ground from the tubers of wild orchid species (Orchis mascula and related species) harvested in the highlands of Anatolia, contains a polysaccharide called glucomannan that renders it viscous, stretchy, and resistant to melting even in warm temperatures. Mastic, the resinous tears that bleed from the bark of the lentisk tree (Pistacia lentiscus) on the island of Chios, provides the dondurma's characteristic faintly piney, resinous flavour note and contributes to its chewiness. The combination of these two uniquely Anatolian ingredients produces an ice cream that can be cut with a knife, pulled into strings, and eaten with a fork; dondurma sellers in Istanbul's Beyoğlu and in Maraş itself are famous for their theatrical teasing of customers, offering the cone and whipping it away with a flourish before allowing the final, triumphant delivery. The city of Kahramanmaraş (historically Maraş) in southeastern Anatolia is the home of the original dondurma tradition; Gaziantep, adjacent and sharing the same pistachio groves, naturally contributed its defining nut to the mix. Fıstıklı dondurma (pistachio dondurma) is the prestige variety, in which the pale cream and mastic base is studded with slivers of Antep pistachio at the moment the ice cream sets.

Ingredients

Base

  • 700 ml full-fat milk
  • 200 ml double cream
  • 140 g caster sugar

Thickening

  • 1.5 tsp salep powder

Flavouring

  • 0.5 tsp mastic crystals, ground with a pinch of sugar to a powder

Pistachio

  • 100 g raw Antep pistachios, blanched, peeled and cut into slivers

Method

  1. Combine the sugar and salep powder in a small bowl. Whisk together so the salep is evenly distributed through the sugar; this prevents clumping when it hits the hot milk.
  2. Heat the milk in a heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat until it begins to steam. Whisk in the sugar-salep mixture in a steady stream, then continue to whisk over medium-low heat for 10 to 12 minutes, until the mixture thickens considerably and coats the back of a spoon.
  3. Remove from the heat. Whisk in the ground mastic and the double cream. Strain through a fine sieve into a shallow, freezer-safe container.
  4. Allow to cool completely, then freeze for 2 hours until the edges are set but the centre is still slushy.
  5. Transfer the semi-frozen mixture to a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook and beat on medium-high speed for 5 to 8 minutes, until the ice cream becomes stretchy and elastic. This beating is what develops the characteristic dondurma texture.
  6. Fold in the pistachio slivers. Return to the container, cover with baking paper pressed directly onto the surface, and freeze for at least 3 hours until firm.
  7. Serve scooped into glasses or cones, with a few extra pistachio slivers scattered on top. If the dondurma is very firm straight from the freezer, let it stand for 5 minutes before scooping.

Notes

Authentic dondurma is made in large batches and beaten in a copper vessel with a long-handled paddle over ice, a technique that produces a degree of stretch that home equipment cannot fully replicate. However, the stand mixer method produces a very creditable result. Salep and mastic are available at Turkish and Middle Eastern grocery stores, and both are increasingly available online. The ice cream keeps in the freezer for up to two weeks; its texture remains pleasantly chewy rather than rock-hard, which is the mark of a well-made dondurma.

The Gastrographer

The Gastrographer

Mapping Culinary History

To explore — select an ingredient below.

Journey Point Map Key

Ingredient originTrade or transit route
Became a culinary stapleColonial / trade control
© 2026 The Gastrographer. All original research, narratives, and illustrations. All rights reserved.