A pinch of sugar is added to Turkish olive-oil dishes to balance the tartness of tomatoes and lemon, the astringency of vegetables such as artichokes and celery, and the sharpness of olive oil. These dishes are served cold, and tartness is more noticeable when cold; sugar rounds it out without making the dish taste sweet. At the right amount, the sugar goes unnoticed and simply makes the dish taste balanced.
The flavor of Turkish olive-oil dishes is built on three strong elements: the vegetable itself, tartness from tomato or lemon, and plenty of olive oil. When these three are together, the dish can easily drift toward a sharp taste. If the tomatoes are not ripe enough, the sauce stays tart; artichokes, celery, and leeks cooked with lemon also add their own astringency. Good extra-virgin olive oil leaves a slight peppery sensation in the throat. A small amount of sugar softens all three sharp notes and brings balance to the plate.
Sugar also matters because the dish is served cold. Taste perception decreases in the cold, but not equally for every flavor: sweetness recedes on a cold plate while tartness stands out more. A Turkish olive-oil dish that tastes balanced while hot may seem tart after coming out of the refrigerator. A pinch of sugar added during cooking counteracts this shift as the dish cools. For this reason, adjust the sugar, salt, and lemon in the dish after it has cooled, tasting a spoonful, rather than while it is hot.
The amount is small. For half a kilogram of vegetables, 3–5 grams of sugar—about one 4 ml measure—is enough for most Turkish olive-oil dishes. Increase the amount a little if the tomatoes are very tart or you have used a lot of lemon; a dish made with ripe, sweet tomatoes may not need any. Add the sugar at the beginning of cooking along with the tomatoes and lemon so it dissolves in the sauce and spreads evenly through the vegetables. Sugar added at the end will also dissolve, but the dish needs to cook a little longer for it to spread.
How much sugar a Turkish olive-oil dish needs depends on the vegetable. In tomato-based versions with green beans or okra, sugar balances the tomato’s tartness. In vegetables cooked with lemon, such as artichokes, celery, and leeks, sugar offsets both the lemon’s sharpness and the vegetable’s astringency. In Turkish stuffed grape leaves and stuffed peppers with olive oil, sugar adds a sweet undertone to the filling along with currants and onion. In recipes where onion is cooked slowly for a long time, its natural sweetness can replace some of the sugar.
Too much sugar is easy to notice. If the sugar tastes like a distinct flavor when you taste the dish, you have added too much. A few drops of lemon and a pinch of salt can restore the balance; add them in small increments and taste the dish again each time. Sugar is there to soften the sharp edges, not to cover the vegetable’s own flavor. In a Turkish olive-oil dish, you should taste the vegetable first, followed by the olive oil and lemon; sugar should only soften the transition among these three flavors.