The competition was organized in three categories: olive oil dishes, olive oil pastries, and olive oil desserts. The jury members included Prof. Dr. Mehmet Oğuzhan İlban, Dean of Balıkesir University Burhaniye Faculty of Applied Sciences and Head of the Gastronomy and Culinary Arts Department; Prof. Dr. Emel Memiş Kocaman, faculty member of the BUBFA Gastronomy and Culinary Arts Department; Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ali Solunoğlu, faculty member of the same department; Assoc. Prof. Dr. Muammer Bezirgan, Director of Balıkesir University Burhaniye Vocational School and faculty member of the Gastronomy and Culinary Arts Department; and Municipal Council Member Serap Bekiroğlu.
Before the winners were announced, Mayor Deveciler thanked the jury members for their contributions and participation and presented them with plaques of appreciation. In the food competition, where the olive oil dish culture—one of the masterpieces of Turkish cuisine—is kept alive together with the nearly forgotten recipes of Aegean cuisine and its values, and where the social memory is refreshed by remembering the recipes again, nine people who ranked in the top three in three categories were given gold prizes as well as gift packages. Twenty-two participants took part in the competition with 35 dishes.
The awards were presented to the winners by Burhaniye Mayor Ali Kemal Deveciler, Deputy Mayors Oktay Erbalaban and Tamer Midilli, Municipal Council Members Songül Erkeskin, Elvan Aslan, Hasan Metin, and Burhaniye CHP District Chair Aylin Yıldırım. In addition, olive saplings and participation certificates were given to all participants in accordance with the meaning and importance of the day.
In the desserts category, Meral Danışmaz won first place with “Ege’nin İnciri”, Serdar Şahna came second with “Boşnak Kalbura Bastı”, and Mehmet Gezer came third with “Dible Dessert.”
In the pastries category, Gülçin Şahna came first with hand-rolled Bosnian pastry, Mehmet Toprak came second with Yağlı Pide, and Fatma İbiş came third with hand-rolled pastry with nettle and cheese.
In the main dishes category, Gülsüm Aydın won first place with Village Chicken Keşkek on Yufka with Rice and Chickpea Dish, Belgin Ertunç came second with Lamb Casserole, and Nermin Alkan Eliküçük came third with Olive Oil Leek Dish.
First place winner Gülsüm Aydın said:
“This year I came first with Village Chicken Keşkek with dried yufka, chickpeas and rice. Last year I had also come first with eggplant pastry. If we keep these values alive, they will continue for all of us. I am very happy to be first. I have been participating for three years. In the first year I was first in desserts, last year in pastries, and this year in dishes.”
Meral Danışmaz said:
“Today I came first with Ege’nin İnciri. Believe me, cooking is something very enjoyable. You have to do it with love. If you want to be first, you first have to devote your heart to this work. I can say that I improvised the fig dessert of the Aegean myself.”
Jury member Assoc. Prof. Dr. Muammer Bezirgan said:
“Today we had the opportunity to evaluate our foods and beverages, which are an important element of our cultural heritage. As jury members, we evaluated many delicious pastries, dishes and desserts separately. We had great difficulty while making the selection. But in the end, our women ranked here and we presented their awards. I think such competitions are very important in keeping our cultural heritage alive.”
Mehmet Gezer said:
“I am veterinarian Mehmet Gezer. I devoted my heart to this dish. Especially, I try to make whatever dishes of the Edremit Gulf region have left their traces. And I did. My archive is very wide. As a man among so many women, achieving such a ranking made me very happy. We entered with a flavor story that has not been forgotten. I participated with Dible dessert.
