The Global Perception on the Three Great Cuisines in the World: Focused on the exploration of the historical background of Turkish cuisine’s inclusion in the “three”

In general, China, France and Turkey are often mentioned in the culinary world as the countries of the “three great cuisines of the world”. These three countries deserve to be praised their rich culinary tradition. However, it has not been reveled yet on how and when these three countries are mentioned as the world’s major cuisine. It seems that this common saying was recognized by the global public as it were a fait accompli and, thus, is widely quoting in the food and tourism related writings. This study will be the first of this kind of research for navigation of this popular account’s origin. More specifically, this research concentrates on exploring how Turkey could be included among the “three” in the historic perspective. Since documentation or any materials on the popular belief of “three great cuisines” are as yet unconfirmed, this paper gets an insight into the process of the wide recognition and spread of the culture of Ottoman and Turkey throughout Europe and America, based on the fact that one’s awareness and attitude to other culture were being formed in the history of cross-cultural communication. Thus, this study aims to provide a clue as to when or where an exotic Turkish culture of Orient had widely spread in Europe and America since the 18th century. This narration gives a strong possibility that Europeans and Americans had a deep affinity with Turkish culture and food. Though not disclosing an origin of “three great cuisines”, the author presents a historical and cultural scenery to understand how Turkey is included in the “three” in its national and international perspectives. This study concludes that the incorporation of Turkish cuisine into the “three great cuisines of the world” seems fair enough considering the historic spread of the Turkish culture abroad.