One of Anatolian candy masters’ most globally famous inventions is "lokum," or Turkish delight. Although there are different legends as to how lokum was invented, most food historians agree it originated from the Ottoman palace. Some legends say it was created to help with the digestive system of gluttonous palace residents, whereas others claim the sultan demanded that a candy be developed to keep the peace in the harem among his wives. In the book "History of Turkish Desserts," the author explains that lokum as we know it today did not exist in the 17th century. Its original name was “rahatu’l-hulkum,” meaning “refreshing to the throat,” and was used for a sweet paste. Later, the term became "rahat lokum" and finally just "lokum."

While Westerners have wondered about the secret recipe of lokum for many centuries, it is composed of only a few main ingredients: starch, sugar, water and lemon juice. When sugar was introduced, it replaced honey or grape juice in lokum, and one of the world’s most versatile tastes was created.

With modern-day lokum, one's imagination is the limit. Only a simple mix of flavors obtained from fruit juice or spices are used, or the ingredients can be more elaborate to include nuts, saffron, chocolate, clotted cream, dairy-free nougat, rose petals or puffed rice. Thus, hundreds of different types of lokum can be created to cater to different taste buds, dietary restrictions and budgets.

Lokum sweets have traveled all over the world in the bags of merchants. By 1861, we can see from the magazine archives that the sweet had made it all the way into European culture. In Britain, for instance, it was called “lumps of delight” in the 19th century. In the Balkans and the Middle East, the sweet was eventually called lokum, and it became known as Turkish delight in the rest of the world.