How local is local food? A quest for the Kastamonu cuisine

Heritage is an important and invaluable richness that is transferred from generation to generation. One of the cultural heritages that a country transfers to future generations is culinary culture. In diversifying tourism and spreading it to the whole year, local products and local food play a significant role to create a preferred demand for Gastronomic Tourism. Besides being an attraction, local food is also demanded depending on today's increasing standards of living and rising level of consciousness as well as their being natural and healthy. Guests who not only aim to appease their hunger, but also intend to know and experience the culture and get the product and food they want are also ready to pay for them generously. It is evident that local products and local food will a make a significant difference in this area in which countries, regions, cities and even districts are making great efforts to increase their share of the tourism pie. Local products actually produced in their region and local food prepared using these products create original tastes and allow people to experience the taste they are looking for. At the same time, it makes a positive economic impact for local producers and businesses offering local food, in addition to bringing recognition. In this respect, the Culinary Culture of Kastamonu that has a wide variety of local products and food with its deep historical and cultural richness has great potential and significance in this area. In this context, the aim of this study was to discover the local products and local food that forms the Kastamonu Cuisine and Culinary Culture, and to determine at what rates and in which products and dishes the local food is used. This is a survey type study using qualitative research methods. For the purposes of the study, the researcher first conducted an in-depth analysis of the relevant literature, drawing from the experiences of the previous studies. Then, face-to-face interviews were carried out using structured interview forms, and the data obtained was analyzed using a combination of descriptive and content analysis methods. At the end of the study, it was seen that the findings were consistent with the data obtained from the relevant literature. The study found that the local products and local food have been preserved in the region to a large extent, recipes often do not use scales and food is cooked by rule of thumb, recipes have been maintained with inter-family transfer, and there are many local products in the Kastamonu Cuisine while some of the dishes of this cuisine are unknown in many parts of Anatolia.