These days, Muhammad Amir is busy coordinating to bring a new batch of mallow from Hatay province, southern Turkey, to Istanbul, where he sells and distributes it to his Syrian and Arab customers.

The Emir of the Syrian refugee from Aleppo province settled in Istanbul several years ago and works in the food trade, including mallow, where he created a Facebook page and a group on WhatsApp to receive requests from his customers and inform them of their arrival and then deliver them to homes to whomever he wishes.

With their refuge in Turkey years ago, the Syrians brought with them some of their customs, traditions and ways of life, including some of their favorite dishes, on top of which is mallow.

Because the Turks did not know this plant, Syrians worked to bring its seeds from their country and rent agricultural lands in southern Turkey, which borders Syria, and to cultivate them until today it has its own markets and pre-reservations for the dates of bringing it from the south to the northern and western states such as Istanbul and Izmir, especially since in Turkey there are currently more than 5 million residents. Syrian, Egyptian and other Arab communities consume this favorite dish.

Amir tells Al-Jazeera Net that he has customers requesting molokhia from different regions of Istanbul - from Syrians, Egyptians and Arabs - who takes their requests through the WhatsApp group he created for this regard and recommends the Syrian farmers who deal with them in Hatay to send the required quantities, and then informs his customers of the arrival of the goods, delivers and sells them for them.

Molokhia is now available in the market at Syrian and Arab sellers in general, and in its various forms (Al-Jazeera)

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Samer Al-Ashqar says that after coming to Turkey in 2011, he stayed with his family for about five years, and he wanted to eat a molokhia dish or even smell its smell, as it is the family's favorite dish and reminds them of their beautiful days in Syria.

Al-Ashqar, who lives in Istanbul, added, "After that long period, we began to hear that some Syrians began cultivating molokhia in the southern states, and we asked and investigated who was selling it until we finally got it after reserving a quantity and registering it in advance, since the quantities were limited at the time and came via shipping to Istanbul and other places. Northern states. "

Al-Ashkar points out that the current situation is completely different, as mallow is now available in the market with Syrian and Arab vendors in general and in its various forms, with and without sticks, dried and soft, and even in a number of restaurants, especially Syrian and Egyptian ones, they are available on their menus for meals almost permanently and with various recipes.

Transboundary seeds

Ali Al-Halabi - a vegetable and fruit seller in the Zeytinburnu area of ​​Istanbul - says that the cultivation of mallow - as a project - actually began in 2015 in the southern Turkish states such as Kilis, Hatay and others.

But before that, and despite the many Syrians and Arabs in general, were asking about it, some narrated that coming across the Syrian-Turkish borders brought their seeds with them, and some of them put handfuls of those seeds in their pockets and crossed the borders and brought them to Turkey and planted them there, but the matter was limited to self-consumption and limited consumption. .

He pointed out that the Syrians who sought refuge in Turkey were - even if as a joke - the first thing to recommend to those who intend to join them, from their relatives and acquaintances, to bring with them the seeds of molokhia, as they are not present in Turkey, so it was the most valuable gift during that period.

As for Samer Abdo from the Syrian province of Lattakia - the owner of a store that sells vegetables and fruits in the Esenyurt area of ​​Istanbul - he says, "I opened my shop several years ago and I have been working to secure various fresh vegetables and fruits, especially those requested by the Syrians, and they are not found in Turkish markets such as mallow and green squash."

He added, "During the past years, I started to bring molokhia from southern Turkey, especially from Hatay, which is widely cultivated in it, because the soil and weather there are suitable for that, and we are witnessing a great demand for its purchase."

A winning project

Hassan chose me, a farmer from Idlib who is one of the first growers of mallow in Turkey. He says that in 2015 he rented a small land in Hatay to grow mallow molokhia in response to the Syrians' need for the material, as the demand for it increased with the Syrians' love for it and the Turks' lack of knowledge of this plant, so he brought the seeds from Syria.

He points out that since that date, there have been a large number of Syrian farmers who rented land and cultivated it with mulukhiyah, with the increasing demand for it and the expansion of the number of Syrians and Arabs in Turkey, for whom mulukhiya is a favorite dish.

He pointed out that the cultivation of mallowia does not need much care, but rather it is simple irrigation and weeding and generates good profits, as it is harvested several times per season, which extends for almost three months, and despite the expansion of competition, "the market is wide for everyone."

He noted that the cultivation of mallow was tried in Izmir, Istanbul, and nearby Kirdag, despite the fertility of the agricultural lands, the experiment did not succeed much, and even the taste was different from the cultivated areas near Syria, which made the matter limited to the southern provinces.

Different tastes

Despite the spread of molokhia currently in the Arab markets and restaurants in Turkey, which it offers in various ways as a popular dish that is popular with customers, this dish is still difficult to break into the table of the Turks, who have not yet liked their taste, unlike some other Arab dishes.

"I did not like its sharp and bitter taste, for it is different, for example, from spinach or chard. I tried it once in an Arab restaurant and I did not like it frankly, and another time our Syrian neighbors presented us with a dish from it, and also my impression was similar," said Turkish resident Omar Shamshek, a resident of Istanbul.

Shamshak added, "In the past period, I have seen them sold in vegetable stores near my home, as there are a large number of Syrians and Arabs in the neighborhood in which I live and I see them daily, especially during this period of the year, where they buy large quantities and carry large bags and bouquets of them, but it did not cross my mind." One day I buy it or try to make it at home. "