Sumak ekşisi is what Turkish kebab houses keep next to the onions: sumac, pressed into a pourable sour sauce instead of the dry red powder most kitchens know. Kemal Kükrer — the Eskişehir vinegar maker working since 1915, today part of the Ajinomoto group — bottles it in this 250ml glass bottle, so the tang lands evenly through a salad instead of sitting on top as specks.The base is real sumac with glucose-fructose syrup, citric acid, and natural thickeners — no artificial flavoring. The result is sharp, fruity, and slightly astringent, closer to a lemony vinaigrette than to pomegranate molasses, which runs sweeter and darker. Many cooks use the two side by side: pomegranate molasses for depth, sumac sauce for the clean sour edge.Where it goes: Onion salad for kebabs — the classic sumac onions (soğan piyazı), done in seconds without waiting for powder to dissolve Fattoush and shepherd's salad — replaces both the lemon and the sprinkled sumac in one pour Grilled meats, chicken wings, and köfte — drizzled after grilling, not before Lentil soup, stuffed vine leaves, and raw kibbeh/çiğ köfte as a finishing sour note A 250ml bottle covers weeks of regular salad-making since a tablespoon per bowl is usually enough. Store in a cool cupboard; refrigerate after opening for the brightest flavor. Contains traces of soy and gluten per the label.
