Antep Alaca Soup Description and Distinguishing Features of the Product: The main ingredients of Gaziantep / Antep Alaca Soup are pounded wheat, chickpeas, lentils, dried pepper, and tarragon. It is served with heated oil, optionally with dried mint. It is especially consumed heavily during the winter months. The history of Gaziantep / Antep Alaca Soup dates back to the Hittite period and holds a significant place in Gaziantep's culinary culture. The use of tarragon (Artemisia dracunculus) leaves in its production, the selection and preparation of other ingredients involve methods specific to Gaziantep. The entire production process requires skill and expertise, hence the close association of Gaziantep / Antep Alaca Soup with its geographical boundaries. Chickpeas and pounded wheat are soaked in water overnight, then boiled in a steel pot with the addition of 5-6 cups of water for 15 minutes and left to rest for at least six hours. After the resting process, strain the water. In the pot, add water to cover the pounded wheat and chickpeas by about 4 cm, and continue cooking until the chickpeas become tender.In a separate pot, cook lentils with 1-1.5 cups of water for 25 minutes. Optionally, chickpeas and pounded wheat can be cooked together. Towards the end of the cooking time for pounded wheat and chickpeas, finely sliced onions are added to the pot along with the cooked lentils. Reduce the heat, add dried and broken red peppers to the pot. Optionally, fresh red peppers can also be added depending on preference and season. Add approximately 2-2.5 liters of water to the pot and let it simmer for 10 minutes. Then, add dried tarragon, red pepper flakes, and salt on top of the soup, and all the ingredients are cooked together over low heat for 20-25 minutes. The soup reaches the desired consistency when the onions are cooked. In a separate pan, heat olive oil / clarified butter / regular butter / sunflower oil, optionally with dried mint, and drizzle it over the soup. Gaziantep / Antep Alaca Soup is then ready to be served.