is a recent arrival in the English language; Mariani (1994) gives 1936 as the first appearance in print. However, the product has a long history. The name probably derives through Yiddish from Romanian or Armenian pastrama, a type of wind-dried beef. Lesley Chamberlain (1989) says that:
Wind-dried beef, pastrama, of Armenian origin, was observed to be a much-loved food among the poor [of Romania]. A nineteenth century traveller described it as ‘thin, black, leather-like pieces of meat dried and browned in the sun, and with salt and squashed flies’.
Such products were widespread in the Levant and the Balkans. Pastirma, dried meat often seasoned with garlic and cumin, is the Turkish version, and it is under numerous variations of the Turkish name, e.g. pasturma in Bulgaria, that it is known in the Balkan countries. Maria Kaneva-Johnson (1995) explains that the meat can come ‘from lamb, goat, calf or young water buffalo, cut into the thinnest possible slices and eaten uncooked or lightly grilled as meze’. She remarks that a version coated with a paste of paprika, fenugreek or cumin, and salt (to protect and add piquancy to the meat) is a speciality of the Anatolian town of Kayseri (Caesarea in Roman times).
The version which has become a feature of New York Jewish cuisine and is used for the famous pastrami on rye sandwich is adapted from these origins, but prepared in a somewhat different manner, which includes steaming the meat.
Alan Davidson was a distinguished author and publisher, and one of the world's best-known writers on fish and fish cookery. In 1975 he retired early from the diplomatic service—after serving in, among other places, Washington, Egypt, Tunisia, and Laos, where he was British Ambassador—to pursue a fruitful second career as a food historian and food writer extraordinaire. Among his popular books are Seafood of South-East Asia, North Atlantic Seafood, and Mediterranean Seafood. In 2003, shortly before his death, he was awarded the Erasmus Prize for his contribution to European culture.
Chamberlain, Lesley (1989), The Food and Cooking of Eastern Europe, London: Penguin.
Kaneva-Johnson, Maria (1995), The Melting Pot: Balkan Food and Cookery, Totnes: Prospect Books.
Mariani, John (1994), The Dictionary of American Food and Drink, 2nd rev edn, New York: Hearst.
