Central Asian Food

Central Asian culinary influences in the American diet are historically minor but are starting to grow as Americans travel to Central Asia and as more and more Central Asians settle in the United States. Central Asian or Turkestani (mainly from former Soviet Central Asia and China’s Xinjiang, or Sinkiang, province) immigrant communities have existed in the United States, mainly in Brooklyn and New Jersey, since the Russian Revolution in 1917. Many of these early Central Asian immigrants fled the Russian empire, first spending time in Afghanistan, Iran, China, and Turkey before immigrating to the United States. Since the 1930s steadily growing numbers of Turks, Persians, and Afghans have come to the United States following the flight of Soviet Jewry (mid-1970s), the Iranian Revolution (1979), and the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan (1980). Substantial Turkish immigration to the United States followed World War II. It can be further divided into eras and classes: the first wave, mainly through the mid-1970s, comprised typical immigrants seeking a better life and less repressive states. Since the 1970s Turks coming to America typically have been young and accomplished professionals, people demanding higher-quality and more authentic restaurant culture.