Sometimes more than simple hunger arises. Sometimes the soul needs a meal that warms and strengthens. For some it has to be grandma's chicken soup, for others mum's congee or dad's phở. At lunchtime, the smell of Mercimek Çorbası - Turkish lentil soup that promises cosiness and a comfortingly full tummy - fills the air at Leila's stand.

Haçer Aldemir, better known as ‘Leila’, is a permanent fixture in this hall. She has been running a small but excellent delicatessen counter since 2012. The dishes she offers here are not just recipes - they are part of her story. Kısır (bulgur salad) based on her mother's recipe, zeytin salatası (olive salad) like her dad used to make, or Turkish potato salad like her aunts used to prepare for hammam visits. Leila's cooking is not just about recipes, but about stories - about family, about home and about how traditions stay alive.

Leila came to Kreuzberg from East Anatolia as a little girl in 1972. Her parents brought their traditions and love of their homeland's cuisine with them - a rustic, hearty cuisine characterised by lentils, bulgur, yoghurt and grilled meat. ‘Back then, there were no supermarkets or restaurants in Berlin that offered Turkish food. My parents always brought everything back from their holidays once a year - food played a big role in our lives.’ Nevertheless, Leila's path did not lead her directly into working with food. ‘Office work wasn't really my thing, as it turned out,’ she says with a mischievous smile. After completing a commercial apprenticeship, she was drawn to the kitchens of Berlin, where she worked in various restaurants. But her true passion was always Turkish cuisine. ‘I wanted to share my family's dishes with Berlin,’ she explains. And she has done just that. Since 2012, her counter in Markthalle Neun has not only been a meeting place for lovers of Turkish cuisine, but also a place that keeps these traditions alive and develops them further.

Leila's recipes are not secret inventions, but heirlooms. ‘The lentil soup and bulgur salad are from my mum,’ she says and smiles. It is mainly her parents and grandparents who introduced her to the secrets of Turkish cuisine. Her father was a master of spices. ‘He made his own mixtures,’ says Leila. Sumac, thyme, pomegranate syrup and mint - ingredients that are never missing in Leila's kitchen. The parsley and olive salad, one of the favourite dishes at her counter, comes directly from her father's repertoire. ‘He knew how to create a world with just a few ingredients,’ says Leila. Her grandmother, whom she regularly visited in Anatolia, taught her how to prepare hot dishes. Içli Köfte - crispy baked bulgur balls - are a special memento that her grandma filled with spinach and lentils instead of meat and walnuts. ‘It was an emergency solution because meat was scarce back then. But it has established itself as a family recipe and is well received here in Berlin,’ says Leila with a smile. If she has her way, these balls will end up on the counter again at Street Food Thursday. ‘They always go down well,’ she adds.

However, Leila's cuisine is not just about preserving tradition. ‘I also create a lot myself and try out new things,’ she explains. Her travels to Turkey and other regions are always an important source of inspiration. ‘I let myself be driven by the markets and the local people. I come back with suitcases full of spices, cheese and other delicacies,’ she says. But despite all the innovations, the simplicity of the dishes remains her trademark. ‘The simplest is usually the best,’ she says and pulls out a recipe for baba ganoush, which will soon be in season again. ‘Aubergines, yoghurt, tahini, cumin, garlic, a little salt - that's all. The better the aubergines, the better the dish.’

But Leila doesn't just love the cuisine of her home country - she is also fond of German cuisine. ‘In the winter, I often have a raisin stew or sauerkraut dishes. For me, that's just as much comfort food as mercimek Çorbası,’ she says. And this is precisely where it becomes clear that there is often more that unites than divides people in culinary terms. Ingredients, preparation methods, even the idea of creating comfort with food - all of this overlaps in many cuisines around the world.

For many, her counter in Markthalle Neun has long since become a piece of home or a little trip during their lunch break. ‘Sometimes people walk past and say: Look, delicious Greek food! My cacık also has tsatsiki on it, because many people don't know what cacık means ... the traditions are similar, so it's a nice thing that recipes can talk about similarities.’ For Leila, her counter is a way of telling the traditions of a region, a family and her own biography - and creating something new at the same time. Her cuisine is a story of change, transformation and constant adaptation. And perhaps it is precisely this mix of tradition and innovation that makes her dishes so special. ‘Cooking is an art that never stands still,’ concludes Leila, turning her attention to the next Mezeteller. ‘There's always something new to learn, even if you rely on the old recipes.’

Text: Carina Reckers