Let’s begin with yet another set of important life-saving phrases every vegan should learn (Don’t forget to check Part 1 as it’s more comprehensive)
Meat — Et
Cheese — Peynir
Vegetables — sebzeler
I am a vegetarian — Ben vegan
No meat — Etsiz
Is there meat? — Et var mı?
Do you have any dishes without meat? — Etsiz yemek var mı?
I do not eat meat- Et yemiyorum
Do you have vegetarian food? — Sizde vegan vemek bulunur mu?
5- Zeytinyağlı yemek
Literally translates to Olive oil to eat (gotta flex my tiny Turkish muscles guys) but really means olive oil food. Ok, why not cut the chase and just call it vegan yemek . Now Turkish cuisine is chock full of them dishes. A plethora of super tasty beautifully cooked/ seared/ stewed …etc veggies (sometimes with legumes) flavored with aromatics and spices. Those dishes are my absolute saviors, as they are found everywhere. I just loooooove to scoop them out with Lavaş Ekmeği or Bazlama, or spread them on toasted sourdough. Some of my favorites are zeytinyağlı taze bamya (okra), Taze Fasulye (fresh green beans), Karnabahar Yemeği (cauliflower), Ekşili Patlıcan (stewed eggplant), Zeytinyağlı enginar (artichoke), but honestly, they are ALL very delicious, filling and super healthy. Who said vegans can’t have fun in Istanbul? I certainly can and do.
Other vegan yemek(s) to look for
Zeytinyağlı Pırasa (Leeks)
Zeytinyağlı Kereviz Dolması (stuffed celeriac)
Kabak kalye (zucchini)
Kabak Çiçeği Dolması (stuffed zucchini flower)
Firinda Sebzeli, Nohutlu Turlu (baked veggies with chickpeas)
Mercimekli Mualla (eggplants, lentils and peppers)
Zeytinyağlı Bezelye (green peas)
Zeytinyağlı İç Bakla (broad beans)
Zeytinyağlı Semizotu (Purslane)
6- Sebze Güveç (Vegetable Casserole)
Though kinda the same thing, the fact that it’s baked in earthenware brings in that addictive umami flavor and that ya know awesome mouth feel that we love oh so much in rich food which makes all the difference. Those casseroles are usually eaten with rice — YUMMY — or in my case with bread (try soaking a good hunk of thick bread in there and thank me later).
7- Şakşuka
Şakşuka — swoon — is a much-loved dish made of shallow-fried vegetables and a simple tomato sauce. It’s very different from the middle eastern Shakshouka made with eggs, as the star ingredient for this dish is eggplants — don’t ya complain, this is eggplant country — the rest of the vegetables added to the dish vary from region to region. I love my Şakşuka with potatoes, extra EVOO, and lotsa acı tuz biber[1]. I tried it with various hot sauces including Tobasco — such a cliché I know — but it wasn’t the same. It’s best eaten cold — imagine that — as part of your Meze selection. You can also eat it with a fork/ spoon, pilav (coming later), bread or potato chips for all that I care, just eat it.
I love me some spice in my yemek
To be continued….
[1] Hot pepper