Istanbul is VEGAN-FRIENDLY?! Turkish Food Tour featuring Meze Feast + Ancient Millet Drinks

Did you know that a lot of Turkish food just happens to be vegan?

VEGAN CULTURES EP. 6 | İSTANBUL, TÜRKIYE – I’m back in the city for a second spin, exploring traditional experiences like visiting a Meyhane for a meze-fuelled lunch, tasting an 8,000-year-old drink and learning how foreign influences are shaping the local food culture. This episode is packed with the kind of food that just happens to be vegan.

İstanbul Part 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CvAQrrWncSk

📚 My book Naturally Vegan (with recipes and stories from my travels): https://geni.us/NaturallyVegan

CHAPTERS
00:00 Intro
00:42 Boza
02:26 Meyhane
07:33 Türk Kahvesi
09:04 Turşu
11:20 Hummus & Syrian Influences
16:40 End

ISTANBUL FOOD TOUR

Our tour starts at Vefa Bozacisi (https://www.instagram.com/vefabozacisi1876/), where I try Boza for the first time. It’s a fermented and sweetened millet drink that is more than 8,000 years old! Traditionally, it’s served with roasted chickpeas and a generous dash of cinnamon, whilst the drink tastes deliciously fruity, with notes of apple.

Next up, is an iconic İstanbul experience: Visiting a traditional Meyhane. These taverns are known for their vast meze spreads. At the beginning of the meal, a waiter brings a huge tray filled with different meze to your table and lets you choose which ones you’d like to order. They then return soon after with your selection, freshly made from the kitchen. I visited the awarded Gırıtlı (https://www.instagram.com/giritlirestoran/), where chef Ayşe Şensilay showed me how she makes a traditional black cabbage dish. At her restaurant, Ayşe cooks Turkish food with a Greek mind and you’ll find fava purées, black-eyed pea salads, potato salads and green beans in a fresh tomato sauce as part of her meze — together they make for a wonderful plant-based feast. Don’t forget to pair them with Rakı, the iconic Turkish liquor that turns white the moment you add water to the glass.

Of course, you cannot visit İstanbul without having Türk Kahvesi, or Turkish coffee. That’s why I checked out the community hotspot Mandabatmaz (https://www.instagram.com/mandabatmazkahvesi/) for a properly brewed cup. The coffee grounds are poured into the cup along with all of the brewed coffee, so you need to let it set for a moment and then only drink the top layer, allowing the coffee grounds to remain on the bottom. Though it looks incredibly strong, the brew is actually quite mild and very enjoyable to drink.

One of the biggest revelations during my Türkiye visit was the vast pickling culture. You’ll find pickling shops at almost every street corner, selling lacto-fermented pickles of all kinds of veg. Green tomatoes, beans, garlic, cauliflower, cabbage… you name, they’ve pickled it. I got a mixed cup of pickles at Asri Turşucu (https://www.instagram.com/asritursucu/) with half spciy and half mild pickling liquid. It may not be for the faint-hearted, but it’s an incredible way to kickstart your day with a gut-friendly boost, or, according to locals, to cure a hangover.

The last stop of this food tour is somewhat different. With many Syrian immigrants having arrived in İstanbul over the last decade, I wanted to find out how they are shaping the local food culture. That’s why I visited Buuzecedi (https://www.instagram.com/buuze_cedi/), a Syrian restaurant in the heart of the city. Here I tasted hummus, foul, musabaha and falafel — all of which were absolutely delicious. Thanks for watching!

VEGAN CULTURES – THE MISSION

Vegan food is not a modern invention. It’s a modern label. We’ve been eating plant-based dishes for thousands of years, be it for religious reasons, out of poverty or simply because of what was available naturally. This show is about discovering these kinds of dishes – dishes from around the world that just happen to be vegan – so that we can embrace them for a more sustainable plant-based diet.

📣 Let me know in the comments which country I should visit next and what dishes I might find!

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Edit by Trang Nguyen

Get ready for a fermented
drink made from millet. What?! Türkiye’s
famous coffee culture. Okay. And Syria’s
culinary influences in the city of Istanbul. The lemon juice and garlic hit. Spanning three vast empires Istanbul is the product
of a diverse cultural history. Today, I’m here to taste its
food, all with one mission. It’s got to be traditionally
plant-based. From the famous Meyhane dishes to entire shops
devoted to the art of lacto-fermenting pickles, this city is more
vegan-friendly than you might actually think. Let’s find out
what that’s all about. I’m back in Istanbul
for a second spin. I was here for my last episode to taste
incredible street food and some traditional
Turkish dishes, but today
we’re kicking things off with a very special drink that I heard
has an acquired taste. Boza. This is
not just an ordinary drink. Boza has been around for more than 8000 years, and is one of the most historic drinks still enjoyed
today. Here in Istanbul, there’s one address
where locals flock to for their dose of this
ancient drink. Vefa Bozacisi,
a historic institution that first opened its doors
in 1876. Boza is made from a mixture
of cooked millet, sugar and yeast that is left
to ferment over several days. The result is a thick drink that is served
with a dash of cinnamon. He just poured our boza, but
before we actually drink it, I heard about a secret
to drink it the right way. And for that we have to head
across the street. Let’s do that first. This small convenience
shop is an integral part to an authentic boza
experience. Here, pre-boiled chickpeas are slowly roasted until charred
and then sold by the pack. We’ve got our roasted chickpeas.
They’re still warm. Let’s try the boza. Okay. We’ve got our boza. And then we’re going to add
a good handful of roasted chickpeas
straight on top. There we go. You mix in all of that cinnamon
and the chickpeas and then we’re going to get
a good spoon. Let’s try boza
for the first time. What!? Wow, okay. Completely
different than expected. I love it. It’s a fermented drink and I expected it
to taste fermented, but it’s actually really nice
and sweet together with the cinnamon. And the fermentation only adds a nice fruity and tanginess,
but makes it really fresh. And those roasted chickpeas,
they are essential. You get that sort of popcorn
chickpea flavor. Wow. Absolutely love it. That is so special. I might have another one
after this one. You cannot travel to Istanbul without visiting one of its
traditional taverns. These are an integral part of the local food culture, and accidentally,
also a really good place to look for plant-based dishes. So let’s visit a Meyhane. Welcome to one of Istanbul’s
most iconic ways of eating. There’s no menu
at a traditional Meyhane. Instead,
the food here is chosen in a slightly different way. To see what that’s all about I visited Giritli,
a tranquil much-loved Meyhane
with Greek influences. To show me what the food at a traditional
Meyhane is like, Ayşe invited me into her
kitchen. First up is a salad
made with black cabbage. After blanching the leaves
until wilted, she chops them up and seasons them with salt,
sugar, olive oil and vinegar. Add to that cooked
wheat, spring onions, dill, mint, red peppers and another dash
of olive oil and vinegar, and your first Meyhane
dish is ready to go. And we
already have our meze done. I’m really excited. Let’s try it. Is it okay? Is it okay?! Are you kidding? That is magic. Oh, this is the kind of food.
This is… Very basic. You say basic, but this is
wonderful home cooking. This is so delicious. You’ve got a little bit
of the wheat, so it gives a little bit
of texture. But then the cabbage
with all these herbs makes it very,
very fresh and wonderful. But of course, there’s more. At Giritli, Ayşe serves cooked and mashed fava beans that are topped with olive
oil, capers and onions, and there are blanched
green beans that are dressed
with crushed tomatoes and you guessed it,
a good glug of olive oil. So this
is a really traditional part of a Meyhane. So, at the beginning of your meal,
they bring out a tray and you can make your selection,
and then they take that back into the kitchen
and they bring out the dishes that you selected. Not all of these
dishes are vegan because
this is a traditional Meyhane, but a lot of them actually
are naturally vegan. From here, you can choose
dishes like the green beans with tomatoes, a black eyed
bean salad, the puréed fava
beans, the black cabbage salad and cooked potatoes
in an aromatic sauce, all of which are then brought
fresh from the kitchen. Oh yeah, the meze arrived,
but traditionally this is served with raki. Raki. Raki. So the Turkish
national drink. Okay. It’s 45% alcohol. A little bit of water. Check out what happens
to the color. Turns white. And this is a drink
made from grapes. – Yes. Anise
– Flavoured with anise. – One ice
– To cool it down. A little bit meze and then. Raki. A little bit raki. So here we go. This is a traditional
Meyhane lunch or also dinner. And what’s important to keep in mind is,
this is the meze. This is the beginning
of the meal. Obviously on a
plant-based diet the main courses
are not that suitable. But what’s really interesting, is when you come here,
you can choose from all these different
plant-based dishes to start with. And actually
if you choose enough of them, you have a really nice
spread on the table. It’s a really fun culture
to dip into. So let’s start. We tasted the black cabbage. Let’s try the fava
beans next. Oh yeah, so rich. And then you get this little raw onion and caper
with loads of olive oil. That is very very well
cooked fava beans. And then puréed into this
really smooth consistency. And then we’ve got this
bean salad here with apricot
and pomegranate seeds. So quite fruity. Here we go. It’s so simple. The herbs. And then here
the pomegranate seeds. There’s a little nice
fresh tangy kick of fruitiness
together with the apricot. Also wonderful,
what a start. And now the green beans
with tomatoes. So green beans cooked in a really nice simple
tomato sauce and served with this
nice puddle of olive oil that mixes with the tomatoes. A fork for that, but then a spoonful of that
olive oil and tomato. That is so tasty. Ripe tomatoes, olive oil,
salt, a little bit of vinegar makes the most
wonderful sauce, wow. And then we’ve got our potato
salad. Here we go. What?! Oh, man. I think the sauce around there
are actually just the starches of the potatoes
sort of thickening together with a little bit of olive oil
and vinegar. And then you get these
dried herbs and spring onions.
So a nice little fresh kick. Oh yeah. I never
had a potato salad like that. And then it’s traditionally,
of course, accompanied by raki.
Cheers to a really good lunch. Oh, yeah. That is a serious drink. I don’t want to offend
anyone but it’s very similar to ouzo,
from what I know, because it’s also flavoured with anise.
But it fits really well. When you’re sitting here… This is such a wonderful place
and you might wonder, why are we in a place
in Istanbul that actually has a lot
of inspiration from Greece, but Ayşe said,
in her own words, that she cooks Turkish food
with a Greek mind. And that is actually a really beautiful way
of putting it, because quite often we are quick to claim that food comes from
one country only, and the dishes
that they serve here you actually find across many Meyhane, in different ways,
but quite similar. And often
they are just influences from the Ottoman Empire. Not only from Istanbul, but from all the different regions
that it touched. So it’s a really fun,
edible insight into Turkish
or Istanbul food culture. I’m going to continue
tucking in now, so I’m going to load up my plate. But yeah,
this is what Meyhane are. Loads of different
mezze to start with. A little bit of raki. What
a wonderful way of eating. When you’re
in Türkiye, you of course have to drink Türk kahvesi,
Turkish coffee. I’m now at Mandabatmaz and I heard they might
be able to sort us out. Say hello to the
world-famous Turkish coffee. Rich, thick and deeply
aromatic. Türk kahvesi is a drink steeped in tradition
and has been brewed the same way for
over 500 years. The local community
hotspot Mandabatmaz is a favourite amongst locals
and the place where I’ll learn how Türkiye’s most popular
morning drink is made. It all starts
with finely ground coffee that is added
to a traditional copper cezve. Top it up with hot water, give it a stir and it’s time
to hit the stove. Once the coffee starts to boil
like this, the thick brew is ready
to be poured into the cup. And here we’ve got
our cup of Türk kahvesi. Turkish coffee.
Let’s give that a go. Okay, you know what? When I saw those coffee grounds go into the cup, into that little copper pan onto the stove.
You see that angry froth build up
and then poured into the cup. You expect a really,
really punchy coffee. This is just really nice
to drink. It’s a strong coffee,
but it’s not as strong as I expected it to be. This is really enjoyable
and I’m going to keep going, but I have a really good
feeling that there are some coffee grounds waiting
at the bottom of the cup. So let’s find out. And I just had a good drink
of those. As you keep drinking
the coffee grounds settle
to the bottom of the cup, so you actually have to leave the coffee
for a little bit, and then you only drink
the top bit and you leave the
coffee grounds in the bottom. When you walk through Istanbul, you see loads of pickle shops offering every kind of pickle
you can imagine. They’re called Turşu
and I’m now at Asri Turşucu to try some. Let’s go. Whether it’s tomatoes, baby
melons, garlic or even green beans,
if you can name it, you’ll probably find it here. Turşu are lacto-fermented
pickles aka vegetables that have been preserved
by the absence of oxygen and the presence of water,
salt and time. The result is a probiotic snack and drink
that Turks swear by, either as a healthy food
or as a hangover cure. I don’t really know
how it works, but I think we’re going
to order some pickles and try them. The process is simple. Make your selection of pickles
and watch as they are cut up, added to a cup
and topped with the fermented pickling juices. And then
we’ve got our cup of pickles. This is bonkers. I’m going to go straight in
with garlic. That is crazy. The whole garlic
bulb is in there, pickled. He then peels it,
adds it to the cup. So let’s try raw pickled
garlic. Crunchy. It is raw. Whoa. Okay! It’s actually…
The garlic is not that intense. By pickling it,
you’re taking away that harshness of the garlic. But what is intense is that
pickling juice. It’s spicy. It’s tangy. And then together
with that raw garlic flavour it’s really nice. It’s
quite the experience. Let’s go in with beetroot. The beetroot is soft.
Again really nice. You get that spiciness
from the pickling juice. Oh yeah. Green tomato.
Pickled green tomato. And also quite firm that one. Oh, and cabbage.
A classic. I have to say, it’s
not for the faint hearted. Try some of the juice. Oh man, what an experience. Because he adds
all of the chopped veg in there and then he asks you
if you want it spicy or not spicy. I went for half half. So he has the pickling juice.
He has half of that not spiced. Half of that is spicy. He made a mix
and this is already packing a little bit of a punch. It’s a bit of heat there. And the more you eat
the spicier it gets, actually. So he only uses water
and rock salt. I’ve seen the rock salt over there
and after using only water and rock salt,
he leaves it to ferment. And that’s how you get that tangy pickling juice. It’s really delicious. The only thing in here
that was soft was the beetroot and all the other ones
have a really nice bite. You got a cup of that
in the beginning of the day, and you’ve definitely done
something good for your gut. It will sort
you out straight away. Over the last decades, Turkey has seen an increase
in Syrian immigrants, and with them they brought
their food traditions. Now you’ll find Turkish
hummus all over the country. But today we’re exploring
how foreign influences are shaping
the local food culture. So let’s try Syrian hummus. Fava beans cooked in
giant copper pans chickpeas piled into
steaming pyramids, and falafel
sizzling in hot oil. This is the place
to be for an insight into Syrian food culture in
the bustling city of Istanbul. Here at Buuzecedi, hummus is not the
only popular item on the menu. There’s foul, falafel
and a warm chickpea salad, all prepared
according to Syrian tradition and usually eaten
for breakfast. First up is what
most of us know as hummus but here it’s called musabaha. This smooth chickpea
and tahini mixture is spread out on a plate
at lightning speed before
it’s topped with parsley, warm chickpeas, paprika
and plenty of olive oil. Then there’s foul. First,
a ladle of fava beans emerges from the enormous copper pot
before they, too, are topped with warm
chickpeas, tomatoes, parsley, a mixture of lemon juice and garlic, plenty
of olive oil and some paprika. Finally, there’s warm
chickpeas topped with tomatoes, parsley,
the lemon juice and garlic mixture,
olive oil and paprika, a dish that is known as hummus here,
since hummus translates to chickpeas. What a breakfast spread! Let’s tuck into
the musabaha first. So I’ll take
a little piece of bread. No cutlery
needed for this one, and then we’ll mop up
some of that spread. There we go. Let’s try that. That is so, so creamy. And that olive
oil packs a lot of flavour. They’re not messing around
with the amount. But that together with those
soft, warm chickpeas the creamiest , creamiest hummus.
That is wonderful. This is a dish that is meant
to be eaten with bread. That is my favorite
comfort food. It is a bit messy,
I love it. And it just keeps going.
Over here you’ve got a plate of pickles. So in between bites,
little refresher. Oh, yeah,
that is a strong pickle. Okay, and the next one,
we’re trying the foul. So that looks like a serious
flavor bomb. He took a big spoon of that lemon and garlic
and drizzled it all over. So that must be packed
with flavor. So this one you
traditionally mix through. So I’m gonna take a spoon
and mix it really well to combine
all of those flavours. And then again
the vessel of choice here, tear up some bread,
we’re going to use our fingers to mop up as much as we can,
which is a serious mission. But here we
go. I can smell the garlic. The lemon juice and garlic hit. That’s the first one you get but then you got these warm,
perfectly cooked fava beans, which have almost
like an olive like flavor. They’re quite intense
in flavour. They’re strong. That is sensational. And we’re on to the last one.
This is what is called hummus, right. So again
it all begins with bread. And then I was just told
that you use three fingers. Then we’re mopping up some of
those wonderful flavours here. Okay. I still have to learn
the proper way of mopping these up,
but that is a serious bite. It’s very similar
to the fava beans, but the fava beans
are very strong in flavour, so this is a bit
milder in total. You just get really nice
comforting, soft chickpeas all served in this incredible sauce of olive oil,
garlic, lemon. That sauce
literally is so delicious. I don’t
think this is traditional, but that’s what
you want to do. You want to get that beautiful
liquid here. Oh! Wow! So you want to dip in again, with your bread, mop up those
tomatoes, chickpeas. Look at that. And it’s just so much fun because every time
you can take a different bite
of the hummus, the fava beans, of the chickpeas… And then you can
always chase it with a little palate cleanser. That is beautiful. So this place is Syrian
through and through. You have a chef in the kitchen
who speaks Arabic, and we’ve tasted Syrian dishes
here, so you might wonder: why is this part of an episode
in Türkiye, in Istanbul? But just like with the Greek
food in the Meyhane, this is a reminder
that food borders are actually fluid. It’s quite easy to take claim on a certain
dish and say, this is how that dish is done, but this is about
understanding that food has actually
developed over centuries, and often it’s a product
of different beliefs, different traditions,
and different influences coming together
and forming something new. So here we are in Istanbul, but we have this background of a lot of Syrian immigrants
coming to the country and bringing their food
traditions with them, and it’s so wonderful that you
get to experience them here and that this is accepted
by the locals. So, three wonderful dishes
that we tried that have become
a very popular piece of the culinary fabric
here of Istanbul. Wonderful. And now it’s continuing. It’s actually not finished
just yet. We’ve got another plate here,
and this is the falafel. And we’ve seen the chef
over there actually scooping the falafel
into that little tool and then dropping them
into the hot, sizzling oil. And then you get these little chickpea falafel so made with chickpeas
there’s coriander in there, there’s spices in there,
they’re piping hot. Let’s break
one open. Look at that. That is a lot of steam
coming out so I’m going to burn myself, but I think it’s going to
be worth it. I’ll give it a go. So falafel,
literally cooked a minute ago. Oh. Oh a lot of spice
in there. Not hot, but very well spiced. I get a lot of coriander. I think I can even see
a coriander seed over there. That is delicious. Crispy falafel. And of course,
there’s an opportunity here to bring back our hummus plate
and then take a very nice scoop of that falafel
and hummus. Chickpeas meet chickpeas. A match made in heaven.
That is so wonderful. And then when you take
a good bite of hummus, I actually love chasing
it with a pickled chilli. That fresh kick, that is proper,
so good. That was the end of my visit
to Istanbul. But I’m off to Izmir
next to try some traditional food
from around the Aegean coast. Gözleme, Türkiye’s famous
sesame bread, donut-like sweets and traditional
olive oil dishes… There’s a lot to explore. If you like this video, hit
thumbs up and subscribe. Thanks for watching
and see you next time!