When thinking of Turkish cuisine, most people directly think of kebabs and sizzling meats in many forms such as köfte or döner. While I do agree that Turkish cuisine loves its meat dishes, the variety it has to offer vegetarians and even vegans is equally as impressive. Oct. 1 was world vegetarian day and I want to, although belatedly, contribute to changing some people's meat-centric view of Turkish food.

Şakşuka

This is not quite a dish to eat on its own, but it needs to be mentioned nonetheless. Şakşuka is an eggplant-based meze found not only in Turkey but also in the Middle Eastern region. Sometimes it is called "baba ghanoush" as well. Turkish recipes with eggplants alone could fill a book, as the Ottomans loved aubergines a lot and even had an almost proverbial 51 different ways to prepare them. Another eggplant recipe that needs to be mentioned is Imam bayıldı, which also has a neat little story attached to it.

Ingredients