We know that Turkey is famous for its street food and Izmir is a great city to be in if you’re looking to sample lots of street food treats. When we first visited, we were in the city for six short days and were on a mission to eat, eat, eat. Purely because so many …
When we were staying in our apartment in Alsancak in Izmir, you can imagine how pleased (excited) we were when we woke up on the Sunday morning, opened the patio doors and we could hear the clanking of delivery trucks and traders shouting their prices. Regular readers of this blog will know we have a …
“Don’t come back from Izmir without trying Çeşme Kumrusu!” This was just one of the many pieces of advice given to us by Turkish friends before we set off for our trip to Izmir in September. But it was also the piece of advice; the common thread that linked all the other suggestions offered. Woe …
As we explored the area, we were continuously coming across an unfamiliar word ‘söğüşçü‘. He who is a maker of söğüş. Exploration of a new city on foot is our preferred mode of transport – if the city lends itself to it, that is. Izmir is perfect for wandering around as most of the areas …
As we’re in the second day of Ramazan Bayramı, the three-day festival following Ramazan, it seems only fitting to acknowledge this with a post about one of Turkey’s most famous desserts, künefe. Künefe isn’t a dessert particular to Ramazan Bayramı; it’s just that we don’t get to do many sweetie posts on this blog – …
Chips (kızarmış patates – fried potatoes), although not often associated with Turkish cuisine, definitely make an appearance from time to time on the Turkish table. While a Turkish dish might not traditionally be served with a mountain of chips on the side, deep-fried vegetables, including those of the potato variety, often appear on the trays …
When we moved to Turkey in 2003, we were introduced to a whole new world of unfamiliar ingredients and we soon realised our new life in Fethiye would be much easier if we learned all about them. One of these ingredients was (and still is, of course) a thick, beige, emulsion-type paste that we would …
Do you remember last year when we went to the Üzümlü Mushroom Festival and we came across a street seller impressing the crowds by winding sticky, multi-coloured sweetness around a stick? He was doing a roaring trade and our friend told us it was Osmanlı Macunu; a traditional food from the Ottoman times. We didn’t …
Today was the 2nd Karaçulha Camel Wrestling Festival, just up the road from where we live. With just a nominal entrance fee and proceeds going towards the local school, we would have been negligent not to go again. Last year, we entered the ‘arena’ (read ‘spare land’) with trepidation and a little excitement at being …
For us, the most exciting part of being in Istanbul is the food; mainly the street food. Last year, we couldn’t keep away from the deep-fried hamsi at Karaköy fish market, returning on numerous occasions over the few days we were there. When we were back in Fethiye, we drooled at the very thought of …