Turkish Street Food
This guest post was written by Sarah, a passionate vegan who loves to eat and travel. She blogs about her travel at Bliss Vagabond.
Despite what many Turks will tell you, being vegan in Turkey is easy. Yes, Turks love their meat and restaurants tend to serve meat-heavy dishes, but once you know what to look for, staying vegan and staying healthy while traveling the country is a delicious and stress-free undertaking.
First, a few words about what to watch out for. Cooked food, including mercimek çorbası (lentil soup) and pilav (rice) often contain chicken or meat stock. I tend to avoid these as a rule because even when you ask if it’s made with meat stock (“Et suyu var mı?”), your server may not know the answer or may simply tell you what they think you want to hear. Margarine is often used as a butter substitute, but much of the margarine in Turkey is not vegan. Yogurt is generally eaten at every meal, but is often served on the side and is therefore easy to avoid.
Now to the good news: the plethora of delicious and naturally vegan food awaiting you!
