Turkish Inspired One-Pot Vegetable Stew (GF Vegan)

Hungary was occupied by the Turkish for 150 years and there are still remarkable mosques, Turkish baths and diners to remind of this medieval period of our history. However, it's nearly impossible to spot a good, authentic Turkish restaurant—if you ask any Turkish person living here they will tell you for 100% sure, it's impossible. Most of the places sell kebab and döner which is more like street food, not leaving much for vegan options besides stuffed grape leaves, hummus, falafel, salad and fries. However, as it is part of our history and I made several Turkish friends at work and during my travels, I was always fascinated by their kitchen.

This recipe was created following my memories of a creamy veggie stew served during one of my trips. It was really long ago and I couldn't find the original recipe, as the one my friends suggested was not exactly that. So I just followed my taste buds while cooking. I used my earlier posted meatless meatballs recipe for the veggie balls. It tastes heavenly with fresh salad and Turkish rice (recipe also posted earlier—see links below).

Turkish Inspired One-Pot Vegetable Stew (GF Vegan)

Recipe Type: Soups and Stews

YIELDS 4 servings

PREP TIME 10 min

COOK TIME 25 min

TOTAL TIME 35 min

3 medium potatoes, peeled and diced
2 carrots, peeled and sliced
2 Turkish peppers
1 pointed pepper
130g frozen peas
3 large tomatoes, grated
300 ml veggie broth
2 tsp tomato paste
1–2 pieces sun-dried tomato, chopped
to taste salt, pepper
pinch cinnamon
to taste chili
2 tsp tarragon, dried
5–6 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
veggie balls

Directions

1. Peel and slice your vegetables, then set them aside.

2. In a pan, heat up 1 tbs of oil and fry the sliced potatoes. Once done transfer it to a plate and set aside. Add 1 more tbs of oil to the pan if needed and fry the carrots. Set them aside when done. Do the same with the peppers. Make sure you don’t fry them completely, just enough to get them a little color, like half done.

3. Fry your veggie balls halfway through as well. Set aside.
Then transfer back the veggies and the frozen peas to the pan. Mix in the grated tomato.

4. Meanwhile mix together tomato paste with veggie broth, salt, pepper, cinnamon and tarragon. Pour it over the veggies and simmer over medium-low heat for about 20 minutes. Once done, stir in veggie balls and allow them to warm through.

Serve it with salad and Turkish rice.

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Photo: Imola Toth