tales of life from a foreign land: organic food

Wednesday, 24 June 2009

Lost in translation

On a recent trip to the Şişli Organik Pazarı, my friend and I discovered the translation confusion or lack of translation for two common herbs; Oregano and Thyme.

In the dictionary both translate to "kekik" in Turkish, but, as us native speakers and foodie people know, they are two very different herbs.

According to Wikipedia, thyme is a basic ingredient in Turkish food, but it doesn't say the same for oregano, which is common in Greek, Spanish and Italian cooking.

I was told by someone that oregano is not common in Turkey and very hard to find, so kekik is in fact the word for thyme.

So what about when I see the name in English on a pack of kekik as "oregano"? Does this mean that it's thyme?

Does anyone have the answer to this culinary question?

Monday, 15 June 2009

The map to nowhere

On Saturday I set out to find the Şişli Organik Pazarı in an area of Istanbul I hadn't visited before. I went along with my heavily pregnant friend Jade.

I thought from a map a friend had drawn that it would be fairly straightforward to find. Jade also had a map from the internet which seemed to point us in the same direction. So, with maps in hand, we envisaged we would be there in about 15 minutes. So off we went.

But soon after we set off we realised that we were on the road to nowhere with our maps as the otopark where the pazar was supposed to be held was nowhere to be found. After asking many shopkeepers and calling my friend who supplied me with my map, we managed to find the pazar, after much pavement pounding, albeit a little bit hot and bothered.

It was strangely located in an underground car park, which, although odd, offered up protection from the afternoon sun and provided a cool space in which to browse in.

What we realised however, was the downside to organic in Turkey = very expensive. Organic is still yet to really break through here and not everyone can appreciate the clean natural food and of course, the price that comes with it.

Nonetheless, we sat and enjoyed a fresh organic juice (TL 5) and a fresh gözleme which resembles a savoury pancake with spinach and cheese. It's then cooked over a concave heated dome and served piping hot. For only TL 4, it was the best bargain of the day. With that followed a fresh piece of homemade lemon cake (3 TL).

The pazar is worth a look. Although expensive you can find a variety of items from dried fruits, legumes, lentils and fresh produce to organic household cleaning products and organic cotton clothes, all with orgnic certification. The atmosphere is relaxed and easy and the food on offer to purchase is fresh and tasty. There is also a small Organik Büfe next to the pazar where you can also have tea from.