I’m happy to announce that red onions are now available once again in Istanbul. About a month ago, I got a hankerin’ for guacamole, so I went looking for red onions. (In my guacamole, I must have red onions.) Now, red onions are normally evasive, but this time I could not find them anywhere. I looked in all the grocery stores and fruit and vegetable stands (manav). Finally, a greengrocer on Bağdat, told me that I wasn’t going to find them. So I have been waiting for them to appear ever since. So, while I was grocery-shopping today, I was inspecting the haggard moldy remains of five white onions (also rare in Istanbul). Suddenly, I spotted hanging bags of RED ONIONS.
The greengrocer noticed my excitement and said yeni geldi (they have just come). Together, we scurried around collecting the ingredients I would need. He was puzzled by the medley. I told him it was a Mexican ‘sauce’ which included red onions, tomatoes, avocado and lime. He had never heard of it and seemed skeptical.
They have all the ingredients but they just don’t know what to do with them. Fajitas have started becoming popular here in Istanbul. On the side, they give you salsa (tomato mashed with parsley), sour cream (yogurt), and avocado sauce (nasty, inappropriate use of avocados).
I learned this recipe for guacamole while I was working at Silvertron in Birmingham, Alabama. It’s the best guac I’ve ever had anywhere and it goes like this…
Ingrediants: Avocados, tomatoes, red onions, limes, salt.
This is not a science; it’s an art. Proportions of each product are to your liking. What I normally do is use 2 avocados. 1 diced red onion. 2 diced tomatoes because you are only going to use the meat, not the seeds or any of the juice. Take that all out. Juice of 2 limes and a generous amount of salt. Mix it all the ingrediants together and make sure to put it in the fridge for an hour or two to let the flavors meld.
In İstanbul, we don’t have tortilla chips. Tortillas–yes. Tortilla chips–no! So we must use Doritos which is the only compromise to this recipe. Otherwise, enjoy the tastes of our homeland.
Jeff
May 31, 2011
First of all, where the hell do you get the limes. Second of all, we have red onions all the time at my manav is you are ever desperate. Third of all, you can get corn chips plain on Moda Caddesi. Fourth giveth me Guac, lady.
pondfrogsplash
May 31, 2011
But they’re like 10 dollars! Doritos are more economic. And you can get the limes at our manav on bahariye all the time so my manav is better than your manav. You can get them at Migros half the time. And if you want guac, we gotsta make a deal, sir.
Melissa
May 31, 2011
Yum! I love making guacamole! I do it quite similarly to the way you make them. Only I add a splash of lemon juice and some pepper to it as well. Also, buy the tortillas, cut them into triangles, brush them with oil and bake them until they are crispy. Voila! Tortilla chips! Hugs guys!
Teri
May 31, 2011
This made my mouth water for some guacamole. Guess I will be going to the grocery store again today. I was going to suggest the same way to make homemade chips as Melissa. They turn out really good. I salt them a little while they are still hot. Love Ya!
pondfrogsplash
June 1, 2011
Are ya’ll talking about flour tortillas or corn tortillas? I guess you can do both but will flour tortillas be strong enough to dip with?
Kevin
June 1, 2011
For two years I don’t remember EVER coming across a lime at Migros. I never shopped at Manav. Doh! I’m in the mood for guac; thankfully, the store a half mile from my place of residence sells zillions of them.
pondfrogsplash
June 2, 2011
Now you’re rubbing it in.
Melissa
June 1, 2011
Flour should hold up. Those are the ones that I have made. Watch them though as they can burn easily. Oh, and if you sprinkle them with cinnamon and sugar, you can eat them with yogurt dip or fruit salsa. I am really wanting to try that. (Found a recipe for it today.)
pondfrogsplash
June 2, 2011
I’ve done that and it’s awesome!
BK
June 23, 2012
Hi! This is a little late, but I randomly came across your blog awhile back. I also live in Kadıköy, just off Bahariye and I have never seen limes! At which manav do you get yours?! I finally found fresh cilantro today (not the gross, wilty, packaged kind) and can’t wait to start using it. Lime would be a perfect accompaniment.
pondfrogsplash
June 24, 2012
So we are basically neighbours because we also live off of Bahariye. Limes only come around about twice a year and they aren’t around now. Carrefour will have them if they are in season and sometimes the market at the end of Bahariye where the grassy parkish thing is. Also, it you go to the MacroCenter on Calamış they will have difficult to find fruits and vegetables such as fresh bean sprouts, limes, and even sweet potatoes once! Migros will even have limes in season sometimes. So, I have my mom send me lime juice to get me through the hard times. I need to know where you found fresh cilantro! Please tell me!!
BK
June 24, 2012
Thanks for the information! I will continue to keep my eyes peeled. I usually see limes on the European side, but for 2 TL each. I saw some yesterday but held out thinking there might be something closer to home. And I once bought one of those sweet potatoes from MacroCenter for about 10 TL, but it was totally worth it! The cilantro is at the market at the end of Bahariye by the grassy area. It was the first time I’d seen it there, and I bought two of the four bundles yesterday. Go now!!
BK
July 8, 2012
Hi again! Forgot to mention that I found fresh cilantro at yet another Kadıköy hot spot – the Namlı Supermarket on that busy shoppıng street by the water (don’t know the name). A friendly FYI.
pondfrogsplash
July 10, 2012
Muhurdurlu Sok. or something I think. It’s the English Time street as most know it. Have they labeled it as cilantro or are they calling it something else?
BK
July 11, 2012
They have a sign with all the herbs they carry in general, so kışnış should be on there even if they don’t have it at the time. I usually just go with sight and smell, so keep your eyes (and nose) peeled. Good luck!