Piyaz — Turkey

Piyaz is a cold bean salad served as part of a meze spread across Turkish and neighbouring Persian-speaking tables. Boiled beans form the base, tossed with raw onion, herbs and a tart, sumac-dusted dressing, and the dish can be eaten as a starter or, in some regions, as a light main course. This entry is reported from Turkey, where piyaz is prepared in many regional styles: white bean piyaz is common nationwide, while in Antalya it is treated as a heartier dish dressed with a tahini-based sauce, and in Gaziantep a mung bean version is made with pomegranate syrup and walnuts. The version described here follows the widespread white bean style. Dried white beans are soaked and boiled until tender, then cooled and tossed with thinly sliced onion that has been rubbed with salt to soften its bite. Parsley, sliced tomato and black olives are added, and the salad is finished with a dressing of olive oil, lemon juice and a generous dusting of sumac, sometimes topped with a halved boiled egg. What sets this version apart is its reliance on plain boiled white beans and a sumac-and-lemon dressing rather than the tahini-based sauces or other bean varieties found elsewhere in the country. Other regions and neighbouring cuisines build the same idea with different beans and dressings, and none of these is treated here as more central than the rest.