purslane stew — Turkey

Purslane stew is a home-style Turkish dish built around semizotu, the succulent, slightly lemony leaves of purslane, a plant that grows widely across the Mediterranean and is treated in Turkish kitchens as a vegetable rather than a weed. Cooked down with meat and tomato, it turns into a light, brothy stew rather than a dry sauté. It is reported from across Turkey, where purslane is in season through the warmer months and appears often on family tables and in neighbourhood restaurants serving home-style dishes (ev yemekleri). Versions of the stew are also known in other Mediterranean and Middle Eastern kitchens under different names, though the Turkish preparation is generally built around diced meat and tomato. Preparation starts with onion and garlic softened in olive oil, followed by diced lamb or beef browned until sealed. Chopped tomato and a little tomato paste are added, then water or stock, and the mixture is left to simmer gently. The washed purslane leaves go in toward the end of cooking, so they wilt without turning mushy, and the stew is seasoned simply with salt and pepper. What distinguishes this version is its balance between tang and richness: the natural sourness of purslane sets against the meat's fat, and the dish is finished loose enough to spoon over rice or bulgur pilaf. A side of plain yogurt is common, stirred in at the table to round out the sourness.