Chicken eggs (yumurta, YOO-moor-TAH) are not uncommon in Turkish cuisine, but they are not in everything.
There are many dishes that do not contain eggs. If you are allergic to eggs, you should still be able to enjoy many types of Turkish food.
Most of the time you can see the eggs, as at breakfast (fried eggs, omelettes, hard-boiled eggs), and in such dishes as menemen (baked eggs with tomatoes).
However, eggs hidden in some dishes where you might not expect them. They are usually used as a binder when making köfte (lamb meatballs) of all varieties, whether grilled or in stews, so you should avoid any sort of Turkish meatballs.
Egg yolks are often used in soups such as wedding soup (dügün çorbası).
Some Turkish desserts (sweets) use eggs, but not all.
Here are some phrases:
Yumurta var mı? (YOO-moor-tah VAHR muh), Are there [does it contain] eggs?
Yumurta alerjim var. (YOO-moor-TAH ah-lehr-ZHEEM vahr), I am allergic to eggs.
Yumurta yeyemem. (YOO-moor-TAH yee-YEH-mehm), I cannot eat eggs.
You can use the same phrases for other allergens:
Fıstık (fuhss-TUK), nuts (general)
Yer fıstığı (YEHR fuhss-tuh), peanuts
Fındık (fuhn-DUK), hazelnuts
Süt (SEWT), milk
Soya, soya
…as in “Soya var mi?,” “Fistik yeyemem,” “Sut alerjim var.”
Here’s the entire list of TTP’s food allergy pages.
| Food Allergy Awareness & Medical Assistance in Turkey |  |
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