Çanakkale Style Vegetable Stew (Şaraşura)

This summer stew is a specialty of Çanakkale. Çanakkale, the northern Aegean/ half Thracian city, has a rich cuisine, but once you taste its famous peynir helvası (cheese halva) and fresh fish from Dardanelles you forget to ask for more.

1 lb green beans, trimmed and cut into two
1 eggplant, peeled in stripes and largely diced
1 zucchini, largely diced
2 potatoes, largely diced
3 banana peppers, chopped in big rounds
1 big onion, roughly chopped
2 tomatoes, cubed
1/4 cup olive oil
1 1/2 -2 cups of water
1 tbsp tomato paste
salt



















-Heat oil in a big pot. Add onions. Stir until cooked.
-Add in peppers and tomatoes. Cook for 10 minutes.
-Melt tomato paste in with a little bit of warm water and stir in.
-Add all the vegetables, salt and water. Mix well.
-Cover and cook on medium for 45 minutes or until vegetables are cooked.
-Serve luke warm or hot. It goes well with rice, bulgur, or couscous.