Salty Lemons

süt misir (sweet corn) cart outside Ayasofya (Hagia Sophia Museum)
Istanbul, Turkey from my 2011 archive

süt misir (sweet corn), price - 1TL outside Ayasofya (Hagia Sophia Museum)
Istanbul, Turkey from my 2011 archive

vendor and customer cooking süt misir (sweet corn) outside Ayasofya (Hagia Sophia Museum)
Istanbul, Turkey from my 2011 archive

September 22, 2011

Süt Misir

Similar to the way hot dog, bagel, nut, and Halal carts are the face of New York City; corn, chestnuts, Turkish bagel (looks like a pretzel), and pomegranate juice carts are the face of Istanbul.

I assume süt misir means sweet corn. It is eaten by all and naked cobs can be seen littered around the city. (At least it is biodegradable.) As The Swede and I were looking for a cab to hail, a taxi driver pulled over, parked his car, got out, and bought a süt misir. We approached unsure if he was for hire, but he said he was free to take us. We halfway assumed we would wait for him to finish his snack, but he insisted he was ready. Off we went. He proceeded to drive us back to our hotel, one hand on the wheel, one hand eating his cob, all the while talking and pointing out various points of interest in the city.

It was a nice ride, at a nice pace, unhurried, and smooth. Turkish drivers are known for being...not the best. Perhaps eating a corncob while driving helped our driver to take it easy.

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