Şiveydiz
A spring stew from southeastern Turkey, cooked quietly and rarely written down.
There’s a side of Turkish cooking that rarely travels. Dishes like Şiveydiz deserve a wider audience. Made with green garlic, yogurt, and lamb, it’s a spring stew rooted in Gaziantep. The kind that’s soulful, subtle, and deeply tied to the slower rhythm of home cooking.
Spring starts quietly in Bodrum. One morning at the market, there it is: a bundle of green garlic. Not the thick, fibrous bulbs of winter, but the young kind—slender, aromatic, tender enough to eat raw. This time, it felt like the perfect excuse to cook Şiveydiz.
I started with the classic: lamb and terbiye (yogurt mix)—the whole thing. But as I tasted and tweaked, I found myself craving something lighter. What came out was this: soft garlic and spring onions, saffron, lemon, and warmth. Not quite a soup, not exactly a stew—just a quiet bowl for the start of the season.
Enjoy,
Dilara
Şiveydiz is a lesser-known treasure of Turkish cuisine, most famously prepared in the southeastern city of Gaziantep. It’s a spring stew made with young garlic, green onions, yogurt, and lamb—flavored with restraint, but deeply nourishing. Like many regional dishes, it sits somewhere between soup and braise—between comfort and ceremony.
Traditionally, the broth is thickened with a terbiye: a mix of yogurt, egg, and flour that gives the dish its signature tang and silkiness. But for my version, I wanted something lighter, gluten-free, and just as comforting.
In this post, I’m sharing both: the classic version with lamb, and my own take—a dish rooted in seasonality and ritual, but adapted to a more intuitive, flexible kitchen.
Şiveydiz - Classic Version
Serves 4
A traditional spring stew from Gaziantep, made with lamb, green garlic, and a yogurt-based thickener called terbiye. This version includes saffron for depth and richness. The key is in the gentle simmer—keep the heat low so the yogurt doesn’t split, and finish with a spoonful of mint oil to bring everything together.
INGREDIENTS
500 g boneless lamb shoulder or leg, cut into medium-sized cubes
200 g cooked chickpeas
1 bunch green garlic
1 bunch spring onions (white and pale green parts)
10–15 threads saffron, optional
2 tbsp ghee or olive oil
1 tsp salt
600 ml (3 cups) hot water
Terbiye (Yogurt Mixture):
150 g strained yogurt
1 egg yolk
1–2 tbsp flour or rice flour
Mint Oil:
3 tbsp ghee, butter, or olive oil
1 tbsp dried mint
METHOD
Cut the green garlic and spring onions into 2–3 cm diagonal pieces. Set aside.
In a large pot, heat the ghee or olive oil over medium. Add the lamb and sauté for 6–7 minutes until lightly browned. Pour in the hot water and deglaze the pot. Once it starts to boil, reduce the heat, cover, and simmer for 40–45 minutes until the meat is tender. Add the chickpeas and cook for another 10 minutes.
In a small bowl, steep the saffron in 2 tablespoons of hot water. Let it sit for 10 minutes.
Add the green garlic and spring onions to the pot. Cook over medium heat for 10–12 minutes until just softened. They should hold their shape and not fall apart.
In a small bowl, whisk the yogurt, egg yolk, and flour until smooth. Add a ladle of hot broth to temper the mixture, then slowly pour it into the stew while stirring constantly.
Keep the heat low and let the stew gently simmer without boiling for about 5 minutes. Stir in the saffron infusion. Adjust seasoning. Adjust the consistency with a bit more stock, if needed.
In a small pan, warm the oil over medium heat. Add the dried mint and let it foam or sizzle for a few seconds—this brings out its aroma. Remove from heat immediately.
Serve the stew warm with a spoonful of mint oil on top. The consistency should be velvety—not too thick, not watery.
Green Garlic Stew with Saffron and Chickpeas
Serves 4
This is my lighter take on Şiveydiz. There’s no terbiye here, and no meat. Just warmth, acidity, silkiness—and a thread of saffron blooming quietly in hot water.
The broth is thickened with chickpeas. The base is green garlic and spring onions, sautéed just enough to soften, never to brown. It’s not quite a soup. Not exactly a stew. Just something warm and simple to eat when the season starts to shift.
INGREDIENTS
2 tbsp ghee or olive oil
1 bunch green garlic
1 bunch spring onions (white and pale green parts)
400 g cooked chickpeas, divided
600 ml (3 cups) hot bone broth, chicken stock, or rich vegetable broth
3 strips of lemon zest
1 tsp salt
Juice of ½ lemon
Chickpea Purée:
140 g cooked chickpeas (from the total above)
50 ml hot stock
Saffron Infusion:
10–15 threads saffron
2 tbsp hot water (80–85°C)
Mint Oil:
2 tbsp ghee or olive oil
1 tbsp dried mint
METHOD
Cut the green garlic and spring onions into 2–3 cm diagonal pieces—enough to stay intact and visible in the finished dish. They should hold their shape and color: vivid, fresh, never grey or lifeless. Lightly bruise the lemon zest strips with the back of a knife to release their oils.
Pour 2 tablespoons of hot water over the saffron threads in a small bowl. Cover and let it steep for about 15 minutes until the color deepens.
Scoop out about a third of the chickpeas and blend with 50 ml hot stock until smooth. This gives the stew its body—no flour or cream needed.
In a wide pot, heat the ghee or olive oil over medium heat. Add the sliced green garlic and spring onions and sauté gently for 5–6 minutes until they begin to soften. Don’t let them color—you’re coaxing out their sweetness, not caramelizing them.
Add the remaining whole chickpeas and the hot broth to the pot. Stir in the chickpea purée and mix everything together. Add the lemon zest and salt. Let it come to a gentle simmer.
Cook over low heat for about 20–25 minutes. The goal is a silky, full-bodied broth where the greens are soft but still holding. Stir occasionally and keep the heat low—no rapid boiling.
Pour in the saffron infusion and stir gently. Let it barely bubble for 2–3 minutes. Turn off the heat and squeeze in the lemon juice. Taste and adjust the salt if needed.
In a small pan, warm the ghee or olive oil over medium heat. Add the dried mint and swirl gently until it begins to foam—this should only take a few seconds. Immediately remove from heat to prevent burning.
Ladle the stew into warm bowls and spoon over the mint oil. It’s not quite a soup, not exactly a stew—just something warm, soft, and fragrant to start the season.
Afiyet olsun!
Your version sounds great...