Want to drool over some of the lip smacking vegetarian and vegan dishes from Armenia and South Caucasus region? You have come to the right place! Most of these food varieties are naturally vegetarian and can quite easily adapted to vegan diet, without a lot of effort! Hop over and read them now…
Armenia is a landlocked and culturally rich country in the South Caucasus region. The country’s historical legacy is something every Armenian is proud for being world’s oldest Christian nation.
Armenia has so much to offer – magnificent mountains, amazing monuments, intriguing history and not to forget their delicious cuisine.
Although Caucasian cuisine is associated with tasty, high-calorie meat dishes, there are influences from Mediterranean and Middle East too.
Finding a vegetarian and vegan dishes in Armenia is not only easy, but gives a delicious experience into Armenian cuisine.
In this post, we have put together some of the lip smacking must-try vegetarian and vegan friendly dishes in Armenia.
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Must-try vegetarian and vegan dishes in Armenia
Pasus Tolma (Stuffed Cabbage Leaves)
Tolma is one of the most popular festive dishes of Armenian cuisine that every vegetarian and vegan should try.
This dish is very tasty, easy to prepare and quite practical. The word “pas” in Armenian means “a fast”.
After the adoption of Christianity (want to learn more? Choose any piligrim tour to Armenia you like), majority of Armenians held the Christmas fast for 7 days – they started on December 30, and ended on January 6.
Perhaps, that is why Tolma is still an integral part of the Armenian New Year’s table.
Cabbage leaves are the main ingredient of the dish. They are filled with lean stuffing, consisting of cooked and stewed tomato paste lentils, peas (chickpeas), red beans, and wheat groats (bulgur).
Then Tolma is boiled in a wide saucepan, tightly covered with an inverted plate and is usually kept frozen and thawed before serving.
Ghapama
Ghapama is yet another festive dish of Armenian cuisine, served at weddings, Christmas or Easter. A medium sized pumpkin is taken for preparing this dish.
Cut off the top of the pumpkin, and clean its flesh.
Pumpkin is then filled with half cooked rice, dried fruits, nuts, cinnamon and honey, and baked in the oven. Vegans can substitute honey with Agave syrup and try this recipe.
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Zhengyalov ats
Zhengyalov ats is one of the speciality dish of Artsakh region. Traditionally this vegetarian dish is prepared from more than 20 types of local herbs, which are finely chopped and layered on a thin dough.
From above, the cake is covered with dough and baked in a pan or on a special brazier saj.
The recipe for the dough is very simple – simply mix water, flour and salt. If you do not manage to visit Artsakh, do not be upset, there are plenty of restaurants in Yeravan that offer this vegetarian and vegan dish.
Mshosh
Mshosh is a classic lean and healthy Armenian snack that is easy to prepare – boil lentils, add some fried onions, walnuts and dried apricots to it.
Cook for another 15 minutes. Some people use beans instead of lentils. Mshosh can be served both hot and cold, as a side dish or as a snack.
Mshosh can be spread on Armenian lavash or on any bread.
Ailazan
Ailazan is an ancient dish of Armenian cuisine which dates back to the 19th century. Traditionally it is cooked in a special oven called Tondir.
Ailazan is a vegetable stew prepared from potatoes, aubergines, bell pepper, green beans, and tomatoes.
Vegetables should be laid in layers in a cauldron and stewed for an hour. Vegetarians serve it as an independent dish, some use it as a side dish for meat.
Matsnaprtosh or okroshka
Okroshka in Armenia is a drink that is usually cooked on hot summer days.
For its preparation, the national fermented milk product matsun is diluted with water, then some finely chopped cucumbers, dill and salt are added to it. For a vegan version, this fermented milk can be substituted with cashews/apple cider vinegar.
The pocket sized country’s interesting insight into vegetarian and vegan food does not end here.
Vegetables and lenthils are always part of Armenian cuisine, and there are many more interesting vegetarian dishes to explore.
If you want to get acquainted with other famous Armenian dishes, you can take part in any gourmet tours.
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Note: This post is a commissioned post by Arara tours.
Steplyakov
In Armenia I had a very active and bright holiday. As there is beautiful, I traveled through Mount Ararat, of course what landscapes there, words can not be conveyed, it is necessary to see. From such beauty is breathtaking. Generally a very friendly country.
Ryan Biddulph
Hi Anu and Sri,
Delicious fare! I had no idea Armenia is the oldest Christian nation on earth. We planned to visit after seeing Turkey a year ago but had to go back to the States for fam stuff. Thanks for sharing 🙂
Ryan
Ann
Traditional Armenian cuisine is obviously worth trying in Armenia. The dishes are incredibly tasty but rather difficult in cooking and it’s almost impossible to make them at home even having a good receipt
Helena
I really want to get to Armenia. It is a country with its centuries-old traditions. I especially love the national cuisine. And I want to try it in the country national dishes is more delicious. I especially like Mshosh.
Tanja
I hadn`t known about Armenian okroshka before i travelled to that beautiful country. Sure thing the taste of the dish differs greatly but still it`s yammy.
I was pleasantly surprised with the variety of vegetarian dishes there as i don`t eat meat.
A Capone Connection
I am a vegetarian and these all look so delicious! Zhengyalov ats sounds VERY interesting. I would love to try all of these items one day. Thank you for sharing!
Kim
All of these look so delicious! I had no idea there were so many vegetarian options in Armenia!
Kelly
I haven’t often ready many posts about Armenia, but I do have to say that the food sounds and looks absolutely amazing!
Sarah
WOW – I usually go for veggie dishes while travelling and these look absolutely incredible!!! I saw the first one as cabbage and I was already sold. That dough cake/bread? sounds heavenly too!
Lissa
Everything looks delicious. We are gluten free and from the looks of these dishes, it seems many may not contain gluten so it might also be easy to eat great gluten-free food here too!
Sophia Bawany
The Alizan looks delicious! It’s nice to have some meat free options when you are traveling even if you are not a vegetarian. Sometimes you want lighter, healthier fare so these options look great! Thank you for sharing
Kelly
Wow I did not know very much about Armenia, but I would LOVE to visit one day! The food looks delicious and I love that there are so many veggie options 🙂 This makes me want to explore the country even more!
Pam
Oooo all of these look delicious! I think I would like to try the Ghapama
Niry
I love vegetables and I would love to try these dishes. Especially the stuffed cabbage sounds super tasty. Once I tried something like that in Bucharest. It was filled with rice. Wow how mouthwatering it was