Learn Hardcore Turkish: Yemekten sonra sarımsak kokusu kaldı; rendeyi ve doğrama tahtasını hemen yıkadım. - The smell of garlic remained after the meal; I immediately washed the grater and the cutting board.

sarımsak kokusu is a noun–noun compound meaning “garlic smell” or “the smell of garlic.” The -sU on koku is the 3rd person possessive used as a compound marker in such constructions.

General, type-of relation: sarımsak kokusu = “garlic smell” (not one specific garlic’s smell)
Specific possessor: sarımsağın kokusu = “the smell of the garlic (clove/head)”

Who/what is the subject of kaldı? There’s no “it” in Turkish.

The subject is sarımsak kokusu. Turkish doesn’t need a dummy “it.” The verb kal-dı is 3rd person singular past (“remained”), agreeing with sarımsak kokusu.

Why are rendeyi and doğrama tahtasını in the accusative (-i)?

Direct objects are marked with accusative when they are definite/specific. Here you mean “the grater and the cutting board” (known items), so:

rende-yi = the grater
doğrama tahta-sı-nı = the cutting board If they were indefinite: rende ve doğrama tahtası yıkadım = “I washed a grater and a cutting board.”

In a coordination like this, do I have to mark accusative on both nouns?

Best practice: mark both for clarity and formality: rendeyi ve doğrama tahtasını. In casual speech/writing some people mark only the last (rende ve doğrama tahtasını), but it can make the first noun feel indefinite or sound off to some ears. Marking both avoids ambiguity.

Why is it rende-yi with a buffer y, and tahta-sı-nı with a buffer n?

If a vowel-initial suffix attaches to a vowel-final stem, Turkish inserts y as a buffer: rende + i → rende-yi.
If the accusative comes after a possessive ending, Turkish inserts n between them: tahta-sı + ı → tahta-sı-nı.

How is doğrama tahtasını built morphologically?

doğra (chop) + -ma → doğrama (the act of chopping; a verbal noun)
doğrama tahta-sı → “chopping board” (compound; -sı is the compound/3rd person possessive marker)
Add accusative: doğrama tahta-sı-nı = “the cutting board”

Is doğrama tahtası the usual term for “cutting board”?

You’ll also hear kesme tahtası, which is very common. Both doğrama tahtası and kesme tahtası are understood; kesme (cutting) may be slightly more idiomatic.

Where can hemen go in the sentence?

It’s flexible:

… hemen yıkadım (neutral: I immediately washed)
Hemen rendeyi ve doğrama tahtasını yıkadım (focus on immediacy)
Rendeyi ve doğrama tahtasını hemen yıkadım (common, natural)
… yıkadım hemen (colloquial/emphatic at the end)

Is the semicolon used the same way as in English here?

Yes. It links two closely related independent clauses. Alternatives:

Period: … kaldı. Rendeyi … yıkadım.
Connector: … kaldı, bu yüzden/ o yüzden rendeyi … yıkadım. A comma alone between independent clauses is less formal.

Do I need a comma after Yemekten sonra?

No. Short fronted time phrases usually don’t take a comma: Yemekten sonra sarımsak kokusu kaldı… You might add one if the opener is long or you want a pause, but it’s not required.

Could I say just koku kaldı or use vardı instead of kaldı?

koku kaldı = “a smell remained” (unspecified what smell)
sarımsak kokusu kaldı specifies which smell.
vardı = “there was” (existence). kaldı emphasizes that it “remained/was left (as a result of something).” After a meal, kaldı fits well to convey “lingered.”

What’s the nuance difference between kaldı and kalmış?

kaldı (simple past) = you directly assert it remained.
kalmış (evidential past) = you infer/heard it remained or you’re reporting it with a softer, non-witnessed nuance. E.g., smelling it later: Sarımsak kokusu kalmış.

Can I omit ben?

Yes. yıka-dı-m already marks 1st person singular. Ben is only added for emphasis or contrast: Ben hemen yıkadım (“I washed them right away, (as opposed to someone else)”).

Can I replace the two objects with a pronoun?

Yes, once they’re contextually known: Onları hemen yıkadım (“I washed them immediately”). Onları is the 3rd person plural accusative pronoun referring to the grater and the cutting board.

Why is it yemekten and not yemekden?

Two things:

Vowel harmony picks -den/-dan; with front vowel e, you get -den.
After a voiceless consonant like k, the d of the suffix devoices to t: yemek + den → yemekten.

Could I use ile instead of ve between the nouns?

You can: rendeyi ile doğrama tahtasını is grammatical in some styles, because ile can mean “and/with.” But ile is also the instrumental “with,” so rende ile doğrama tahtasını yıkadım can be read as “I washed the cutting board with the grater.” ve avoids that ambiguity and is the safest choice for “and.”

Pronunciation tip: how do I say doğrama (the ğ)?

In doğrama, the ğ doesn’t make a hard sound; it lengthens/smooths the preceding vowel. So it’s roughly “doo-ra-ma,” with a slightly lengthened “o.”