Gözleme recipe: Turkish stuffed flatbread with spinach and cheese
Gözleme is the flatbread you watch being made. In Turkish markets and roadside cafés, women sit cross-legged by a domed griddle, rolling dough out with a long thin pin until it is almost see-through, filling it, folding it and slapping it onto the hot metal. A few minutes later it comes off blistered and crisp at the edges, brushed with butter and cut into strips.
The Wikipedia entry for gözleme describes it as a savoury Turkish flatbread of hand-rolled dough sealed round a filling, and Saveur has written about its place in village cooking. At home you need no special kit: a big frying pan and a rolling pin will do.
What is gözleme?
Gözleme is rural Anatolian food, traditionally made by women from a thin, unleavened dough much like the yufka used for börek. The name is traced to közleme, cooking on embers, from köz, Turkish for embers. It is cooked on a sac, a large, convex iron griddle set over a wood fire or gas burner.
Popular fillings
Ispanaklı (spinach with white cheese and onion) is the most common, along with peynirli (cheese only, often with parsley), patatesli (spiced mashed potato) and kıymalı (minced beef or lamb with onion and pepper). In tourist areas you will also find mixed fillings with mushrooms or sucuk (spicy Turkish sausage).
Folded or flat
Some regions spread the filling over half the dough and fold it like a book; others place it in the middle and fold all four sides in to make a sealed square parcel. Both cook the same way.
Ingredients
Makes 4 large gözleme (serves 4).
For the dough
- 400g plain flour, plus extra for rolling
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- About 230ml lukewarm water
For the filling
- 200g fresh spinach, washed and finely chopped
- 1 small onion, very finely chopped
- 150g Turkish beyaz peynir or feta, crumbled
- 1 tsp pul biber (Turkish chilli flakes)
- ½ tsp black pepper
- 1 tbsp olive oil
To cook
- 40g butter, melted
How to make gözleme
1. Make the dough
Mix the flour and salt in a large bowl. Add the olive oil and most of the water and bring together, adding the rest of the water a little at a time, to make a soft, smooth dough that does not stick to your hands. Knead for 5 minutes, divide into 4 balls, cover with a damp tea towel and rest for 30 minutes. Resting relaxes the gluten so it will roll thin.
2. Prepare the filling
Put the chopped spinach and onion in a bowl, sprinkle with a pinch of salt and squeeze firmly with your hands for a minute to wilt them and press out the water. Pour off the liquid, then mix in the cheese, pul biber, black pepper and olive oil.
3. Roll the dough thin
On a well-floured surface, roll one ball into a thin circle about 40cm across, turning and flouring it often. It should be thin enough to see the work surface through it in places. A long thin pin (oklava) helps, but a normal rolling pin works.
4. Fill and fold
Spread a quarter of the filling over one half of the circle, leaving a 2cm edge. Fold the other half over and press the edges to seal, or fold the four sides in to make a square parcel. Brush off any loose flour.
5. Cook in a dry pan
Heat a large, heavy frying pan or flat griddle over a medium-high heat. Cook the gözleme without oil for 3–4 minutes on each side, until speckled brown and crisp. Brush both sides with melted butter as it comes off the pan.
6. Cut and serve
Cut into wedges or strips and serve hot. Keep cooked gözleme warm under a tea towel while you make the rest.
Watch: how to make gözleme
This video shows how thin the dough needs to be and how the folding works.
Tips for the best gözleme
- Squeeze the spinach hard. Excess water steams the dough and stops it crisping.
- Flour generously while rolling; thin dough tears easily if it sticks to the board.
- Use a dry pan, then butter afterwards. Oil in the pan fries the dough rather than toasting it.
- If your pan is smaller than the gözleme, fold it into a square parcel that fits.
- Cooked gözleme can be reheated in a dry pan for a minute each side, but it is best fresh.
What to serve with gözleme
In Turkey gözleme is usually eaten with a glass of ayran (salted yoghurt drink) or tea. For a bigger meal serve it with a bowl of red lentil soup, a crunchy kısır salad or, if you are feeling ambitious, a tray of mantı (Turkish dumplings).
Where to eat gözleme in London
You can find gözleme made fresh on the griddle in cafés, markets and some Turkish restaurants across London. Browse our gözleme and mantı listings, or see our guide to cheap Turkish food in London.
- 27 Lahmacun – Turkish gözleme & mantı in Tottenham
- Karadeniz Pide & Lahmacun – Turkish gözleme & mantı in Enfield
- Istanbul Gözleme – Turkish gözleme & mantı in Walthamstow
- Diyarbakır Taş Fırın – Turkish gözleme & mantı in Harringay & Green Lanes
- Pitted Olive – Turkish bakery & börek in Bloomsbury & Holborn
- Sultan Gözleme Euston – Turkish gözleme & mantı in King's Cross
See all 15 Gözleme & Mantı places in London
Gözleme FAQs
Can I use shop-bought yufka for gözleme?
Yes. Buy large round yufka sheets from a Turkish grocer, fill and fold them in the same way, and cook in a dry pan. The result is thinner and quicker, though slightly less chewy.
What is the difference between gözleme and börek?
Both use thin dough, but gözleme is cooked on a griddle or in a pan, while börek is usually baked, fried or layered in a tray. Gözleme is also eaten straight off the heat.
Can I make the dough ahead?
Yes. Wrap the dough balls and keep them in the fridge for up to 24 hours. Bring them back to room temperature for 30 minutes before rolling.
Is gözleme vegetarian?
The spinach, cheese and potato versions are vegetarian. The kıymalı version contains minced meat.
Photo: William Neuheisel from DC, US, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
