Turkish food
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Börek is one of the most famous foods from Turkey, which has been spread across all Eastern Europe, where it’s just as popular. It’s a type of savory pastry that is made of thin flaky dough, usually phyllo.
The börek is baked in a large pan and can have various fillings, depending on the region.
Börek is a baked dish consisting of a savory or sweet filling wrapped in yufka – thinly stretched sheets of dough made with flour, water, and salt. Heartier than phyllo, but thinner than a tortilla, hand-made yufka is typically brushed with butter before baking.
Although many countries have their own versions of this satisfying dish, it was probably invented during the Ottoman Empire in the Anatolian Provinces, an area that nowadays belongs to Turkey. Some sources suggest that börek might be even older, a descendant of the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Anatolian dish known as en tyritas plakountas, consisting of layered dough filled with cheese, its recipe dating back to 160 BC.
Nowadays, Turkey is famous for its layered pies and pastries, all united under the name börek (also burek, byurek, byrek, böregi). Regardless of many börek varieties, yufka always remains the same, and almost everything wrapped in it may be called börek, which could also explain the name: some suggest that it comes from the Turkish word bur, meaning to twist.
