Gözleme
Paper-thin dough folded around spinach, white cheese and pul biber, cooked on a hot dry pan until blistered, then brushed with butter.
Recipe by I Want Some Food · Reviewed by the editorial kitchen.
- Prep
- 45 min
- Cook
- 22 min
- Rest
- 30 min
- Total
- 1 hr 37 min
- Difficulty
- Medium
- Spice
- Mild
- Cost
- Weeknight budget$8–16 USD · indicative, not a store price
About
Gözleme is a thin, unleavened flatbread rolled until you can nearly see through it, filled, folded into a flat parcel and cooked on a hot dome-shaped griddle called a sac. This version uses spinach, crumbled white cheese, onion and pul biber, the classic market-stall filling, and a large dry frying pan. The dough is only flour, water, salt and a little oil, rested so it rolls thin without fighting back. Brush each gözleme with butter as it comes off the heat and eat it hot, with ayran. The brown blisters on the surface are what you are after.
What you'll need
11 ingredients. Tap each one once it's out on the bench.
- Dough
- Filling
- To cook
Ingredients
Dough
- Wheat flour, plain, plus extra for rolling400 g
- Water, lukewarm230 ml
- Olive oil15 ml
- Salt4.9 ml
Filling
- Spinach, washed and finely chopped300 g
- Feta, beyaz peynir or feta, crumbled200 g
- Onion, very finely chopped1 small
- Chilli flakes, pul biber4.9 ml
- Black pepper2½ ml
- Salt, for the spinach1 pinch
To cook
- Butter, melted, for brushing50 g
Scaling multiplies the written quantities. Baking still prefers a scale.
Steps
Step 1
Mix the flour and salt, add the water and oil and knead for 5 minutes into a soft, smooth dough that does not stick. Divide it into 4 balls, cover with a damp cloth and rest for 30 minutes.
35 min
Step 2
Rub the chopped spinach with a pinch of salt and squeeze out as much water as you can in your fists. Mix it with the crumbled cheese, onion, pul biber and black pepper.
10 min
Tip: Wet spinach makes soggy gözleme. Squeeze it harder than you think you need to.
Step 3
On a lightly floured surface, roll each ball into a round about 40 cm across, as thin as you can manage. Turn the dough a quarter turn every few strokes and dust with flour to stop it sticking.
15 min
Tip: If the dough shrinks back, cover it and leave it 5 minutes. It will relax.
Step 4
Spread a quarter of the filling over the middle of each round in a rectangle. Fold the top and bottom over it, then the sides, to make a flat parcel about 20 by 15 cm, and press the edges to seal.
8 min
Step 5
Heat a large dry frying pan over medium-high heat. Cook each gözleme for 2 to 3 minutes a side, until blistered with brown spots, brushing with melted butter as each side comes off the heat.
20 min
Step 6
Cut into wide strips and serve hot, with lemon wedges or a glass of ayran.
2 min
Nutrition
Per serving · estimate
- Calories
- 643 kcal
- Protein
- 19.8 g
- Carbs
- 83.3 g
- Fat
- 25.1 g
- Saturated fat
- 14.6 g
- Fibre
- 4.8 g
- Sugar
- 3.7 g
- Sodium
- 1318 mg
Calculated from canonical ingredient data (USDA FoodData Central averages and equivalent published tables). Estimates only.
Allergens
Informational only. Not a medical guarantee. Cross-contamination happens in real kitchens.
- Wheat
- Milk
- Vegetarian
- Nut-free
Adapt this recipe
The original recipe stays as it is. Personal versions are labelled. Serving changes are simple maths.
Adaptations · 0 / 15 used. Resets 11 November.
Substitutions
Feta → Half feta, half grated mozzarella
Milder and stretchier, closer to the kaşar-and-white-cheese mix some stalls use.
Spinach → Chard leaves, stems removed
Chop finely and squeeze just as hard.
Tips
- Potato filling: mash 400 g boiled potatoes with a fried onion, a spoon of red pepper paste, pul biber and salt, and use it the same way.
- Roll all four before cooking any, and keep them on floured trays under a cloth.
- Leftovers reheat well in a dry pan, a minute a side.
History & culture
Gözleme is made by women sitting at a low table, rolling dough with a long thin pin, at weekend markets, village roadside stops and breakfast places on the edge of town. People stand and wait for theirs. At home it is a weekend breakfast or a cheap lunch. Potato, minced meat and plain cheese fillings are as common as spinach.
Thin unleavened bread cooked on a sac is one of the oldest Turkic foods, practical for people who moved with their herds and carried a griddle rather than built an oven. The name probably comes from göz, eye, for the blistered brown spots. The same yufka dough is the base of börek and many other Anatolian pastries.
Traditional — Market gözleme is cooked on a sac, a wide convex iron dome over wood or gas, and rolled with an oklava, a long thin pin. A large frying pan and an ordinary rolling pin do the job; the gözleme are just smaller.
Provenance: Editorial adaptation.
Questions about this recipe
Answers taken from this dish's times, amounts, swaps and tips.
How long does Gözleme take?
1 hr 37 min all in — 45 min prep, 22 min cook, 30 min rest. Cook and rest follow the method. Leftover storage and optional extra waits are not included.
How many does it serve?
The recipe is written for 4 pieces. Scale the ingredient list on the page if you are cooking for a different number.
How hard is it?
Medium.
How spicy is it?
Mild.
What allergens should I watch?
This recipe is labelled for Wheat, Milk. Labels are informational — check the packets in your kitchen. This is not medical advice.
Does it fit a diet?
The published recipe is labelled Vegetarian, Nut-free.
7 more questionsFewer questions
What does it cost to cook?
Weeknight budget — about $8–16 USD, as a grocery budget for this recipe, not a restaurant price.
What equipment do I need?
Mixing bowl, Chef's knife, Rolling pin, Frying pan.
How much salt do I put in?
The recipe lists Salt at 1 tsp.
What can I use instead?
Feta → Half feta, half grated mozzarella. Milder and stretchier, closer to the kaşar-and-white-cheese mix some stalls use. Spinach → Chard leaves, stems removed. Chop finely and squeeze just as hard.
Any tips from this recipe?
Potato filling: mash 400 g boiled potatoes with a fried onion, a spoon of red pepper paste, pul biber and salt, and use it the same way. Roll all four before cooking any, and keep them on floured trays under a cloth. Leftovers reheat well in a dry pan, a minute a side.
Can I prepare this ahead?
Leftovers reheat well in a dry pan, a minute a side.
Can I use an air fryer?
This method is not written for an air fryer. The core technique on the page still applies.
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