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Home » Turkish » Turkish Gozleme Recipe

Published: Jun 27, 2021 by Zerrin & Yusuf

Turkish Gozleme Recipe

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Cheese and spinach stuffed Turkish gozleme is going to be the new talk of the town! They are made using a very basic and easy dough recipe and an amazingly simple filling! And what makes it extremely versatile is that you can easily adapt or change the hearty spinach and feta filling we’ve used.

A stack of gozleme filled with spinach and cheese and a sprig of fresh mint on the top.

This gozleme recipe is one of the most loved street foods in Turkish cuisine. You can serve it traditionally with delicious and refreshing ayran or tea. Although not traditional you can even serve it with Turkish cacik dip or creamy hummus too.

Jump to:
  • What is Gozleme?
  • Ingredients
  • How to Make Dough (with and without yeast)
  • Spinach and Cheese Filling
  • Filling Variations
  • How to Shape and Cook
  • How to Store and Re-heat
  • Serving
  • FAQs
  • More Turkish Pastries
  • 📖 Recipe
  • 💬 Comments

What is Gozleme?

Gozleme is a type of traditional Turkish stuffed flatbread like pide and lahmacun. The bread itself can be made from either unleavened dough, or yeast leavened dough. This dough is rolled into a very thin sheet, filled with toppings, sealed and then cooked.

Where it differs most from pide, gozleme is cooked on a griddle called saj or in a skillet whereas pide is baked in oven.

Gozleme is one of the most famous Turkish foods known by tourists visiting our country. How has it become that famous? Local people make and sell it at almost all tourist attractions. You can see them everywhere you visit in Turkey. It doesn’t matter where you go, it could be a historical place, beach or a plateau. You can even find gozleme at roadside restaurants when your bus has a break.

Local people don’t need to have a restaurant for this. Just a stand and fire will be enough for them. It’s not surprising to see women making gozleme even at the back of a pickup truck. They generally use a very thin iron plate on fire to bake pastries. It works with electricity and very practical. People use wood fire in villages and gozleme baked on it is absolutely more tasty.

Ingredients

For this recipe we use a leavened dough that consists of flour, salt, instant yeast and water. This is a very basic leavened dough that is very quick to combine.

Gozleme dough ingredients in a bowl and spinach leaves, olive oil , onion, salt and pepper and cheese on a dark background.

The filling is where the real magic is. We use our classic spinach and feta cheese filling just like in our spinach and cheese borek recipe.

However, there are a wide range of other traditional Turkish fillings that can be made. You can also choose to add some classic gozleme filling ingredients to this one.

Classic meats used in gözleme include minced beef, smoked or fresh seafood, and lamb. Popular vegetables include spinach, eggplants, onions, zucchini, leeks, chards, mushrooms, and peppers.

How to Make Dough (with and without yeast)

Making Gozleme dough is extremely easy to do and you can follow the same steps as with our lavash bread recipe. Today, we will be making a leavened dough, but we will also explain how to make an unleavened dough.

You can see exactly how to shape and cook gozleme in our How to Shape and Cook Section below.

Dough patties half covered with a kitchen towel on a dark background.

Dough with Yeast

First, make the dough. Combine the flour, salt and yeast in a large mixing bowl. Slowly add warm water and mix the ingredients with your hands or a stand mixer. Continue until a rough dough ball forms. Knead for about 5-10 minutes.

Second, let the dough rise. Wet the bottom of a bowl and gently wet the surface of the dough with a wet hand. Add the dough and cover it with a kitchen towel or plastic wrap. Allow it to rest until it doubles in size – this can take up to 40 minutes.

Dough without Yeast

First, combine the ingredients. Combine 3 cups flour, 1 teaspoon salt, ¼ cup oil, and ¾ cup water. Mix the ingredients together until a dough ball forms.

Second, allow the dough to rest. Place the dough in a slightly wet bowl and allow it to rest for roughly 15-20 minutes. This will help the gluten strands relax and make it easier to roll out.

Spinach and Cheese Filling

Our spinach and cheese filling is extremely easy and quick to make and doesn’t even require any cooking. We use a combination of spinach and crumbled feta cheese in the same way as our borek filling.

Spinach and cheese filling mixture in a white bowl

Simply combine all of the ingredients in a bowl and just like that, an easy and delicious filling. We love using feta cheese but you can use a combination of different cheese for even more flavor.

Filling Variations

There are a ton of different gözleme fillings that you can use. One of the most popular fillings in Turkey is a potato filling.

To make potato filling is simple; boil the potatoes, finely chop them, and then combine them with some other ingredients like paprika, red pepper flakes, and chopped parsley. This mixture has to be completely cooled before using it as a filling.

Another popular filling is either a ground beef or lamb one. To make it you can quickly sauté some onions, add the ground meat, season the mixture with some spices and freshly chopped parsley, then finally, allow it to cool and use it.

Finally, as we have already briefly mentioned, you can use a combination of cheese for a filling. A recipe we love contains feta cheese, kaşar cheese, and cottage cheese. Mix these with some fresh herbs like parsley and dill, and finally green onions.

How to Shape and Cook

First, make the dough and allow it to rest. Combine the ingredients and allow it to rest before shaping it. You can check out our section on making gozleme dough with and without yeast for precise steps.

Second, divide, portion, and shape the dough. Lightly dust the surface with flour and place the dough there. Gently deflate it and shape it into a log. Cut the log into 6 equally sized pieces and roll each into a ball.

Rolled out dough on a dark background.

Third, roll them into very thin sheets. Repeat this after you cook a gozleme.

One half of the dough filled with spinach and cheese filling

Next, add the filling into one half and fold the other half over it – it should form a half circle.

Sealing the edges of the filled dough to shape the gözleme

Then, seal the edges with your fingers. Make sure you cover the balls with a damp kitchen towel while you work to prevent them from drying out.

Gozleme cooking in a cast iron skillet

Next, cook the gozleme. Heat a non-stick pan over medium heat and cook each gozleme for about 3-4 minutes per side.

A green silicone brush spreading the cooked gözlemes with olive oil

Finally, transfer the cooked gozleme onto a paper towel and brush it with some olive oil. Cut each in triangles and serve immediately.

How to Store and Re-heat

Place your cooked Turkish gozleme inside an airtight container. During summers you can keep it inside the refrigerator and in winters you can keep them at room temperature for one day.

To reheat these delicious stuffed flatbreads, simply add them in a pan over low heat, or alternatively you can reheat them in the oven.

Serving

Gozleme is one of the most popular Turkish breakfast foods, so it can be paired with other breakfast dishes like fried eggs, olives, tomatoes and cucumbers.

Also it can be served for lunch, accompanied by either ayran or tea. So you can serve it with these drinks. Also, it can be served with a refreshing salad like Turkish coban salad, a dip like haydari meze or with a dollop of simple strained yogurt.

Gozleme slices on a plate and more on a larger plate accompanied by a glass cup of Turkish tea.

FAQs

Can I make the dough without yeast?

Yes you can. Check out our section How to make gozleme dough with and without yeast to find the recipe we use as well as steps to follow.

Can I bake it in the oven?

Unfortunately these flatbreads aren’t meant to be baked in the oven. Traditionally they are cooked on a saj or griddle – a large thin iron plate. Using a non-stick pan is the closest piece of equipment to it.

Can I freeze it?

We wouldn’t recommend freezing gozleme. The filling will soften the dough once thawed and it will lose a ton of flavor. This dish is best served fresh and warm.

Gözleme sliced in triangles served with halved cherry tomatoes and fresh mint leaves.

More Turkish Pastries

  • Lahmacun
  • Bazlama
  • Pide Bread
  • Pide with Ground Beef
  • Manti
  • Simit

You might also like:

  • Turkish Eggs Cilbir Recipe
  • 28 Best Turkish Desserts
  • Kumpir Turkish Stuffed Baked Potatoes
  • Easy Homemade Doner Kebab

As always: If you make this recipe, let us know what you think by rating it and leaving a comment below. And post a pic on Instagram too—tag @give_recipe so we can see!

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Print

📖 Recipe

Turkish Gozleme

Spinach and cheese filled gozleme served in a stack on a white plate and a half of a cherry tomato on the side.
Print Recipe

★★★★★

5 from 1 reviews

Turkish gozleme filled with spinach and feta cheese.

  • Author: Zerrin & Yusuf
  • Prep Time: 30 minutes
  • Cook Time: 20 minutes
  • Total Time: 50 minutes
  • Yield: 6
  • Category: Lunch
  • Method: Cooking
  • Cuisine: Turkish

Ingredients

Gozleme dough: 

  • 3 cup all purpose flour (more to use when rolling out)

  • 1 teaspoon salt

  • 1 teaspoon instant yeast

  • 1 cup warm water (1-2 tablespoons more might be needed)

Filling:

  • 4 cup baby spinach leaves or chopped spinach

  • 1 medium onion, finely chopped

  • 1 cup crumbled feta

  • ½ teaspoon salt

  • ½ teaspoon black pepper

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil (more to brush cooked gozlemes)

Instructions

  1. Combine flour, salt and yeast in a mixing bowl.
  2. Pour warm water over it and mix with your hand or in a stand mixer until everything holds together. This might take 5-10 minutes.
  3. Wet the bottom of the bowl and the surface of the dough with your wet hand. Cover the bowl with kitchen towel or a plastic wrap. Let it rest for 40 min. until it doubles in size.  
  4. Dust the counter with a little flour and transfer the dough onto this surface. Deflate the dough, knead it for 1-2 minutes and make a log. Cut it into 6 pieces, shape each into balls. Cover them with a damp kitchen towel to prevent them from drying.
  5. To make the filling, combine everything in the list in a bowl.
  6. Grab a dough ball, sprinkle flour all over it. Roll it out thin. Sprinkle little flour as needed when you feel it gets sticky when rolling out. Try to give it a circular shape, but it doesn’t have to look perfect. 
  7. Put about 3 tablespoons of filling on the half of the rolled out dough. Fold the empty half on the filling and seal the edge by firmly pressing on it with your finger tips.   
  8. Heat a non-stick pan over medium heat. Transfer the gozleme into hot pan. Cook both sides for 3-4 minutes each.  
  9. Put a paper kitchen towel on a large plate and transfer the cooked gozleme on it. Brush it with olive oil and cover with a clean kitchen towel so that the cooked gozlemes keep warm until you finish the remaining dough and filling. 
  10. Repeat the same steps for the remaining dough and filling. 
  11. Optionally cut each in triangles and serve immediately.

Notes

  1. To make the dough without yeast: First, combine the ingredients. Combine 3 cups flour, 1 teaspoon salt, ¼ cup oil, and ¾ cup water. Mix the ingredients together until a dough ball forms. Second, allow the dough to rest. Place the dough in a slightly wet bowl and allow it to rest for roughly 15-20 minutes. This will help the gluten strands relax and make it easier to roll out.
  2. When rolling out a dough ball, make sure you cover the rest of with kitchen towel to prevent them from drying. 
  3. After transfering each cooked gözleme onto a plate, brush it with some olive oil and then slightly cover with a kitchen towel to prevent it from getting too crispy.

Nutrition

  • Serving Size:
  • Calories: 329
  • Sugar: 2.1 g
  • Sodium: 830.5 mg
  • Fat: 8.4 g
  • Carbohydrates: 51.7 g
  • Protein: 11.2 g
  • Cholesterol: 22.3 mg

Keywords: gozleme, Turkish gozleme, gözleme

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    Recipe rating ★☆ ★☆ ★☆ ★☆ ★☆

  1. Cher says

    April 28, 2022 at 5:32 am

    I added garlic and more salt.

    Reply
  2. Rachel says

    August 08, 2021 at 6:27 am

    Can't thank you enough for the recipe! Gozleme was my daughter's favorite food in Turkey during our summer holiday. Made it for her today and it was exactly the same as the ones we had in Turkey. So good!

    ★★★★★

    Reply
  3. TasteofBeirut says

    July 28, 2013 at 2:17 pm

    the way you were describing these reminded me of our bread on the saj here; always so much tastier baked on wood sticks!

    Reply
  4. Reeni says

    March 06, 2013 at 4:16 am

    These look absolutely delicious Zerrin! They remind me of quesadillas. I would love for you to guest post! I will e-mail you to iron out the details tomorrow. Have a good night (or day)!

    Reply
    • Zerrin says

      March 06, 2013 at 10:20 pm

      Thank you Reeni! Right, they look like quesadillas, I'm not sure if they have any difference, but we call it gozleme in Turkish. Will be happy to share a recipe with your readers, Waiting for the details then!

      Reply

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Meet Zerrin and Yusuf Gunaydin: The couple behind this blog. We bring Turkish food into your kitchen! From kebabs to desserts, everything you crave is here.

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