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    Home » Desserts » Kadayif Dessert - Kadaif

    Published: Apr 14, 2021 by Zerrin & Yusuf

    Kadayif Dessert - Kadaif

    Jump to Recipe·Print Recipe

    Tel Kadayif Dessert is one of the most popular Turkish desserts that is made using only a few ingredients. The kadaif noodles are covered in butter and pistachios, then baked to a golden brown, crispy perfection. It gets finished off with a delicious lemon sugar syrup and served with some traditional kaymak cream.

    Baked golden top kadaif slices topped with crumbled pistachios in a pan.
    Baked and sliced kadaif

    If you love the world-famous Turkish baklava or tulumba dessert, then you will fall in love with this kadayif dessert (kadayif tatli) too! If you are into this kind of treats, you should check out our best Turkish desserts too!

    Kadaif is often confused with Turkish kunefe because both are made with kadaif noodles. Traditional kadayif doesn’t contain any cheese while it is what makes a kanafeh unique.

    Tel Kadayif (Shredded Kadaifi) is one of the most well known Turkish desserts with a sweet syrup. Tel is the word we use in Turkish to describe those tiny shreds. Tel kadayif is like tiny and crunchy noodles made from flour and water. It is enhanced with butter, walnut or pistachio, cooked in oven until golden and then soaked in syrup so that it becomes a soft and sweet treat.

    Jump to:
    • What Is Kadaif?
    • Ingredients
    • Instructions
    • Tips and Tricks
    • How To Serve 
    • How To Store
    • More Middle Eastern Desserts
    • 📖 Recipe

    What Is Kadaif?

    Kadaif is a Turkish traditional food that uses shredded filo dough. The term not only refers to the shredded noodles, but also the actual dessert. Kadayif dessert is packed with pistachios or walnuts and sweetened with a syrup. Other common and popular terms used for this dessert include Tel Kadayif or kadaif.

    The noodles are an extremely thin type of Turkish noodles that are also used to make some other desserts Kanafeh or Greek kataifi rolls.

    Our kadaif recipe is also called a sheet pan kadayif because of the method used. The shredded dough is covered with butter, pressed down into a pan, and then baked until crispy.

    Another form of this dessert is called kadayif rolls or stuffed kadayif. The ingredients can stay the same, but the shaping method changes. For these, you incorporate the chopped nuts into the mixture and roll them up into cigar-like shapes. 

    Stuffed Tel #Kadayif
    Stuffed kadayif shaped with a coffee cup

    Alternatively, you can stuff kadaif noodles in a coffee cup, turn it upside down to give it a dome shape and bake. We sometimes make it this way, today we will be sharing the traditional way below.

    Ingredients

    This delicious recipe only consists of two elements and a few basic ingredients. The first is a lemon flavor sugar syrup which will help sweeten the dish and add a ton of moisture to it. 

    We highly recommend making your own at home rather than buying pre-made syrup. Homemade syrup is fresh and has a far superior flavor! We use this same syrup in several Turkish desserts like revani cake, tulumba dessert or sekerpare. 

    Turkish kadayif noodles, pistachios, water, butter, sugar in separate bowls and a slice of lemon on the side.
    Kadaif ingredients

    The next element is the kadayif base. All you need is butter, the kadayif noodles, and lastly, crumbled pistachio.

    For the butter, you can make use of either salted or unsalted, but NEVER use margarine for this recipe. It doesn’t have the same texture, baking characteristics, or flavor.

    The kadayif noodles can be made at home or bought. You can easily find them in the frozen foods section at your local grocery store, or order them from online Middle Eastern markets.

    Lastly, you need pistachios. You can decide how fine you want the texture to be, but we prefer using something between ground and roughly chopped.

    Instructions

    This kadayif dessert is extremely easy to make and only needs a few ingredients. What’s even better is that you can make it in less than an hour!

    First, prepare the syrup. Place all of the syrup ingredients in a saucepan and bring it to a boil while stirring. Reduce the heat and simmer it for about 15-20 minutes, or until it thickens. Remove it from the heat and let it cool.

    Second, make the kadayif dough. Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Grease a baking pan with melted butter.

    Hands shredding kadaif noodles in a bowl, more noodles on a cutting board and on a piece of baking paper and a knife on the ground.
    Shredding kadaif noodles

    Add the raw kadayif noodles on baking paper and shred them into strings.

    Hands coating the kadaif noodles with melted butter on a piece of baking paper.
    Buttering shredded kadayif dough

    Pour melted butter onto the noodles and mix it well with your hands to ensure all pieces are coated well.

    A hand flattening shredded and buttered kadayif noodles in a rectangular baking pan.
    Flattening kadayif

    Spread half of the buttered kadayif in the baking pan, pressing them down tightly with a measuring cup.

    Shredded kadayif dough flattened and topped with a generous amount of crumbled pistachios.
    Crumbled pistachios on kadaif

    Sprinkle the pistachios over the bottom layer, followed by the remaining kadayif mixture.

    Raw kadayif ready to be baked in a rectangular pan.
    Raw kadayif in a baking pan

    Again, press the noodles down using a measuring cup. Bake for roughly 30 minutes, or until it is beautiful golden brown.

    Golden and crispy kadaif dessert sliced in squares and topped with crumbled pistachios in a rectangular pan.
    Baked crispy golden kadaif

    Third, assemble the kadayif. Once fully baked. Remove it from the oven and slice it into squares. Pour over the cooled syrup and allow it to rest for 3 hours so the syrup absorbs fully.

    Tips and Tricks

    • It is extremely important to make sure that all of the kadayif pastry noodles are properly buttered. By doing so the mixture will bake evenly and become perfectly crisp.
    • Using your hands to pull apart the noodles and incorporating the butter is also a key part of this recipe. The noodles should be untangled and very loose. This helps the final texture of the baked dessert.
    • The next very important step to follow is pressing down the kadaif noodles. They should form a firm and flat surface. By skipping this step, the whole structure of the kadaif will change and the syrup won’t be able to absorb, merely fall through.
    • When it comes to syrup-soaked desserts, it is always crucial to pour cooled syrup over a warm dessert. This helps the dessert absorb the maximum amount of syrup to create a nice moist base.
    • Slicing the kadaif before pouring the syrup over it creates a bigger surface area. This means that there is a larger surface area for the syrup to be absorbed evenly and well.
    A slice of kadaif topped with a generous roll of clotted cream aka kaymak on a blueish plate, whole pistachios in a bowl and the rest of kadaif dessert in the pan on the side.
    Kadayif topped with kaymak

    How To Serve 

    This pistachio kadaif recipe is extremely easy to pair. Many people serve it as is, however there are also a lot of common accompaniments.

    Always sprinkle extra ground pistachios over the baked kadaif before serving it.  

    Most places serve their kadayif with kaymak, which is a type of clotted cream. If you don’t want to make it or you cannot find some, alternatively you can serve it with ice cream too. 

    To finish it all off, serve the dish with some traditional Turkish coffee or tea.

    How To Store

    All syrup-soaked desserts should be stored at room temperature in an airtight container.

    If you keep these in the refrigerator, they run the risk of becoming too hard and losing their crispness. This means that the texture of the whole dessert changes.

    We wouldn’t recommend freezing this dessert. Rather make and serve it fresh for the best results!

    More Middle Eastern Desserts

    • Homemade Baklava
    • Baked Rice Pudding
    • Sesame Candies
    • Lokma Pastry
    • Noah's Ashure Pudding

    You might also like:

    • A fork taking a piece of kunefe and the cheese inside stretching.
      Turkish Kunefe Dessert
    • Tulumba dessert soaked in syrup.
      Tulumba Tatlisi Recipe
    • Revani Recipe
    • Hands holding a bowl and showing how stretchy the ice cream is with a spoon.
      Dondurma (Turkish Ice Cream)

    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

    Kadayif Dessert - Kadaif

    Golden and crispy kadaif slices topped with crumbled pistachios.
    Print Recipe
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    5 from 1 review

    A delightful Turkish dessert made with shredded kadayif dough noodles, syrup and pistachios.

    • Author: Zerrin & Yusuf
    • Prep Time: 10 minutes
    • Cook Time: 50 minutes
    • Total Time: 1 hour
    • Yield: 12
    • Category: Dessert
    • Method: Baking
    • Cuisine: Turkish

    Ingredients

    Syrup:

    • 2 and ½ cups sugar

    • 2 cups water

    • 1 slice of lemon

    Kadayif:

    • 200 gr butter

    • 500 gr raw kadayıf noodles

    • 1 and ½ cup crumbled pistachio

    Instructions

    Syrup:

    1. Put the syrup ingredients in a pot, stir well and bring it to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium low once it boils and let it simmer until it has a slightly thicker consistency. This takes 15-20 minutes. Remove from the heat and let it cool.

    Kadayif:

    1. Preheat the oven at 200C/400F.

    2. Melt butter in a saucepan. 

    3. Use 1 tablespoon of melted butter to grease the bottom of the baking pan. 

    4. Put raw kadayif noodles on some baking paper. Shred them in strings, cut them roughly. Pour melted butter on it and mix it with your hands well. Make sure all pieces of kadayif are coated with butter.

    5. Spread half of the buttered kadayif on the bottom of the baking pan. Use a measuring cup and press tight on the kadayif. 

    6. Sprinkle crumbled pistachio over this first half of the kadayif. Spread the remaining kadayif on it and again press on it using the bottom of a measuring cup.

    7. Bake until golden, for about 30 minutes.

    Assemble:

    1. When you remove kadayif from the oven, slice it into squares and pour the cooled syrup all over it when it is still hot.

    2. Let it rest at least 3 hours so that it absorbs this syrup. 

    3. Sprinkle ground pistachio over it and serve either as it is or with clotted cream kaymak on the top. 

    Notes

    • It is extremely important to make sure that all of the kadayif pastry noodles are properly buttered. By doing so the mixture will bake evenly and become perfectly crisp.
    • Using your hands to pull apart the noodles and incorporating the butter is also a key part of this recipe. The noodles should be untangled and very loose. This helps the final texture of the baked dessert.
    • The next very important step to follow is pressing down the kadaif noodles. They should form a firm and flat surface. By skipping this step, the whole structure of the kadaif will change and the syrup won’t be able to absorb, merely fall through.
    • When it comes to syrup-soaked desserts, it is always crucial to pour cooled syrup over a warm dessert. This helps the dessert absorb the maximum amount of syrup to create a nice moist base.
    • Slicing the kadaif before pouring the syrup over it creates a bigger surface area. This means that there is a larger surface area for the syrup to be absorbed evenly and well.

    Nutrition

    • Serving Size:
    • Calories: 519
    • Sugar: 42.8 g
    • Sodium: 79.8 mg
    • Fat: 20.7 g
    • Carbohydrates: 79.3 g
    • Protein: 5.7 g
    • Cholesterol: 35.8 mg

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    1. Christine says

      May 05, 2021 at 1:31 pm

      I've eaten it once in Turkey and fell in love with it. My daughter brought me a package of those noodles. Know how to make kadaif now! Thank you for the step by step pictures!

      Reply
    2. Dritan says

      November 27, 2018 at 1:39 am

      Dear friends ! Can you help me with a recipe of dough of kadayif ?

      Thanks and best regards

      Reply
    3. Saheen says

      July 15, 2017 at 6:49 am

      Hi Zerin! Your pictures look great. Would really love to try the recipe. However, in sunny Singapore, we do not get kayadif dough. Do you have a recipe for the dough? Is kayadif basically phyllo pastry? I might be able to get hold of phyllo pastry.

      Reply
      • Zerrin says

        July 17, 2017 at 1:03 pm

        Hi Saheen! Thank you so much!
        I wish I had a recipe for kadayif dough, but I've never even thought of making the dough myself. I'm sorry but it's completely different from phyllo pastry. Is there a Middle East Market nearby? You might find it there. Another option would be online markets.
        Wish I could send you some from here 🙂

        Reply
    4. Kevin | keviniscooking says

      November 26, 2014 at 7:28 pm

      Thanks so much for this one, looks incredible! I recently made a 3 week stint across Turkey and found the country, food and people just amazing.

      Reply
    5. Chris at Hye Thyme Cafe says

      July 22, 2013 at 8:49 pm

      Dang! I got behind in my reading ... had I read this post when it came out, I would have tried this over the weekend! I had to make a batch of Cream-Filled Kadayif for a bridal shower, so rather than sending along a big tray, I used a 2" biscuit cutter to cut out rounds and put them in cupcake liners. Doing it your way is so much prettier with the domed top! I'll have to remember that next time. It looks like it probably bakes better this way too. I would sometimes find that the bottom layer was too raw, so I would layer half the dough in the bottom of the pan, pre-bake it for a bit, then add the filling and top layer. This would take more time to form, but the prettier end result is definitely worth it. 🙂

      Reply
      • Zerrin says

        July 22, 2013 at 11:36 pm

        Hi Chris, I'm sure yours looked and tasted great! Making these in Turkish coffee cups is really easy, you should try it next time!

        Reply
    6. Rosa says

      July 18, 2013 at 1:10 pm

      Oh, what a wonderful treat! Something I could eat until I get sick... 😉

      Cheers,

      Rosa

      Reply
    7. Karin Anderson says

      July 15, 2013 at 10:28 pm

      We had those in Istanbul, but, alas, no Turkish food here, and no kadayif 🙁

      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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    Zerrin & Yusuf

    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.

    More about us→

    POPULAR RECIPES

    • Chicken seasoning in a glass jar and a small spoon in it.
      Dry Rub For Chicken - Chicken Seasoning
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