Cumin

Kale Turkish "börek"

by:
January 17, 2014
0
0 Ratings
  • Serves 6-8
Author Notes

I'm an expat in Turkey and often adapt local recipes to my own taste. This is a variation of a variation ... traditional börek is often made with spinach, but I usually substitute with chard; here, I use kale! —Cecile

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • The Filling
  • 2 pounds kale
  • 2 red or white onions
  • to taste salt, black pepper, cumin, Turkish red pepper ("pul biber") or other flavourful paprika-type spice
  • a glog olive oil
  • The Pastry
  • 3 sheets of yufka, or substitute with phyllo but use 3 sheets of phyllo for each sheet of yufka
  • 1 cup yogurt
  • 1 egg
  • 1 splash of olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons black cumin seeds
Directions
  1. Wash and coarsely chop the kale; spin in a salad spinner or use some other method to remove as much water as you can.
  2. Chop and sautée the onions with olive oil; add garlic if you like; once wilted, add the spices and continue to sautée until the flavours have nicely distributed themselves throughout. Remove excess water.
  3. In a small bowl, mix a cup of plain yogurt and 1tbsp of olive oil. Brush onto 1 sheet of yufka, folded in half to make a half-circle.
  4. With the straight edge of the half circle closest to you, make a 2-cm-thick "line" of cooked kale all along that straight edge. Roll the yufka up until you have a "snake," then curl the snake into itself, making a rough "snail" type shape. Place on oiled baking sheet; I often use a spatula so that it doesn't fall apart. Repeat with remaining 2 sheets of yufka and kale.
  5. In another small bowl, whisk together 1 egg and a dash of olive oil; brush onto surface of rolled up "snails" on cookie sheet. Sprinkle with black cumin seeds and bake until golden brown, about 40 minutes, at 175 degrees Fahrenheit. Best served warm, cut into thirds or quarters.

See what other Food52ers are saying.

  • Cecile
    Cecile
  • haylee
    haylee

2 Reviews

Cecile March 25, 2014
"Kara lahana" is available at most farmers' markets and is to my knowledge the closest thing here to kale as we know it in North America -- just not the curly variety. I also often use chard (paz?).
 
haylee March 25, 2014
Hi! I'm an expat living in Istanbul and I'm wondering- where do you find kale?!