Last week when I went to Atlanta with my daughter to the AWA (Anime Week Atlanta) Convention, I spent some of my time checking out the wonderful Turkish Bakkal in Sandy Springs. In Turkey, a bakkal is a little neighborhood store where you can buy many household essentials. This one was just a few miles up the interstate from where we were staying and extremely easy to find. The service was excellent and if you live in this area, I suggest you check them out for yourself. If you are not in the area, you can still get some great Turkish items delivered right to your door. Check out Bakkal international Foods and of course you can order the yufka dough and cheese needed for the Sigara Böreği ‘Cigarette Börek’ recipe that I will be sharing with you today.
The ingredients for this recipe are simple: yufka, white cheese, dill, parsley and cooking oil.
Rolling Sigara Böreği ‘Cigarette Börek’ may seem intimidating but it is really simple. Just place the cheese, dill and parsley mixture on the wide end of the yufka, take the top end and roll over the mixture. Next you will tuck in the side ends toward the center and roll to the end. You will need to put a dab of water on the tip and make sure it adheres so it does not open back up while cooking. You may hear these called Kalem Böreği ‘Pencil Börek’ due to some people not wanting to promote or encourage cigarettes.
First and foremost, never, NEVER, never leave hot oil unattended. You knew that anyway but just wanted to remind you! Heat your oil to about 325 degrees and place several Börek’s into the hot oil. Please do not get in a hurry and overcrowd your pan. It really only takes a couple of minutes to cook all of them up. They only need to cook until golden brown. Mine took about 3-4 minutes per batch.
Drain your börek on a plate lined with paper towels. Serve them warm or at room temperature. To be honest if there are any left, I will eat them cold out of the fridge . . . that is how tasty they are to me. We served ours with a delicious salad that my daughter, Stella prepared for us. They go well with Turkish Cay (hot tea) or as an appetizer with drinks! Give this recipe a try! I know you will love it!
- 2-3 Cups Cooking Oil
- 1 Package Yufka (I used the ones already cut into triangles but you can get the round ones and cut into triangles yourself)
- 12 ounces Beyaz Peynir (White Cheese) or Feta
- 3-4 Tablespoons Fresh Dill (You can substitute dried)
- ½ Cup Parsley finely chopped
- Mix the cheese, dill and parsley in a bowl until well combined.
- Take a sheet of the yufka and place about 1 to 1½ tablespoons filling slightly down from the top on the long end of the yufka.
- Fold the top over the filling, then fold the side edges in toward the center like an envelope. Continue to roll down to the end then seal the tip with a little water so it will adhere and not open during cooking.
- When you have about half of the package of yufka rolled into böreks, you can start to heat your oil.
- The amount of oil you use will depend on the pan that you are going to use for cooking your börek.
- Fill your pan ⅓ or a little more with cooking oil.
- Heat the oil to 325 degrees.
- While the oil is heating, continue rolling the börek.
- Once the oil is at the desired temperature, slowly place about 5-6 borek in the pan cooking a couple of minutes per side until just golden brown.
- Drain the börek on a paper towel lined plate.
- Continue cooking in batches until all the börek are cooked.
- Serve warm or at room temperature. Afiyet olsun!
