- Vegetarian
This spinach and feta gozleme are bursting with aromatic flavour. If you are a flat-bread fan, then this is a must!
- Makes6
- Cook time40 minutes
- Prep time30 minutes, (+ overnight resting time)
Ingredients
- 4 cups (600g) plain flour
- 2 tsp salt
- 1 2/3 cups (410ml) warm water
- 1/4 cup (60ml) olive oil
- 120g baby spinach leaves, coarsely chopped
- 200g feta, crumbled
- Lemon wedges, to serve
Check ingredient labels to make sure they meet your specific dietary requirements and always consult a health professional before changing your diet. View dietary information here.
Percentage Daily Intake information on our recipes is calculated using the nutrition reference values for an average Australian adult.
Method
Step 1
Sift the flour and salt into a bowl. Make a well in the centre. Add the water and 2 tbs oil. Stir until a sticky dough comes together. Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 10 mins or until smooth and elastic. Cover and set aside to rest overnight.
Step 2
Divide dough into 6 portions. Roll out 1 portion on a lightly floured surface to a 20cm x 40cm rectangle. Sprinkle half the dough with a little spinach and feta, leaving a 2cm border around the edge. Fold dough over to enclose the filling, pinching the edges to seal. Repeat with the remaining dough, spinach and feta.
Step 3
Heat a barbecue flat plate or large frying pan on high. Brush the dough with remaining oil. Cook, in batches, for 2-3 mins each side or until golden brown and crisp.
Step 4
Cut gozleme into strips. Season with pepper and serve with lemon wedges.
Spinach & feta gozleme recipe
Gozleme (pronounced gerz-leh-meh) could well be the queen of street-food snacks. These days in Australia they’re known as a market-stall favourite - you can usually identify the gozleme stand by the long queue snaking around it and the smoke billowing out from the hotplate - but these crisp, golden and delicious Turkish flatbreads stuffed with an array of savoury fillings have been devoured in Turkey for hundreds, perhaps thousands, of years. Thought to have originated in the Anatolian region, they’re traditionally eaten as a breakfast snack or fast food, available from a cafe or street stall.
Although there are many different gozleme recipes with various filling options, including spiced lamb or beef mince and potato, and even sweet fillings which traditionalists may find objectionable, one of the favourites in Australia is the simple classic, spinach and feta gozleme.
How to make gozleme
Part of the joy of gozleme is either watching it being made fresh in front of you, or making it yourself. And as they’re really just a basic flatbread (the Turkish answer to a quesadilla, if you will), they’re very easy to make. A simple no-yeast dough of flour, salt, water and oil is rolled, kneaded and stretched until thin, then shaped into a rectangle. Then it’s time for the best part - the addition of any fillings your gozleme-loving-heart desires.
For a vegetarian gozleme, you can’t go past the classic fresh baby spinach and feta. Don’t be stingy with the fillings - once the dough is folded over the fillings, sealed and brushed with a little oil, and pan-fried on a barbecue or in a frying pan until crisp and golden, you want it oozing with cheesy goodness for the ultimate savoury snack.
Other popular gozleme fillings include spiced lamb or beef mince with fried onion, potato or various types of cheese, or any combination of other vegetables and meats. At Australian market stalls you’ll also find sweet gozleme filled with everything from fruits such as bananas and berries to Nutella.
What to serve with gozleme
Gozleme are designed to be eaten as a snack, fresh and hot straight from the pan, perhaps while you’re on the go. The only thing you really need to serve them with is a fresh wedge of lemon for squeezing over, which adds a delicious dose of sourness that cuts through the richness and spice and accentuates the flavours of your filling. You may like to add extra sprinklings of salt, pepper or chilli flakes, or enjoy your homemade version with a side salad or a yoghurt sauce for drizzling, however these classic flatbreads are an enviable bite all on their own. However you eat them, they certainly won’t last long!
Now get cooking
Once you’ve mastered the spinach and feta gozleme, try some more tempting Middle Eastern-style snacks and dishes, check out our Green shakshuka, Spiced Chickpea Tabouli or Pea hummus.
