The queen of all pastries, our traditional su böreği (water börek) has been passed down from our grandmothers. Here is the easiest way to make this beloved layered savory pastry.
5 water glasses (about 200 ml / 3/4 cup + 1 tbsp each) flour
4 eggs
Half a water glass of water
Half a dessert spoon of salt
For boiling:
1.5 liters of hot water
Half a dessert spoon of salt
1 tablespoon of vegetable oil
For greasing the dough layers and the baking tray:
400 g (about 14 oz) butter
Half a water glass of vegetable oil
For the filling:
400 g (about 14 oz) white cheese (similar to feta)
1 bunch of parsley
How to Make Su Böreği (Turkish Water Börek)
Add 5 water glasses of flour and half a dessert spoon of salt to a large bowl. Make a well in the center of the flour with your hands. Add 4 eggs and begin incorporating the flour from the edges inward. Gradually add half a water glass of water to bring the dough together. Transfer the dough to your kitchen counter and knead, pressing with your palms, until it becomes firm and smooth. Divide the prepared dough into 10 equal portions. Flour the counter surface. Using a rolling pin, roll out two of the dough portions slightly larger than your baking tray — roll these very thin and set aside. (Do not boil these.) Roll out the remaining eight dough portions slightly thicker than the first two, sized proportionally to your baking tray. To boil the rolled-out dough sheets: pour 1.5 liters of hot water, half a dessert spoon of salt, and 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil into a deep pot. Add the dough sheets to the boiling water one by one. Check constantly and gently turn each sheet with a colander to prevent tearing, boiling until softened. Transfer the boiled dough sheets one by one into a bowl of cold water, then place them on a wire strainer to drain.
For the börek filling: Finely chop 1 bunch of parsley. Using a fork, crumble 400 g of white cheese. Mix together with the chopped parsley.
Melt 400 g of butter together with half a water glass of vegetable oil in a small saucepan.
Grease the baking tray with butter. Lay one of the unboiled dough sheets (the ones rolled larger than the tray) on the bottom of the tray. Drizzle 2 tablespoons of the melted butter mixture over it. Lay one of the 8 boiled dough sheets on top, sized proportionally to the tray. Drizzle another 2 tablespoons of butter mixture over it. Repeat this process until you have 4 layers. After greasing the 4th layer, spread the prepared cheese filling on top and continue layering the remaining boiled dough sheets on top. (Grease every layer.) Fold the overhanging edges of the bottom unboiled dough sheet inward over the filling. Place the second unboiled dough sheet on the very top of the tray. Tuck any overhanging edges down toward the base of the tray with your hands. Brush the top with the remaining butter mixture. Bake the su böreği in a preheated oven at 180°C (350°F) until the top is golden. Allow to rest at room temperature for 10–15 minutes to set before slicing and serving.
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