Kır Pidesi Recipe
Kır pidesi is a type of pide generally sold in tiny shop at a really reasonable price in Turkey. Normally in pide shops you first order your pide and they prepare it. But in kır pidesi shops the pides are prepared beforehand and you just buy them like a bagel. That's why it is usually preferred by students and working people.
For me, kır pidesi (Turkish flatbread) means university years. We often filled our stomachs with cheap kır pidesi from those buffet-style bakeries where ready-made kır pidesi were piled up in front. I must have done this so frequently and eaten so many poor-quality ones that I eventually grew tired of kır pidesi. I haven't eaten much of it since university.
After making these kır pidesi, I asked my husband, who had the same university experience, how they turned out. He said, "Not quite good. You used quality ingredients." Indeed, it was difficult to find kır pidesi made with good ingredients. The point wasn’t for it to be high quality or delicious, but to be cheap and filling. But if you got lucky and found a good one, it was a real treat.
These homemade kır pidesi are also the kind that make you say, "This is a real treat." Not every bakery uses peppers, but I love them in both kır pidesi and ground beef pides. I use green if I have green, and red if I have red. I adore the slight sweetness of red peppers and the freshness of green peppers. You can use whichever you have on hand or leave them out if you don't like them.
You can also shape them however you like. Some bakeries make them more cylindrical, while others make them flatter like this. I prefer them thin like this. I guess I still haven’t gotten over the trauma of the pastry like soft pides I had to eat during my university days.
One must-have for kır pidesi is butter, which is spread on top as soon as they come out of the oven. Don't even think about replacing it with liquid oil or margarine. If you don’t have butter, it’s better to leave them plain.
Enjoy the recipe...
Kır Pidesi Recipe with Video
Ingredients
For the dough:
- 4.5-5 cups of flour,
- 2 cups of warm water,
- 3 tablespoons olive oil,
- 1 tablespoon of sugar,
- 10 g of instant yeast,
- 1 teaspoon of salt.
For the filling:
- 300 g of lean ground beef,
- 1/2 cup of grated tomatoes,
- 1 onion,
- 1 green pepper,
- Salt,
- Black pepper.
For the topping:
- Water and butter.
Preparation
- For the dough, mix the water, olive oil, sugar, and yeast in a bowl,
- Gradually add the flour and start kneading,
- Add the salt halfway through,
- Continue adding the remaining flour and knead until you get a soft dough,
- Cover and let it rise until it doubles in size,
- Knead the dough again, divide it into eight pieces, and let them rest, covered, for about ten minutes,
- Meanwhile, chop the onion and pepper finely or blend them in a food processor,
- In a bowl, mix the ground beef, onion, pepper, grated tomatoes, salt, and black pepper,
- Take one of the dough pieces onto a floured surface and press it into a round shape with your hands,
- Place one-eighth of the filling on half of the dough and fold the other half over it,
- Press down with your hands and stretch it out from the sides,
- Place the pide on a baking tray,
- Prepare two more and place them on the tray,
- Make long, shallow grooves on top with your moistened fingers,
- Bake in a preheated oven at 190°C (375°F) until golden brown,
- As soon as they come out of the oven, brush them with butter.
Enjoy your meal!