Su Boregi (Turkish Water Pastry)
The king of boreks: silky boiled pastry layers laced with butter and white cheese, baked until the top crackles gold while the inside stays soft as noodles.
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Ingredients
8 large flat yufka sheets (2 x 500 g packs)
400 g Turkish white cheese, crumbled
1 bunch fresh parsley, finely chopped
200 g butter, melted
3 medium eggs
150 ml milk
100 ml sunflower oil
1 tbsp salt, for the boiling water
1 tsp nigella seeds, for the top (optional)
A large pot of water plus a bowl of cold water, for blanching
Instructions
- 1
Whisk the eggs with the milk, sunflower oil and half the melted butter to make the soaking liquid, and mix the cheese with the parsley for the filling.
- 2
Bring a large wide pot of water to a gentle boil with the salt, and set a large bowl of cold water next to it.
- 3
Butter a deep 30 cm baking tin and lay one unboiled yufka sheet on the base, letting the edges hang over the sides.
- 4
Boil the remaining sheets one at a time for 20-30 seconds, transfer each to the cold water, then drain gently between your hands.
- 5
Lay a boiled sheet in the tin, ruffling it slightly rather than stretching it flat, and spoon over some of the egg mixture; repeat, scattering the cheese filling over the middle layers.
- 6
Fold the overhanging edges in over the final boiled sheet, pour the remaining egg mixture and melted butter on top, and scatter with nigella seeds.
- 7
Bake at 190C fan for 40-45 minutes until the top is deeply golden and crisp at the edges.
- 8
Rest for 10 minutes, then cut into squares and serve warm with tea, olives and a proper Turkish breakfast spread.
Ask anyone from Turkey to name the ultimate borek and the answer is almost always su boregi — water borek. The pastry sheets are briefly boiled before being layered with butter and cheese, which is what gives this bake its extraordinary texture: a crisp, deeply golden crust hiding layers as soft and slippery as fresh pasta. It is the borek of bayram mornings and special-occasion breakfasts.
Traditionally each sheet is rolled by hand from an egg dough, but ready-made flat yufka delivers a wonderful result with a fraction of the work. The method still matters: slide each sheet into gently boiling salted water for just 20-30 seconds, lift it into cold water to stop the cooking, then drain — this quick blanch is the entire soul of the dish. Be generous with the melted butter between the layers; su boregi is not the moment for restraint.
Cut it into squares straight from the tin and serve warm with olives and endless glasses of Turkish tea. You will find flat yufka sheets, village-style butter and proper white cheese at Turkish Online Market, delivered anywhere in the UK.
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