When it comes to tradition, I absolutely love going back to my home roots and trying out new things! This Caramelised Cabbage and Leek Turkish Borek has been around for years, it’s a family favourite and it can be made with any filling you fancy!
Börek or Turkish Pastry comes in so many different shapes and sizes, so you’re spoilt for choice with creativity, and as for taste, they are absolutely delicious!
Rolled to perfection!
The Different Shapes of your Turkish Pastry
I made my Caramelised Cabbage and Leek Turkish Borek into small spiral shapes as I feel, not only do they look better appearance-wise, but they’re also much easier to demolish! Having your own personal borek to devour is always good 🙂
There are many others shapes Borek can be made into, altogether in one dish or separately, in a mixture of shapes. They all follow the same steps, by putting the filo sheets on top of each other but how many filo sheets is what changes, along with the end shape of course.
You can choose to make a whole spiral in one dish and once cooked, cut into slices as you would cut a cake. Or you can choose to make it flat in a Pyrex dish or cast iron dish, with the sheets stacked on top of each other, also like a cake! For this, you would need a runnier mixture and have each filo sheet dipped inside the mixture to get nice crinkled layers in your Pastry.
Turkish Borek can also be made into a roll and bent into a U-shape. A very popular shape amongst Turks and Kurds, or rolled like baklawa and cut into straight lines in the Pyrex. Time to get creative!
The Creative Fillings
Variation doesn’t just come in shapes and sizes, but also filling! In Turkey, a popular type and one of the best-known fillings used is Patatesli Borek, giving you a potato-filled pastry. They taste absolutely delicious and everyone will love them, these recipes are the perfect appetiser or side dish that everyone will love, I cannot guarantee anything more!
Ispanak Borek is also one of my favourites and a traditional filling for your Borek! It’s a delicious mix of spinach, feta and leek, mixed together and stuffed in your filo sheets. Have you tried my Homemade Spinach Basil Feta Borek? Check it out here.
Another filling that you wouldn’t want to miss trying is Kiymali Borek, a minced meat filling which will be your new favourite.
A Turkish Pastry made with Flaky Filo
Top Tips for your Rolled Caramelised Cabbage and Leek Turkish Borek
When putting your Borek design together, you can choose whichever design you like, rectangular, square of circle, but most importantly, make sure you have at least 2 layers of filo pastry at the bottom to make it easy to cut and serve.
Rolling your filo pastry is easy when all goes smoothly, but can become is the hardest part of this dish when it starts to crack. Keep brushing your oil and egg mixture with every little roll and top the borek with the mixture to keep it moist.
This is a quick recipe to put together so enjoy the process, its quite therapeutic and definitely enjoy the tasty result 🙂
Ingredients
- Filo Sheets
- Feta Cheese
- Leek
- Egg
- Oil
- Cabbage
- Black Pepper
- Sesame Seeds
Step by Step
Start by chopping up the leeks and cabbages finely. Pour 1/4 cup of oil into the frying pan with the black pepper and sauté altogether until they start to brown and caramelize. This usually takes about 10 minutes on medium heat.
Here’s a video so you can see exactly how I roll them.
Crumble the feta on top of the mixture and give it a small mix. Do not over mix it because the heat will completely melt the feta and it wouldn’t show in your dish.
In a bowl, whisk the remaining oil and 2 eggs. Lay 2 sheets of filo pastry, one at a time, on top of each other and brush the egg and oil mixture over the surface of the top filo sheet.
Put a line of the filling on the brushed sheets longways.
Start to roll it slowly. You may notice that the filo sheet breaks and doesn’t roll properly – what to do in this case, is keep brushing the mixture on the filo sheet as your roll so the dough stays nice and wet, stopping it from breaking.
Also, this keeps the borek roll crispy while its baking in the oven.
Gently, roll the pastry into a spiral shape. If it does get a bit crackish, brush the top with the same oil and egg mixture and sprinkle some sesame seeds on top.
Put your tray in a preheated oven at 180 degrees and bake for about 30 minutes or until golden. It is better if it cooks on medium heat rather than high heat to make sure the borek rolls are cooked thoroughly, all the way through.
Serve and enjoy! 🙂
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I serve this dish?
This dish can be served both as the main dish or beside tasty salad! It can also be served with yogurt.
What exactly is Borek?
A traditional Turkish cuisine, very simple to make, made from filo dough and stuffed with various stuffing.
How do I store leftover Borek?
You can store your leftover pastry in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
If you do make this recipe, please tag me on Pinterest or Instagram so I can see! It’s my favorite thing to scroll through stories and see what you are all making.
And of course feel free to leave any questions, comments, or reviews! This is the best place to reach me, and I’d love to hear from you 🙂
Recipes You Must Try
- The Best Simple Cookie Dough Recipe
- Roasted Vegetable Chickpea Couscous Salad With Sultanas
- Sweet Pepper and Dill Salmon with Buttery Dill Rice
- Turkish Pepper and Egg Shakshuka
- Turkish Bulgur Pilaf with Chicken
Caramelised Cabbage and Leek Turkish Borek
Ingredients
Instructions
-
Start by chopping up the leeks and cabbages finely. Pour 1/4 cup of oil into the frying pan with the black pepper and sauté altogether until they start to brown and caramelize. This usually takes about 10 minutes on medium heat.
-
Crumble the feta on top of the mixture and give it a small mix. Do not over mix it because the heat will completely melt the feta and it wouldn’t show in your dish.
-
In a bowl, whisk the remaining oil and 2 eggs. Lay 2 sheets of filo pastry, one at a time, on top of each other and brush the egg and oil mixture over the surface of the top filo sheet.
-
Put a line of food mix through longways.
-
Start to roll it slowly. You may notice that the filo sheet breaks and doesn’t roll properly – what to do in this case, is keep brushing the mixture on the filo sheet as your roll so the dough stays nice and wet, stopping it from breaking.
-
Also, this keeps the borek roll crispy while its baking in the oven.
-
Gently, roll the pastry into a spiral shape. If it does get a bit crackish, brush the top with the same oil and egg mixture and sprinkle some sesame seeds on top.
-
Put your tray in a preheated oven at 180 degrees and bake for about 30 minutes or until golden. It is better if it cooks on medium heat rather than high heat to make sure the borek rolls are cooked thoroughly, all the way through.
-
Serve and enjoy!
