Feta and Kale Borek: the Recipe for a Turkish Savory Pie!

If you love Spanakopita, you’ll love this recipe! Similar to the Greek spanakopita, Turkish Borek is made by filling phyllo pastry with greens and feta cheese. Spinach is most traditionally used, but for this recipe, we used kale. Turkish Borek is great as an appetizer, but can also be enjoyed as a light meal. Layers of crispy, flaky phyllo dough are filled with a creamy, flavorful kale and feta mixture. Baked until golden, you have crunch in every bite! While it might look like a difficult recipe, it’s actually very easy. You cook the kale, mix it with feta cheese, and use it as a filling. The phyllo dough is rolled into spirals, brushed with butter, and baked. As easy as that! It has a delicate balance of flavors and texture and is sure to impress your guests.

What Is Turkish Borek?

Turkish Borek and Spanakopita are both made with flaky pastries filled with a spinach and feta filling. It’s said the earliest ancestor of borek is the Byzantine plakous, a flat cake with layers of pastry, honey, cheese, or nuts. Recent ethnographic research shows that it was created by Central Asian nomadic Turks before the 7th century. Other sources say it was a favorite dish in the Ottoman Empire during the 14th century. Borek, also known as burek, byrek, boureki, or brik is usually prepared with a phyllo-like dough that can be baked or fried. It’s either made as one large pastry that’s cut into individual servings after baking, or it can be made into small pastries. Borek can be served straight out of the oven, cold, or at room temperature.

Tips

• You can also substitute the kale with spinach or Swiss chard.
• For added crunch, sprinkle the borek with sesame seeds, nigella seeds, or poppy seeds before baking.
• You can substitute the feta cheese with ricotta. The filling will be less salty.
• You can also use frozen spinach instead of kale. Allow the spinach to thaw completely, then squeeze out the excess moisture.
• Phyllo pastry can be very fiddly, so handle it very carefully. If using frozen phyllo pastry, remember to thaw it in the fridge overnight.

How To Store Turkish Borek

Store leftovers in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat in the oven for 10 minutes. Reheating it in the microwave will make them go soggy.

Is Borek Like Spanakopita?

Turkish Borek (also called burek) and Greek Spanakopita are both made with a flaky pastry like phyllo dough. Spanakopita is usually made with a slightly thicker dough and is often made with puff pastry instead.

Do You Serve Borek Hot or Cold?

Borek is delicious when served either hot or cold, or at room temperature.

Can I Make Borek in the Airfryer?

Yes, you can! Place the rolls in a single layer in the air fryer basket, and air fry at 200°C/400°F for about 20 minutes until golden and cooked through.

Can I Make It Ahead of Time?

Yes, you can! To make the borek ahead of time, make the filling and assemble the phyllo dough rolls. Place on a baking sheet. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. Bake adding 5 to 10 minutes to the cooking time.

How To Make Borek

Transfer the kale leaves to the pot with the water and boil them for 1 minute. Remove from the heat.

Chop the kale leaves finely and mix with the cheese and a pinch of salt to prepare the filling.

Take the sheet of phyllo dough and transfer it to the cutting board. Brush with the melted butter.

Cover with another phyllo dough and repeat the process with melted butter.

Transfer the kale mixture on top of the phyllo dough.

Then, carefully roll the pastry up tightly around the filling.

Now twist the roll into a spiral.

Transfer the phyllo spiral to the baking tray. The place the other roll around it.

Continue with another roll to fill the baking tray. Brush with egg wash and transfer to the oven.

Bake at 180°C/360°F for 35 minutes.

Serve warm, or at room temperature. Enjoy!