Turkish Pide Bread: an easy recipe for a soft no-knead loaf

Soft, fluffy with an airy texture and crispy crust, traditional Turkish pide bread is a delicious staple dish you'll find in every home across Turkey. It's a no-knead bread, which means there's less work involved, and the results are amazing. Turkish pide can be eaten at breakfast, lunch, or dinner, or even with some cheese or jam as a snack. In Turkey, it's an essential part of any breakfast, but there's truly never a bad time to sink your teeth into a loaf of pide. Ready to get baking? Here's everything you need to know about making traditional Turkish pide bread.

What is Turkish Pide Bread?

Turkish pide bread is a soft, leavened bread that is traditionally made in clay ovens. It's also called ramazan pidesi, and many people will eat it to break their fast during Ramadan. Pide bread is easy to make at home and is a must-try recipe for anyone who loves the taste of freshly baked homemade bread.

Ingredients for Turkish Pide Bread

Pide bread is made with everyday ingredients like flour, eggs, milk, oil, and yeast. Adding eggs, olive oil, and milk to the dough enriches it, and helps to give pide bread its wonderful flavor and soft texture. You'll also need some yogurt, an extra egg yolk, and sesame seeds to make the glaze and serve as a garnish. The glaze helps the pide bread get a rich golden brown, while the sesame seeds serve as a tasty yet eye-catching garnish.

How to Make Turkish Pide Bread

To make homemade pide bread, combine the warmed milk, warm water, olive oil, sugar, salt, and yeast in a large bowl. Stir in the flour and once a dough begins to form, cover the bowl and leave it to sit for 30 minutes. Flour a clean work surface and turn the dough out. Shape it into a ball, cut it into 8 pieces, then put 2 of the pieces onto a parchment-lined baking sheet. Cover and leave them for another 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, start preheating your oven. Place an empty baking pan on the lower rack of your oven. While the oven heats, whisk the egg yolk, water, and yogurt together. Brush the glaze onto the dough and shape them into circles. Use your fingertips to make a diamond pattern on the surface of the dough then leave them to rise for another 10 minutes. Pour 2 cups of water into the baking dish in the oven, then sprinkle the rounds with sesame seeds and bake them for 15 to 18 minutes. Once they're out of the oven, cover the loaves with a damp cloth to help them stay soft.

Tips for Traditional Turkish Pide Bread

– Use a decent quality olive oil for this recipe. It'll make your pide bread taste even better.

– Use warm milk and warm water so the yeast activates.

– Keep the dough covered when you're not working with it so it doesn't dry out.

– Glaze the dough before shaping it. This makes it easier to work with.

– If you prefer, you can make 2 large (or 4 medium) loaves instead of 8 smaller ones. Cook larger loaves for 20 to 25 minutes.

– Don't forget to cover the loaves with a damp towel once they come out of the oven. This helps trap steam and helps keep them super soft.

– While this recipe calls for all-purpose flour, you could easily use some whole wheat. Swap out 1 ½ cup all-purpose flour for whole wheat. Using all whole wheat flour in this recipe would yield a denser, less fluffy bread, so it's not recommended.

What to Serve with Turkish Pide

There are several ways to enjoy Turkish pide bread. Have it at breakfast with jam, butter, cheese, or your other favorite breakfast bites. It's fantastic with egg recipes, especially traditional Turkish dishes like cilbir and menemen, but you can serve it with simple scrambled eggs or a frittata as well. It's great with hummus and other mezze and is perfect for mopping up stews, casseroles, and soups.

How to Store Turkish Pide Bread

Keep your pide in a bread bag or bread container at room temperature for up to 2 days. You can reheat the pide by dabbing it with a little water and baking it for 5 to 10 minutes at 250°F.

Instructions

Whisk milk, water, olive oil, sugar, salt, and yeast in a large bowl to combine.

Gradually mix in the flour. Once a dough forms, cover and leave for 30 minutes.

Flour a work surface. Turn out the dough and shape it into a ball. Cut it into 8 equal pieces.

Line a baking tray with parchment paper. Put 2 of the dough balls onto the sheet, cover, and leave for 20 minutes.

Preheat your oven to 400°F and put an empty baking dish on the lowest rack.

Whisk egg, yogurt, and water in a bowl. Brush the glaze onto the dough, then shape the dough into a circle about ½ inch thick.

Make several indentations around the edge of the dough to form a circle. Make 2 diagonal lines of indentations across the dough to form diamonds. Cover and leave for 10 minutes. Repeat with remaining dough.

Repeat the indentations. Garnish dough with sesame seeds.

Pour 2 cups of water into the empty baking dish. Bake for 15 to 18 minutes, or until golden brown.

Remove from oven and cover with a damp paper towel. Repeat with remaining dough. Allow the loaves to cool slightly before serving.

Notes

Use room temperature ingredients.