Yufka
As Yufka ( Turkish ) refers to both a thinly rolled-out dough of Turkish cuisine ( Yufka-Hamur ) and a widespread and very thin flat bread ( Yufka-Ekmek ), the z from the dough. B. on special round sheets ( Sac ) or on the wall of an earth oven ( Tandır ) is baked.
etymology
The Turkish word yufka originally means "thin", "fragile", "brittle". Since the Yufka dough and the Yufka flatbread are very thin, the term was transferred.
Yufka flatbread
The dough for the Yufka flatbread is mostly made from flour , water and salt . Also called Yufka in the Turkish language are often Lavaş (a slightly thicker, usually two-layer flatbread), Dürüm Ekmeği ("roll bread") or Sac Ekmeği ("Sadsch bread" or "tin bread", as it is on one hot tray is baked). Yufka flatbread usually has a diameter of about 30 to 70 centimeters and a thickness of one to five millimeters, depending on the use.
The classic, very thin Yufka flatbread with a large diameter of up to 60–70 cm has always been baked in Turkey with unleavened dough and without other leavening agents such as yeast exclusively on a round tray under which an open fire burns. In rural areas of Turkey this is still done today. After briefly baking for two to three minutes, this Yufka flatbread has many small brown burn marks and small bubbles from contact with the hot tray. However, it is not soft, but has a firm structure; it is very crispy and brittle. These flatbreads are baked in advance, then stacked on top of each other, stored in a cool and dry place and, due to the low moisture content of the bread, can be kept for several weeks or even months. To eat only as many flatbreads as necessary are sprinkled or moistened with water a little so that they become soft, and then folded into a rectangle. Then they are wrapped or covered with a cloth for a few minutes so that the moisture can spread. These can only be kept for a few days and are therefore intended for immediate consumption.
Ready-made, industrially produced Yufka dough sheets and flatbreads are available in Turkish grocery stores and some supermarkets in Western Europe. In Turkey, industrially produced yufka dough sheets are now also widely used in shops and supermarkets.
Somewhat thicker flatbread with a smaller diameter is used, for example, to make Dürüm ("rolled up"). To do this, various ingredients such as meat, vegetables, sauces or cheese are placed in the open flatbread and then rolled or wrapped. The Dürüm are very similar to Mexican Tortilla , Fajita and Burrito .
Yufka is very widespread in Europe thanks to the Dürüm-Döner ("rolled up doner"): a doner kebab (Turkish grilled meat), in which the meat and the remaining ingredients are wrapped in a particularly thin flatbread. This is also known as Yufka Kebab .
Yufka batter
The classic Yufka dough, like Yufka flatbread, consists only of flour, water and a little salt. This dough is first formed into tangerine-sized balls that weigh around 150-200 grams, and then rolled out very thinly so that it is almost transparent, but still does not tear. The Yufka dough is used in Turkish cuisine for the production of various salty and sweet baked goods such as B. Baklava , Börek and Gözleme are used.
These specialties are also widespread in Southeastern Europe , the Middle East and now also in Western Europe. In some recipes, vegetable oil and / or baker's yeast are also used in the dough . This smooth dough is rolled out after a short rest, brushed with oil, folded up several times like puff pastry (rolled) and rolled out again very thinly. Touring can be omitted if the dough has been rolled out very thinly and several layers of oil are coated on top of each other during further processing.
distribution
A dough very similar to the Yufka is also widespread in the Levant , as is the preparation of the classic Yufka flatbread on a hot tray. In the countries of Syria , Lebanon , Israel , Jordan and in the Palestinian autonomous regions , Yufka is known as “Lafa”, “Tabun”, “Markuk” or “Schrak”. In western cuisine, such dough sheets are also called fyllo or filo dough (from the Greek φύλλον "leaf") and since the 1990s they have been increasingly appreciated as a coating for tender meat and fish parts that can be fried or baked so gently.
In Poland they know a flatbread called Podpłomyk , which is very similar to Yufka. In Italy, similar thin pastry Ligurian focaccia or piadina of Romagna. The pita, on the other hand, is a thicker flatbread in Greece and the Middle East.
