Gozleme in the UK: what it is, how to order it, where to find it
Quick answer
Gözleme is a thin hand-rolled flatbread folded around a filling of cheese, spinach, potato or minced meat and cooked on a domed griddle called a sac until it is blistered and golden. It is village food, made by women rolling dough at a low table in front of you, and in the UK it is sold at Turkish cafés, markets and festivals. It is one of the cheapest and most satisfying things to eat, and it is at its best straight off the griddle.
Calories and nutrition
- Calories
- 480
- Protein
- 18 g
- Carbs
- 52 g
- Fat
- 22 g
- Salt
- 1.8 g
400–580 kcal
Portion: One cheese and spinach gözleme, about 250 g.
Potato gözleme is similar; minced meat is about 80 kcal more.
Estimates for a typical portion, based on standard UK and USDA food composition data. Actual values depend on the recipe and the restaurant.
What gözleme is
An unleavened dough of flour, water, salt and a little oil is rolled with a long thin pin, the oklava, into a sheet almost as large as the griddle and thin enough to see through. The filling goes on one half, the dough is folded into a rectangle, brushed with butter and cooked on both sides on the hot sac. The classic fillings are white cheese with parsley or spinach, spiced potato, and minced meat with onion; combinations are common. It is cut into strips and served immediately, and it takes about five minutes from rolling to plate. The name comes from göz, eye, for the spots of colour that blister on the surface.
Gözleme versus börek versus pide
All three are dough and filling, but gözleme is unleavened, rolled thin and cooked on a griddle, not baked; börek is layered pastry baked in the oven; pide is a raised bread dough baked in an oven. Gözleme is the lightest and fastest of the three and the only one usually made to order in front of you. It is the thing to eat at a market or a café counter, not a sit-down restaurant, and it is almost always the cheapest option.
How to judge it
Watch it being made; if the dough was rolled that day and the filling is generous, it will be good. The bread should be thin with dark blisters and a soft inside, and the butter brushed on at the end should be real butter. A gözleme that is thick or doughy was rolled by someone in a hurry. Cheese and spinach should be moist, potato should be spiced with pepper flakes, meat should be cooked before it goes in. It should be eaten within minutes; it goes leathery as it cools.
Where in the UK it is done well
Turkish cafés and bakeries in North London, and the Turkish stalls at London's street food markets, make gözleme to order. It is a common café dish in Manchester, Birmingham and Leeds too. The ranking below counts Turkish businesses in our directory whose name signals gözleme or a café.
How to order it
Order it where you can see it rolled. Spinach and cheese is the classic; potato is the comfort order; meat is the heaviest. Ask for extra butter and a glass of ayran. One is a snack, two is lunch.
Where it's done well
UK councils with the most gozleme specialists, by restaurant name, in our directory.
Restaurants near you
Search by postcode or use your location to find restaurants likely to serve gozleme near you.
Make it at home
Serves 4 · 45 min
Ingredients
- 300 g plain flour
- half a tsp salt
- 150 ml warm water
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 200 g feta or white cheese, crumbled
- 150 g spinach, wilted, squeezed dry and chopped
- a handful of parsley, chopped, black pepper
- butter for brushing
Method
- Mix the flour and salt, add the water and oil, and knead for five minutes to a smooth firm dough. Rest, covered, for 30 minutes.
- Mix the cheese, spinach, parsley and pepper for the filling.
- Divide the dough in four. Roll each piece as thin as you can on a floured surface into a large round or square.
- Spread a quarter of the filling over half the sheet, fold the other half over, and press the edges.
- Cook on a dry hot frying pan or griddle for two to three minutes each side until blistered. Brush with butter, cut into strips and eat immediately.
The thinner you roll, the better; a long thin rolling pin or a wine bottle works. Do not overfill or it will not cook through.