Kiymali Borek

4.86 from 7 votes

These kiymali borek parcels are filled with spiced ground beef and onions and wrapped in yufka. They bake in about half an hour and freeze well, so I always make a double batch.

Prep Time30

Cook Time35

Total Time1 5

Course: Appetizer, Breakfast, Main Course, Side Dish, Snack

Cuisine: Mediterranean, Middle Eastern, Turkish

Diet: Low Lactose, Low Salt

Servings: boreks

Calories: 190kcal

Author: Ayla Clulee

Ingredients

For the Mince Filling

14 oz ground beef or lamb (400 grams)
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 medium onions (finely chopped)
2 cloves garlic (finely chopped)
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon paprika (use chili or hot paprika if you want spicy)
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

For the Sauce

1 medium egg
⅓ cup vegetable oil
⅓ cup milk
2 tablespoon Greek yogurt or natural yogurt
1 tablespoon cider vinegar or white wine vinegar

For Building the Borek

3 pieces yufka sheets
2 tbsps melted butter for brushing (30 grams)
sesame seeds, nigella seeds or poppy seeds

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Make the Meat Filling

Put a heavy-based pan on medium heat and brown the ground meat until it releases its fat.
Add the olive oil only if the meat has not released enough fat, then saute the onions with the garlic until soft and translucent.
Add salt, freshly ground black pepper and paprika, remove from the heat and let it cool down while preparing the sauce.

Make the Sauce

Whisk an egg in a medium-sized bowl.
Add vegetable oil, milk, yoghurt and vinegar to the eggs and whisk until combined.

Layer the Yufka Sheets

Preheat the oven to 180° C - 356° F.
Lay one sheet of yufka on a clean work surface.
Drizzle 1-1 ½ tablespoon of the sauce and spread it evenly using a brush.
Fold one rounded side towards the middle and then fold the opposite rounded side to meet in the middle.
Drizzle some sauce just enough to lightly cover the pastry and spread it with the brush.
Fold the other rounded sides towards the middle to form a square parcel.

Cut and Fold the Parcels

Brush lightly with sauce and cut them into 4 squares.
Place a large spoonful of mince filling in the middle of each pastry squares.
Fold each of the corners toward the middle to form a square parcel, gently press in the middle where all the corners meet and turn the pastry upside down.
Repeat the same steps for the 2 other yufka pieces.
Line a baking tray with silicone paper and place the borek parcels ¼" - ½ cm away from each other.

Brush and Bake the Borek

Add melted butter to the sauce. If you don't have any sauce left, just use the melted butter.
Brush your pastries with the sauce and butter mixture evenly.
Sprinkle on some sesame seeds, nigella seeds or poppy seeds.
Place the tray in the hot oven and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until they have turned golden brown and crispy.

Making It as a Tray Bake (Optional)

Use the same three sheets of yufka. Tear or cut each one to fit your dish, and keep the offcuts to fill the gaps at the edges.
Brush the dish with butter, lay in a sheet, spoon over some sauce and spread it out, then do the same with a second sheet.
Spread all of the filling over the top, then finish with the remaining pastry, brushing sauce between every layer.
Cut the borek into squares before it goes in the oven, then pour any sauce that is left over the top and scatter on the seeds.
Bake at 180° C - 356° F for 40 to 45 minutes, until the top is golden brown.

Video

Notes

Let the meat filling cool completely before you fill the pastry, or the yufka goes soggy and tears.
Chop the onions small so the parcels fold flat, and do not overfill them. One heaped spoonful per square is enough.
Brush the sauce right out to the edges of the yufka. Dry edges are where the parcels split open in the oven.
Keep the yufka you are not working with under a clean damp tea towel so it does not dry out and crack.
Press the middle where the corners meet, then turn each parcel over onto the tray so the folds sit underneath, and leave about ½ cm between them.
If you cannot get yufka, use about four sheets of filo in place of each yufka sheet.
To skip the butter, brush the tops with egg yolk mixed with a little yogurt instead.
Cooked borek keeps 5 days in the fridge and 3 months in the freezer. Raw folded parcels freeze well too and bake straight from frozen with an extra 5 to 10 minutes.
To reheat, wrap them in foil and bake at 180° C - 356° F for about 10 minutes, or 15 minutes from frozen. The filling can be made 2 days ahead.
For a tray bake, layer the yufka flat in a dish with sauce between the layers and the filling in the middle. Cut it into squares before baking, pour over any sauce that is left, then bake at 180° C - 356° F for 40 to 45 minutes.

Nutrition