Turkish Pide (Minced Meat and Cheese) - Turkish Pizza

Turkish Pide (Minced Meat and Cheese) - Turkish Pizza  - Pide is a ellipse (oval with pointed ends - canoe shape) shaped Turkish Pizza that is topped with ground meat and vegetables.  It is a popular Turkish Street Food that is a real crowd pleaser!

Turkish Pide with Minced Meat - Turkish Pizza

Turkish Cuisine is one of my favourites cuisines and Pide is one of my favourite lunches. 

Pide is a popular Turkish Street Food that is often referred to as a Turkish Pizza. Similar to Lahmacun, this is a popular Turkish flatbread.

It is traditionally cooked in a stone oven but sadly I don’t have one of those so I stick to my standard oven!

In some areas in Turkey, the locals make their own fillings and then take them to a local bakery who will then add it to a Pide dough and bake it.

It can be made with a variety of toppings but is most commonly seen with a Ground Meat topping such as Ground Beef or Lamb (Kiymali Pide), Onions and Red Pepper. 

Many of the toppings have a slight kick to them so I like to add a hint of Turkish pepper (Aleppo pepper), Red Pepper Paste (Aci Biber Salcasi) or Chilli flakes.

Pide Dough Ingredients 

The ingredients in this recipe are pretty straight forward and can be swapped out for similar alternatives if need be. I recently made this recipe Yeast free for a quicker and easier to make Dough:

Flour

You can use Plain Flour or Strong Bread Flour. I always thought that you shouldn’t use Plain Flour when making dough but I’ve since found that it is ok to replace one with the other.

Although Strong Bread Flour is preferable because it produces a chewier fluffy dough, the differences are very minimal. Plain Flour produces a more crisp dough. 

Yoghurt

Plain or Greek Yoghurt makes for a tender dough and is the secret ingredient to make a quicker Dough.

Oil

This makes the dough more pliable and helps to stretch it without making any holes. Oil also adds flavour.

In this case, a good Olive Oil adds a lovely overall flavour to the dough but you can also use a flavourless oil if you prefer.

Salt

Helps with the gluten structure of the dough.

Sugar

Helps to balance the flavour. This helps to brown the dough too and aids in creating a fine crumb and  soft dough.

Warm water

To bind the ingredients together.

Baking Powder

To make the dough rise.

Ingredients in Pide Filling/Topping 

Tomato Paste

We use Tomato Puree plus some Turkish red pepper paste.

Onion

White or Red.

Garlic

You can use Garlic Powder or Granules instead.

Aleppo Pepper

Also known as Pul Biber.

 Salt and Black Pepper

Dry Herbs

Oregano and Parsley. 

Spices

Ground Cumin and Smoked Paprika

Cheese

Grated Mozzarella 

Egg

To brush on top of the Pizza for a uniform golden colour.

Sesame Seeds

We add these to the Pizza for decoration and for some texture. 

How to make Turkish Pide/Kiymale Pide

How to make Pide Dough

There are many Pide recipes out there. 

My research was via some Turkish Cookbook/s. These are the ones I used,  Oklava, John Gregory Smith and Ozlems Turkish Table. 

The variations were mainly between oven temperature and thickness of dough. From my research this is down to personal preference. 

Here I will walk you through exactly how I make the dough and topping for this recipe:

Turkish Pide Base Recipe

Step 1 - Make the Dough

Place the flour, baking powder, salt and Sugar in a large mixing bowl. 

Drizzle in Oil and mix through.

 

Stir in Yoghurt and Luke warm water with a fork.

Then skip to kneading.

Step 2 - Kneading Stage

Knead by hand on a floured surface or in a stand mixer for 7 - 10 minutes. This amount of time is needed for the gluten to develop.

Step 3 - Shape and Prove

Shape into a ball and then divide the ball into 4 equal pieces. 

Step 4 - Shape on Baking Paper

Place  each piece of Dough onto Baking Paper (or add Semolina to a flat Baking Tray and roll on there- a tip via the late Luis Troyano) and use a rolling pin to create an oval shape. 

Step 5 - How to make the topping

You have 2 options here.

Option 1, everything is ground down and then added to the Pide Dough. 

Add tomatoes, chilli, parsley, garlic, onion, bell peppers, tomato puree, cumin, Lemon juice, Aleppo pepper, salt and pepper to a blender. Blend till pureed.

Add the meat, blend again till coarsely blended. The version below is made using Option 1.

Option 2 is to cook everything first before it is added to the Pide. See full instructions in the recipe card at the bottom of the page.

Step 6 - Add topping to Dough and Assemble 

Add the topping to the middle of the dough.

Fold the edges of the dough in and pinch the ends together.

Sprinkle over Cheese.

Brush all over with whisked Egg.

Sprinkle Sesame Seeds around the edges.

Step 7 - Bake

Bake for 25 - 28 minutes in a preheated oven at 200 C, GM 6. 

Optional - Baste with melted butter before serving.

Afiyet Olsun!

 

Variations

This Traditional Turkish Flatbread is easily adaptable and just like Pizza, you can make it with various fillings and can make a round shape too if you like!

Popular variations include:

Cheese Pide

This is a good Vegetarian option. Simply add Kesar Cheese or any Cheese of your choice. Even a sprinkling of Feta Cheese is lovely.

Add some Garlic and Veg too if you like such as Green Peppers, Red Onion and Tomatoes or just top with an Egg.

Sucuk 

With Turkish Sausage and Vegetables. You could add Pepperoni or even Doner meat.

Spinach and Cheese

Spinach and Turkish Cheese (Tulum).

tips and tricks for making turkish pide

Floured Work Surface and Tray 

Make and assemble the pide on a lined tray. Lightly dust both the work surface and tray with semolina to stop the dough from sticking.

Lamb Mince

You can use Beef or even Chicken Mince instead. Just make sure it has a good percentage of fat so that it doesn’t dry out.

How to store Turkish Pide

Before Baking

You can make the dough and keep it in the fridge over night if you are pressed for time. 

Take the dough out from the fridge at least 1 hour prior to making the pide. Let the dough come to room temperature. Then stretch, shape, top with your favorite toppings and bake your pizza.

How to store Pide in the Fridge

The baked Pide lasts in the fridge for up to 3 days.

How to store Homemade Pide in the Freezer

 The frozen or baked Pide can be frozen for up to 3 month as long as it is well wrapped and in a sealed container that keeps out moisture.

How to reheat

You can then bake in the oven at 150 C/gas Mark 2 for around 10 – 15 minutes before serving.

FAQs, Tips and Tricks

What does Pide mean?

Pide means Turkish flatbread. It is usually a boat shape/oval flatbread shape. The flatbread cooked with various toppings makes Turkish pizza.

What is Homemade Turkish Pide made of?

Turkish Pide is made with a flatbread/pizza dough  that can include a variety of toppings such as ground lamb, beef, red peppers, tomatoes, onions. 

What is the difference between Pizza and Pide?

The most obvious difference in the shape.

It is also traditionally basted with melted butter when it comes out of the oven. 

How do you eat Turkish Pide?

You can eat Turkish Pide as it is whilst it is warm and you can also dip it into a poached/fried egg (if baked with an egg on top) or with a dip.

How to make Pide with Egg

If using an egg, take out at 12 minutes, add the egg carefully and put back into the oven. Please try this version too because..OMG.

Can I double the recipe for Pide?

This dough recipe yields 4 pides. 

You can of course double the recipe or use the same amount of dough to make 2 larger pides. 

How to pronounce Pide?

Pide is pronounced pee-day.

What is the best Cheese to use for Pide?

Turkish kasar is traditionally used on top of Pide. You can also use Mozarella or Cheddar like I do.

You can also use Tulum or Feta.

What goes in a Pide filling?

The most well known and popular toppings include:

Spinach and Turkish Cheese (Tulum)

Turkish cheese (Kesar) and pastrami

Turkish cheese (Kesar) and Turkish spicy sauage (sucuk).

Sometimes Pide is topped with an egg (my fave version)!

What is the difference between Pide and Lahmachun?

A Lachmachun is a thinner round pizza that can be rolled up before being eaten.

Should the filling be cooked before adding to the Pide?

This is down to personal preference. 

If topping with uncooked Meat, becauss the meat is blended so fine, it does not need to be cooked beforehand.

You will need to make sure that you remove most of the water from the meat (strain over a colander) before adding to the pide.

If adding cooked meat, make sure it has cooled a little first.

Other Turkish Recipes:

Simit

Menemen with Feta – Turkish Scrambled Eggs

Revani

Turkish Cilbir – Poached Eggs in Yoghurt

Manti Recipe

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