Pide-Turkish Pizza

Ingredients

Yield:

4 pides

• Pide Base

  • 2 teaspoons dried yeast
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 150 ml water or milk
  • 300 grams flour
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2.5 tablespoons olive oil

• Meaty (kiymali) pides

  • 250 grams beef mince
  • 1 peeled and diced tomato
  • 1 onion, finely diced
  • 3 tablespoons chopped parsley
  • 150 ml red wine
  • 2 small garlic cloves
  • 2 tbsp cumin
  • 2 tbsp paprika

• Cheesy (peynirli) Pide

  • 2 tablespoons oilve oil
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 5 plum tomatoes, chopped
  • 1 garlic clove (crushed)
  • 100 grams feta cheese (crumbled)
  • 100 grams mozzarella cheese
  • Black olives

Preparation

Difficulty:

Medium

Time:

45 Minutes 

 

1. 1. First off, warm the water or milk. It must not be warmer than body temperature, otherwise the yeast dies. Mix in the yeast and sugar. Sift the flour into a large bowl, add the salt, then stir in the yeasty liquid, and add the olive oil.
   2. Mix together until all the ingredients are well blended and then knead the dough for about 2 minutes. Put the dough back in the bowl and dust some flour lightly over the top. Then put a plastic bag over and around the bowl and leave it in a warm place for around 20 minutes. The plastic bag stops the dough from drying out and aids the proofing process.
   3. Once the dough has risen take it out and knead well to get rid of any air bubbles. You may have to add a little flour to stop it from sticking, but do use sparingly so that the dough remains nice and moist.
   4. Cut the dough into four equal chunks and knead each of them well. Place one of the pieces on a lightly floured surface, and use a rolling pin to roll it into an elongated oval.
   5. Spread your desired filling on top of the pide, and crimp the edges up 1-2 centimeters, so the pide has a boat like shape. Brush the sides and edges with olive oil, then bake for about 15 minutes at 250 degrees Celsius.

2. Meaty (kiymali) pides

   1. Warm a saucepan and fry the onions until they are transparent. Add the mince and diced beef and fry until all the meat is gently browned. Add the wine and enough water to cover the meat. Let the mixture cook to nice and tender. Then add the garlic, cumin and paprika, and let the mixture cook for another 15 minutes or so. If any liquid remains, decant it off. Your topping is ready! Simply apply and bake in the oven.

3. Black olives

   1. Fry onions in olive oil until transparent, add garlic and fry for a little longer. Add the tomatoes, and let the mixture cook until most of the juice has evaporated. Spread the sauce on the pide.