Poğaça with Cheese – Soft Turkish Breakfast Buns Recipe
Poğaça are buttery, soft buns that in Turkey appear on the table at dawn next to tea and olives. The cheese version is especially popular for a quick breakfast on the go – in Istanbul you can buy them in every bakery. At home you can bake them in the evening, then gently reheat in the morning and feel like you’re in a Turkish bakery around the corner.
These poğaça are incredibly soft and stay tender for hours thanks to the combination of milk, yogurt and oil in the dough. The simple, aromatic cheese and parsley filling makes them feel like a real Turkish bakery treat, yet they’re easy enough to bake at home on a weekday evening.
Chef's tips
Don’t overheat the milk – if it’s too hot, it can kill the yeast and the dough won’t rise properly. The dough should be slightly sticky; avoid adding too much extra flour, as that will make the buns dense. If your kitchen is cool, let the dough rise in a slightly warmed (but turned off) oven. For the best texture, bake the buns on the middle rack and avoid opening the oven in the first 15 minutes.
How to serve
Serve the buns warm with butter, olives, sliced tomatoes and cucumbers, plus a plate of white cheese and honey for a full Turkish-style breakfast spread. They also pair well with soups or salads as a soft, comforting side. For lunchboxes, pack them filled with extra cheese or cold cuts.
Ingredients
- wheat flour - 500 g
- milk - 200 ml
- plain yogurt - 100 g
- vegetable oil - 80 ml
- instant dry yeast - 7 g
- sugar - 10 g
- salt - 8 g
- white cheese (feta-style) - 200 g
- parsley - 10 g
- egg - 1 piece
- egg yolk - 1 piece
- nigella seeds - 5 g
Preparation
- Gently warm the milk – it should be clearly warm but not hot (so that it feels pleasantly warm when you dip a finger in). In a bowl, mix the warm milk, sugar and instant dry yeast, then set aside for 5–10 minutes until a foam appears on the surface.
- Put the flour and salt into a large bowl, add the egg, yogurt and oil. Pour in the foamy yeast mixture and knead by hand or with a dough hook for 8–10 minutes, until the dough is smooth, soft and slightly sticky but comes away from the sides of the bowl.
- Cover the bowl with the dough with a kitchen towel and leave in a warm place for about 45–60 minutes, until doubled in volume. In the meantime, prepare the filling.
- Crumble the cheese with a fork in a bowl. Finely chop the parsley and add it to the cheese, then mix. If the cheese is very salty, don’t add any more salt; if it’s mild, season with a pinch.
- Lightly knead the risen dough, then divide it into 16 roughly equal pieces. Flatten each piece in your hands into a disc about 8–10 cm in diameter.
- Place 1 tablespoon of the cheese filling in the center of each disc. Fold the dough over like a dumpling and seal the edges well with your fingers, slightly tucking them inward so the filling doesn’t leak out.
- Place the shaped buns seam-side down on a baking tray lined with baking paper, leaving some space between them. Cover with a kitchen towel and leave for 20 minutes to rise again.
- Preheat the oven to 190°C (top and bottom heat). Beat the egg yolk with 1 tablespoon of water, brush the tops of the buns with it and sprinkle with nigella seeds.
- Put the tray into the preheated oven and bake for 18–22 minutes, until the buns are nicely golden brown. After baking, transfer to a wire rack and let cool slightly – they taste best while still warm.
Storage
Bułeczki po wystudzeniu przechowuj w szczelnym pojemniku w temperaturze pokojowej do 1 dnia, potem w lodówce do 3 dni. Można je mrozić do 2 miesięcy i odgrzewać kilka minut w 160°C, aż będą ciepłe i miękkie.
