Pide

Bread - Ekmek - is the staple of Turkish cuisine. The fertile Anatolian plains are well suited to wheat culture and there is evidence for bread production dating from the earliest Selçuk Turkic invasions of Anatolia. In Ottoman times it is clear that bread was consumed daily at every level of society. Whilst the bread ovens in the Topkapı Sarayı kitchens are vast there also seems to have been a 'village oven', where all-comers could bake their breads, in every settlement. Whilst these have been superseded in urban areas there remain some in rural Anatolian communities. Turkish food anthropologists have documented literally scores of traditional Anatolian breads (link here). Bread remains the most important staple in current Turkish cuisine.

No kebab would be complete without it's accompanying bread. With Adana Kebab we usually serve a Pide bread. Pide is a flat bread and would traditionally have been made in a clay oven or tinürü or tandir. These ovens achieve very high temperatures and a really hot oven is the secret of success for delicious pide.

I have collected literally scores of recipies for Pide over the years. They are all simple and the main variations are in how thick the final shape is before baking and the various glazes and toppings. Some recipies call for the Pide dough to be stretched whilst others use a rolling pin. Some use finger indentations for dimpling whilst others are flat. Some are glazed with milk, others with egg yolk and yet others with yoghurt. Nigella and sesame seeds are popular toppings. Finished thickness can vary from 1/8 inch to 1/2 inch.

We cook it many ways for different occasions and you should experiment. This is how we baked it to accompany the Adana Kebab...

Pide

2.5 cups flour
heaped tspn dried yeat
1 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
2 tbsp olive oil
3/4 cup warm water
2 tblspn whole yoghurt

Dissolve the sugar in the water and add the yeast. Stand for 10-15 minutes then stir.

Make a well in the flour. Add the yoghurt and oil and pour in 1/2 cup of the water. Mix. If the mix is too dry add more water/yeast. Knead the dough for 10-15 minutes until it is elastic and consolidated. You'll probably need more water/yeast whilst you're kneading but don't let the dough get sticky...when it's ready form it into a ball and leave it to rise for an hour or more in an oiled bowl covered with cling film. (Don't let the young man poke it).

Knock it back and knead it again for a couple of minutes. Divide it into 3 or 4 pieces. Roll these out into thin ovals about 10" by 6". Cover these with a tea towel and leave them for 15 minutes.

Heat up the oven to 250. When the oven is hot put in the pizza stones (if you have them) or oiled pizza-baking platters. Let these heat up.

Glaze the Pide with yoghurt and sprinkle with Nigella. Bake the Pide for 4-5 minutes. They should puff up and brown on the surface. Serve quite warm.