That Turkish stand at the farmers market with pide bread and eggplant feta spread always attracts a large crowd. They hand out samples of their different spreads on a little piece of pide and nobody can resist!
Turkish Pide Bread is a must-have at a party with friends. Served with different feta spreads it is almost a given at informal gatherings. We buy the pide at the little Turkish shops that are often not more than a hole in the wall or on a Saturday morning at the farmers market. There, they also offer a large variety of different feta spreads. They don’t come cheap but are worth every penny since they taste so delicious. Of course, there is a lot of garlic involved but sometimes also interesting spices and vegetables that are mixed in.
Video: Pide & Eggplant Feta Spread
The Turkish Community in Germany
We can’t really pride ourselves with welcoming immigrants from Turkey with open arms. Yes, we needed them as work force but there have been a lot of resentments and sometimes still are. However, with their amazing food and their hospitality, they have won us over. Nobody wants to miss the little groceries with the affordable and fresh vegetables or their delicious sweet treats. Pide, turkish salami, feta and olives – they have become part of our nutrition and the “Döner Kebeb” is for Germans what the Taco is for Texans. But most of us have never really learned to cook that turkish food or bake the turkish pide. That’s too bad, because it is so easy to make.
In my early twenties, I was as a nurse in a large hospital and I had several Turkish colleagues. They were amazing coworkers, very sweet with the patients, too.
When I got pregnant, they made it their (traditional) mission to feed me all the time. They literally stood in the kitchen of our station and made scrambled eggs with salami and insisted that I eat. I even had to give up being a vegetarian because they would not take a no for an answer.
The Topping of the Bread
Although I say in the video that you shouldn’t worry about it if you don’t have Sesame or Cumin or Poppy Seeds to sprinkle on the bread, I would still recommend getting at least sesame and poppy seeds! It is really the cherry on top of this bread and is part of the amazing taste it has. It also adds to the wonderful scent in the house when you bake pide bread.
What Else To Do With Pide
Besides ripping off little pieces of pide to enjoy them with a spread, there are other ways to use pide too. Of course there is the famous Döner Kebab where you take half a pide, slice it open from the cut towards the edge but not all the way down. Then you fill it with salad, tsaitsiki, small meat slices and cabbage salat.
But you can also keep it simple and just enjoy it as a sandwich bread, filling it with cold cuts and what ever comes to your mind for a sandwich.
If your pide gets dry, which happens pretty fast, you can still toast it or brush water on it and put it in to the hot oven for a few minutes to refresh it.
You can even use your sliced pide bread as a pizza base and just put tomato sauce, cheese etc. on top and bake it.
Very common is also making the pide in the center with ground beef, sauce, and vegetables before baking. See picture above.
Eggplant Feta Spread
Eggplants have a lot of health benefits. They are packed with vitamins and minerals and even antioxidants that are so important for cancer protection. Here is a link with more information on the benefits of eggplants.
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Pide Bread
Equipment
Ingredients
- 270 g regular flour or bread flour
- 200 ml water luke warm
- 7 g dry yeast
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp sugar
- some sesame seeds
- some poppy seeds or cumin seeds
Instructions
- Mix the yeast with the water and set aside until bubbles become visible.
- Put the flour into a mixing bowl, add the sugar and sprinkle the salt to the sides.
- Add the yeast water mix to the flour bowl and knead for 5 minutes.
- Put parchment paper into a baking pan.
- Add the dough and spread a little. Then, with some water on the fingers, push the dough towards the rim and even it out.
- Cover the baking pan with a towel, then let rest (ideally at 35°C / 95°F) or about 40 minutes or until it has doubled its size.
- Preheat the oven to 200°C / 400°F.
- Brush water on top of the dough, then sprinkle with poppy seeds and sesame seeds.
- Bake for about 23 minutes.
- After taking the Pide out of the oven, sprinkle or brush it with water, then cover with a towel for 10 minutes to make it soft.
- Let cool completely, then enjoy.
Eggpland Feta Spread
Ingredients
- 2 eggplants
- 4 tbsp olive oil maybe more
- 6 small garlic cloves more or less
- 200 g feta cheese
- some oregano optional
Instructions
- Cut the eggplants into two halves.
- Brush the cut sides with olive oil and put them with that side down onto a baking sheet.
- Bake at 220°C or 430°F until cooked through (about 20 to 30 minutes).
- Crumble the feta cheese into a bowl.
- Add the eggplants. If the skin of the eggplants is very thick, just use the inner parts.
- Add the olive oil and garlic.
- Mix with a mixer or immersion blender until smooth.
- Taste and add pepper, salt if needed and optional some oregano.
- It is sometimes good to add some more olive oil and mix it in.
We love your blog because you’re so sweet & offer tips fir our success making the recipes !
Btw, nigella seeds packaged for growing, make the most beautiful flowers: “Love In A Mist” .
❤??
For the pide bread: The black seeds are actually Nigella seeds, not poppy. That’s what gives the bread its distinct flavor.
-Lover of your Website and German myself
Interesting! Is this the English word for Schwarzkümmel? I can’t get a translation for it.
Ja, ich bin mir 90% sicher ?
I found Nigella Seeds on Amazon and I can’t make Pide without it. Tastes like home.
?
Haben sie es mit Nigella probiert? Für mich schmeckt es wie Heimat (Berlin) und kann ich auch nicht ohne wenn ich Döner zu Hause mache ? Ich glaube sie haben Recht und das deutsche Wort ist höchstwahrscheinlich Schwarzkümmel, ich kann die Übersetzung auch nicht finden.
Hier ist ein Amazon Link: https://amzn.to/3fNJcur
Muss ich mal probieren!
I have been looking for a recipe like this since we left Germany 8 years ago. Thank you so much, I’ve also been trying to find recipes for some of the other Turkish dips from the market, there was one that was strong garlic flavor and similar to cream cheese but much thicker. Any suggestions on this?
Hi Angela,
Well, there are so many delicious, creamy feta dips and I am afraid that I don’t have an additional recipe. The feta that I get here in the US is very firm while in Germany, Turkish groceries offer soft and creamy feta, too. I think it is difficult, to match that consistency but you might want to try and mix in some cream with the cream cheese and other than that, maybe try adding some chives and plenty of garlic – can’t go wrong there ;-)
Best,
Barbara