Turkish Bread "Ekmek" is a necessity in Turkish Culture and household. It is usually made two or three times a day by bakeries. You have to eat fresh Turkish Bread and usually it is fresh up to 24 hours.
Turkish bread is an important part of Turkish breakfast and usually served sliced, fresh, and warm along with Turkish tea.
Turkish Bread History
The bakers of the Ottoman period believed that after his expulsion from the Garden of Eden, Adam, the Patron Saint of Bakers, learned how to make bread from the Archangel Gabriel.
The secret is still held dear by present-day Turkish bakers. No other bread tastes like everyday Turkish bread. The only similar taste to Turkish Bread's is French bread, but Turkish Bread's original taste is hard to fine in other countries.
This glorious food is enjoyed in large quantities and is loved by all, rich and poor, simple and sophisticated. Every neighborhood has a bread bakery that produces the golden, crisp loaves twice a day, morning and afternoon, filling the streets with their irresistible and wholesome aroma.
People pick up a few loaves on their way home from work, and end up eating the crisp ends by the time they get there. Turkish Bread is known as "Poor People's Friend" since it is cheap, and gives the feeling of "fullness" easily.
Turkish Bread Recipe
Turkish Bread Recipe uses a starter which ferments for 4 days. Using a pizza stone to bake the loaves on would be your best option but if you've no pizza stone, cookie sheets will work also. The recipe seems complicated, but it's a lot easier than it appears."
Original recipe yield: 2 loaves.
Turkish Bread Recipe Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups bread flour, divided
- 3/4 cup water, divided
- 5 teaspoons active dry yeast
- 1 teaspoon white sugar
- 2 cups warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
- 6 cups bread flour
- 2 teaspoons salt
Turkish Bread Recipe Directions
- To make the starter: Place 1/2 cup flour and 1/4 cup water in a coverable bowl; stir well. Cover and let sit at room temperature overnight. The next day, add 1/2 cup flour and 1/4 cup water to the bowl. Cover and let sit at room temperature overnight. On the third day, add 1/2 cup flour and 1/4 cup water to the bowl. Cover and let sit at room temperature overnight.
- To make the dough: In a large bowl, dissolve the yeast and sugar in the warm water. Let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes.
- Break the starter into small pieces and add it to the yeast mixture. Stir in 4 cups of flour and the salt. Stir in the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, beating well after each addition. When the dough has pulled together, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes. Sprinkle a little flour over the dough and then cover it with a dry cloth. Let it raise until double in size.
- Put the dough back onto a lightly floured work surface and punch out the air. Divide the dough in half and knead each piece for 2 to 3 minutes. Shape each piece into a tight oval loaf. Sprinkle two sheet pans with corn meal. Roll and stretch two loaf until they are 15x12 inch ovals. Dust the tops of the loaves with flour. Cover with a dry cloth and let raise in a warm place until doubled in size. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
- Bake in preheated oven for 30 to 40 minutes. Mist with water 3 times in the first 15 minutes. Loaves are done when their bottoms sound hollow when tapped. Let cool on wire racks before serving.
Turkish Bread Recipe is from www.allrecipes.com
I hope you will like the taste of Turkish Bread . Enjoy "Afiyet Olsun" !
