Baklava (pistachio)

Name: Baklava (pistachio)
Prep time: 40 min
Cook time: 50 min
Total time: 5 h 30 min
Ingredients: 500 g filo pastry; 250 g butter, clarified (melted, milk solids discarded); 300 g pistachios, finely chopped; 400 g sugar; 300 ml water; 1 tbsp lemon juice

Vegetarian

Fıstıklı baklava

Dozens of paper-thin filo layers brushed with clarified butter around a bed of chopped pistachios, baked crisp and soaked in lemony sugar syrup.

Baklava (pistachio) is a Turkish pastry, ready in about 5 hours 30 minutes and made with filo pastry, butter and pistachios. It serves 30 and is rated advanced to cook.

Start cooking

Enjoy a mouthwatering close-up of authentic baklava topped with vibrant pistachios. Perfect for food lovers. — Photo: Jacob Yavin / Pexels · Pexels License

Prep: 40 min
Cook: 50 min
Rest: 4 h
Total: 5 h 30 min
Serves: 30
Level: Advanced
Calories: 217

Ingredients

30 pieces

500 g Filo pastry (opens in a new tab)The thinnest filo you can find.Contains wheat, gluten
250 g Butter (opens in a new tab), clarified (melted, milk solids discarded)Contains milk
300 g Pistachios (opens in a new tab), finely choppedSwap: Walnuts (Walnut baklava is equally common in Turkey and the Balkans.)Contains tree nuts

Syrup

400 g Sugar (opens in a new tab)
300 ml Water (opens in a new tab)
1 tbsp (15 g) Lemon juice (opens in a new tab)

Equipment

Method

1
Step 1
Boil the sugar (opens in a new tab) and water for 8 minutes, add the lemon juice (opens in a new tab) and simmer 2 minutes more. Leave to cool completely.
- 10 min
- medium-high heat
- Saucepan (opens in a new tab)
2
Step 2
Heat the oven (opens in a new tab) to 180 °C. Brush a 25 × 35 cm tin with butter (opens in a new tab) and layer in half the filo (opens in a new tab) sheets one at a time, brushing each with clarified butter.
- 15 min
- 180°C
- Baking dish (opens in a new tab)
3
Step 3
Scatter the pistachios (opens in a new tab) evenly, then layer the remaining sheets, buttering each one.
- 12 min
How it looks · Photo: Klaus Nielsen on Pexels
4
Step 4
With a sharp knife cut all the way through into diamonds or squares. Pour the remaining butter (opens in a new tab) over and bake for 45–50 minutes until deep golden and crisp throughout.
- 50 min
- 180°C
- Oven (opens in a new tab)
5
Step 5
Ladle the cold syrup over the hot baklava straight from the oven (opens in a new tab) — it should sizzle. Leave uncovered at least 4 hours before serving.
- 3 min

About this dish

Origin: Türkiye · Origin disputedDeveloped in the Ottoman imperial kitchens; claimed by Turkey, Greece and others, and made across the Balkans, Caucasus and Middle East. Gaziantep pistachio baklava holds EU protected status.Also popular in Greece, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Lebanon, Syria, North MacedoniaMore food from Türkiye
Dish: Dessert · Snack · Pastries · Desserts · Sweets & confectionery
Cooking method: Oven-baked
Taste: sweet, nutty, buttery
Diet: Vegetarian (lacto-ovo)
All labels
Vegetarian (lacto-ovo) · Eggetarian · Lacto-vegetarian · Pescatarian · Flexitarian-friendly · Egg-free · Alcohol-free · Pork-free · Beef-free
Worked out from the ingredients. How labels work
Good for: Festive & celebration · Make-ahead
Cook more with: Filo pastry · Butter · Pistachios · Sugar · Lemon juice
Techniques: Baking · Simmering · Clarification

Allergens

Contains: Milkfrom butter
Contains: Tree nutsfrom pistachios
Contains: Wheatfrom filo pastry
Contains: Glutenfrom filo pastry

Based on typical versions of these ingredients and not verified allergen-free. Brands differ and cross-contact happens, so always check labels. For severe allergies, follow your clinician’s advice.

Nutrition

217 kcal per serving

Calculated

1 serving ≈ 59 g · recipe makes 30

Where the energy comes from

Protein 6%
Carbohydrate 45%
Fat 50%

Nutrition per serving and per 100 g
Nutrient	Per serving	Per 100 g*
Energy	217 kcal	369 kcal
Protein	3.3 g	5.6 g
Carbohydrate	24.9 g	42.2 g
Net carbohydrate	23.5 g	39.9 g
Sugars	14.1 g	24 g
Added sugars	13.3 g	22.7 g
Fibre	1.4 g	2.3 g
Fat	12.3 g	20.9 g
Saturated fat	5.1 g	8.7 g
Trans fat	—	—
Cholesterol	18 mg	30 mg
Sodium	135 mg	229 mg
Salt equivalent	0.3 g	0.6 g

Vitamins & minerals per serving

Potassium: 118 mg
Calcium: 15 mg
Iron: 0.9 mg
Magnesium: 15 mg
Vitamin A (RAE): 60 µg
Vitamin C: 1 mg
Vitamin D: 0 µg
Vitamin B12: 0 µg
Folate (DFE): 28 µg

How these numbers were made

Calculated from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) per-100 g values and the listed quantities.
*Per 100 g of combined raw ingredients; the cooked dish may weigh more or less.
“—” means the value isn’t known for enough of the ingredients; it is never zero by default.
Values are estimates for guidance, not for medical dosing. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. fdc.nal.usda.gov.

Good to know

Tips

Cut before baking — cutting afterwards shatters the layers.

Common mistakes

Pouring hot syrup on hot pastry makes it soggy; one of them must be cool.

Serve with

Serve with Turkish tea, or with kaymak or ice cream.

Storage

Keeps a week at room temperature, loosely covered. Do not refrigerate.

Variations

Cevizli baklava (Türkiye): Filled with walnuts.
Greek baklava (Greece): Walnuts and almonds with cinnamon and a honey syrup.

Original editorial recipe · FriendsPantry editorial · Not yet independently reviewed · Added 27 Oct 2026 · Updated 8 Nov 2026

Recipe DNA

How this dish is built

Compare with

Built from the recipe’s own sections. Each band’s width is its share of the dish by weight. Choose a component to see what it does.

What the dish is built around

Main ingredient

Filo pastry500 g
Butter, clarified (melted, milk solids discarded)250 g

Used in step 2

Baker’s notes

Customise in Bread & Bakery

Timeline and readiness cues

Mix and knead · about 40 min
Knead until smooth and soft; it should feel like an earlobe.
Rest · about 4 h
Covered so it doesn't dry out; relaxed dough rolls and shapes without springing back.
Bake · about 50 min at 180 °C
Puffed with golden-brown spots on both sides.
Start to finish: about 5 h 30 min. Times are a guide — warmth changes everything; follow the cues.

If something goes wrong

Pale crust
Likely causes
- Oven too cool
- Too little sugar or no milk/egg for browning
- Over-fermented (yeast ate the sugars)
What to do
- Check the oven with a thermometer
- Brush with egg wash or milk
- Shorten the fermentation
Burnt bottom
Likely causes
- Tray too close to the heat
- Dark tray absorbs more heat
- Too much sugar in the dough
What to do
- Bake on the middle shelf
- Double up trays or use a light-coloured one
- Lower the temperature 10–15 °C and bake a little longer

Reviews & corrections

Reviews come from signed-in cooks and appear after a moderator checks them. We never show made-up ratings.

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