Bazlama (Turkish stovetop flatbread)
Vegetarian
Bazlama
Thick, pillowy yeasted flatbreads enriched with yoghurt and cooked on a dry, hot pan until they puff and speckle brown. A rural Anatolian bread that needs no oven.
Bazlama (Turkish stovetop flatbread) is a Turkish bread from Türkiye, ready in about 2 hours 15 minutes and made with all-purpose flour and yogurt. It serves 6 and is rated easy to cook.
No licensed photograph of this dish yet.
- Prep
- 25 min
- Cook
- 35 min
- Rest
- 1 h 15 min
- Total
- 2 h 15 min
- Serves
- 6
- Level
- Easy
- Calories
- 365
Method
Step 1
Mix the flour, yeast, sugar (opens in a new tab) and salt. Add the yoghurt (opens in a new tab), water and oil and knead 8 minutes to a soft, slightly tacky dough.
How it looks · Photo: Klaus Nielsen on Pexels Step 2
Cover and leave until doubled, about 60 minutes.
- 60 min
Step 3
Divide into 6 pieces, round them and pat or roll each to an 18 cm disc about 1 cm thick. Rest under a cloth for 10–15 minutes while a heavy pan heats.
Step 4
Cook one bread at a time in the dry pan over medium heat for 2–3 minutes, until it puffs and the underside has brown spots, then flip and cook 2–3 minutes more. The sides should spring back when pressed.
Step 5
Stack the hot breads in a towel to keep them soft; brush with melted butter (opens in a new tab) if you like.
About this dish
- Origin
- Anatolia, Türkiye · Well documentedA village bread traditionally cooked on a sac (dome griddle) or flat iron plate.More food from Türkiye
- Dish
- Breakfast · Lunch · Dinner · Breads & flatbreads
- Cooking method
- Pan-fried, Fermented
- Taste
- mild, tangy, savoury
- Diet
- Vegetarian (lacto-ovo) · No nut ingredientsWorked out from the ingredients. How labels work
All labels
Vegetarian (lacto-ovo) · Eggetarian · Lacto-vegetarian · Pescatarian · Flexitarian-friendly · Egg-free · No nut ingredients · Alcohol-free · Pork-free · Beef-free · DASH-style - Good for
- Everyday · Budget-friendly · Freezer-friendly
- Cook more with
- All-purpose flour · Yogurt · Instant yeast · Sugar
- Techniques
- Pan-frying · Kneading · Fermentation
Allergens
- Contains: Milkfrom yogurt, butter
- Contains: Wheatfrom all-purpose flour
- Contains: Glutenfrom all-purpose flour
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
365 kcal per serving
Calculated1 serving ≈ 140 g · recipe makes 6
Where the energy comes from
- Protein 11%
- Carbohydrate 73%
- Fat 16%
| Nutrient | Per serving | Per 100 g |
|---|---|---|
| Energy | 365 kcal | 261 kcal |
| Protein | 9.9 g | 7.1 g |
| Carbohydrate | 65.9 g | 47.1 g |
| Net carbohydrate | 63.4 g | 45.3 g |
| Sugars | 2.1 g | 1.5 g |
| Added sugars | 0.7 g | 0.5 g |
| Fibre | 2.6 g | 1.8 g |
| Fat | 6.2 g | 4.4 g |
| Saturated fat | 1.3 g | 0.9 g |
| Trans fat | — | — |
| Cholesterol | 3 mg | 2 mg |
| Sodium | 596 mg | 426 mg |
| Salt equivalent | 1.5 g | 1.1 g |
Vitamins & minerals per serving
- Potassium
- 139 mg
- Calcium
- 47 mg
- Iron
- 3.9 mg
- Magnesium
- 23 mg
- Vitamin A (RAE)
- 7 µg
- Vitamin C
- 0 mg
- Vitamin D
- 0 µg
- Vitamin B12
- 0.1 µg
- Folate (DFE)
- 272 µg
How these numbers were made
- Calculated from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) per-100 g values and the listed quantities.
- Optional ingredients are not included: butter.
- “—” 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
- If the outside browns before the centre cooks, lower the heat — the breads are thick.
Common mistakes
- Oiling the pan: bazlama is cooked dry, which gives the speckled surface.
Serve with
- Split and fill with cheese and herbs, or serve with menemen, soups and dips.
Storage
- Keeps 2 days wrapped; freeze up to 1 month.
Reheating
- Warm in a dry pan for a minute per side.
Variations
- Herb bazlama: Knead chopped dill or parsley into the dough.
Original editorial recipe · FriendsPantry editorial · Not yet independently reviewed · Added · Updated
Recipe DNA
How this dish is built
Grouped by each ingredient’s role in the dish. Each band’s width is its share of the dish by weight. Choose a component to see what it does.
Baker’s notes
Customise in Bread & BakeryTimeline and readiness cues
Mix and knead · about 25 min
Weigh everything. Knead until smooth and elastic: a small piece stretches thin enough to see light through (the windowpane test).
First rise (bulk) · about 1 h
About doubled, domed, jiggly, with bubbles on the sides. A floured finger poked in leaves a dent that fills slowly.
Rest · about 15 min
Covered so it doesn't dry out; relaxed dough rolls and shapes without springing back.
Bake · about 35 min
Deep golden; bread sounds hollow when tapped underneath, or reads 93–96 °C inside (enriched breads 88–90 °C).
- Start to finish: about 2 h 15 min. Times are a guide — warmth changes everything; follow the cues.
The dough
| Ingredient | Role | Weight | Baker’s % |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-purpose flour | Flour | 500 g | 100% |
| Water | Water | 180 g | 36% |
| Yogurt | Other liquid | 150 g | 30% |
| Olive oil | Fat | 27 g | 5.4% |
| Salt | Salt | 9 g | 1.8% |
| Instant yeast | Yeast | 7 g | 1.4% |
| Sugar | Sugar | 4 g | 0.8% |
- Total flour
- 500 g
- Hydration
- 36%
- With milk, eggs…
- 61.5%
- Wholegrain
- 0%
Hydration = water ÷ flour × 100. Milk is about 87% water and eggs about 75%, so they’re shown separately as “with milk, eggs…”.
- Medium dough (55–65%) — soft and easy to knead; sandwich loaves and rolls.
- Milk, eggs and other liquids add about 26 points of extra water, so it handles like a 62% dough.
- Salt 1.8% — normal for bread.
If something goes wrong
Dense, heavy loaf
Likely causes
- Under-kneaded (weak gluten)
- Under-proofed
- Old or dead yeast/starter
- Too much wholegrain flour without extra water
What to do
- Knead to the windowpane stage
- Proof by the poke test, not the clock
- Test yeast in warm water with sugar; feed the starter and use it at its peak
- Add 5–10% more water for wholegrain flours and give them a rest
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
Dough didn't rise
Likely causes
- Dead yeast (expired or killed by hot liquid)
- Kitchen too cold
- Salt in direct contact with fresh yeast
- Starter not active
What to do
- Liquid should be lukewarm (no hotter than 40 °C)
- Proof somewhere warm (an oven with just the light on)
- Mix the salt into the flour, not onto the yeast
- Feed the starter until it doubles in 4–8 hours
Tough or chewy flatbread
Likely causes
- Dough too stiff
- Not rested
- Cooked too slowly on too cool a pan
What to do
- Add water until the dough is soft and slightly tacky
- Rest 20–30 minutes covered so the gluten relaxes
- Cook on a very hot tawa or pan — quickly
Reviews & corrections
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