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Turkish

Sigara böreği

Contains egg (no meat or fish)

Thin pastry rolled tightly around salty white cheese and parsley, then fried until golden and shatteringly crisp. A favourite meze and tea-time snack.

Sigara böreği is a Turkish starter from Türkiye, ready in about 40 minutes and made with filo pastry and feta. It serves 4 and is rated intermediate to cook.

Start cooking
Closeup of deep fried rolls with golden crust placed in pile on wooden board
Photo: Dima Valkov / Pexels · Pexels License
Prep
25 min
Cook
15 min
Total
40 min
Serves
4
Level
Intermediate
Calories
344

Ingredients

4 servings (16 rolls)

Equipment

Method

  1. Step 1

    Mash the feta (opens in a new tab) with the parsley (opens in a new tab), pepper (opens in a new tab) and half the beaten egg (opens in a new tab).

    • 3 min
    Potatoes being mashed
    How it looks · Photo: Mateusz Feliksik on Pexels

  2. Step 2

    Stack two sheets of filo (opens in a new tab) and cut into 4 long triangles or strips. Put a finger of filling at the wide end, fold in the sides and roll up tightly like a cigar, sealing the tip with egg (opens in a new tab). Repeat to make 16.

    • 20 min

    Keep the unused pastry under a damp tea towel.

  3. Step 3

    Heat the oil to 175 °C and fry the rolls a few at a time, turning, until deep golden. Drain on kitchen paper.

    Food safety: Never fill the pan more than a third with oil and keep children away from hot oil.

About this dish

Origin
Türkiye · Well documentedMore food from Türkiye
Dish
Snack · Breakfast · Appetizers & starters · Finger food · Pastries
Cooking method
Deep-fried
Taste
salty, savoury, mild
Diet
Vegetarian (lacto-ovo) · No nut ingredients
All labelsVegetarian (lacto-ovo) · Eggetarian · Pescatarian · Flexitarian-friendly · No nut ingredients · No added sugar · Alcohol-free · Pork-free · Beef-free
Worked out from the ingredients. How labels work
Good for
Child-friendly · Make-ahead · Freezer-friendly
Cook more with
Filo pastry · Feta · Parsley · Egg
Techniques
Deep-frying

Allergens

  • Contains: Milkfrom feta
  • Contains: Eggsfrom egg
  • 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

344 kcal per serving

Calculated

1 serving ≈ 114 g · recipe makes 4

Where the energy comes from

  • Protein 13%
  • Carbohydrate 26%
  • Fat 60%
Nutrition per serving and per 100 g
NutrientPer servingPer 100 g*
Energy344 kcal300 kcal
Protein11.5 g10.1 g
Carbohydrate22.4 g19.6 g
Net carbohydrate21.5 g18.8 g
Sugars0.2 g0.1 g
Added sugars0 g0 g
Fibre0.9 g0.8 g
Fat23 g20.1 g
Saturated fat8.5 g7.4 g
Trans fat——
Cholesterol91 mg80 mg
Sodium774 mg676 mg
Salt equivalent1.9 g1.7 g
Vitamins & minerals per serving
Potassium
106 mg
Calcium
265 mg
Iron
2.1 mg
Magnesium
19 mg
Vitamin A (RAE)
104 µg
Vitamin C
7 mg
Vitamin D
—
Vitamin B12
1 µg
Folate (DFE)
82 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

  • Rolled, uncooked börek freeze well; fry from frozen at slightly lower heat.

Common mistakes

  • Rolling loosely lets oil in and the cheese leak out.

Serve with

  • Part of a Turkish breakfast spread with tea, or as meze with other small plates.

Storage

  • Best fresh; uncooked rolls freeze for 2 months.

Reheating

  • Re-crisp in a 200 °C oven or air fryer for 5 minutes.

Variations

  • Baked sigara böreği: Brush with oil and egg and bake at 200 °C for 15–20 minutes for a lighter version.

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.

What the dish is built around

Main ingredient

Used in steps 1, 2

Baker’s notes

Customise in Bread & Bakery

Timeline and readiness cues

  1. Mix and knead · about 25 min

    Knead until smooth and soft; it should feel like an earlobe.

  2. Bake · about 12 min

    Puffed with golden-brown spots on both sides.

  3. Start to finish: about 37 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
  • Crust too hard or thick

    Likely causes

    • Baked too long at too low a temperature
    • No steam at the start

    What to do

    • Bake hotter for a shorter time
    • Add steam for the first 15 minutes (tray of boiling water, or a covered Dutch oven)
    • Cool under a tea towel for a softer crust

Reviews & corrections

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