InternationalBreadLunch

Bosnian Burek

Name: Bosnian Burek
Prep time: 40 min
Cook time: 40 min
Total time: 1 h 20 min
Yield: 6 servings
Cuisine: International
Ingredients: 400 g yufka or thick filo sheets; 600 g ground beef; 2 onions, finely chopped; salt and black pepper, generous; 100 ml neutral oil or melted butter, for brushing; 50 ml sparkling water, for the finish; plain yogurt, to serve, the Bosnian way

The Sarajevo coil: thin dough rolled around spiced minced beef and wound into a spiral, baked crisp and rested under a cloth.

prep: 40 min
cook: 40 min
total: 1 h 20 min
serves: 6
level: medium

In Bosnia the law is simple: burek is meat. The cheese one, the spinach one, the potato one are all beloved and all called something else. The meat filling is plain on purpose, beef, onion, salt, pepper, because the pastry is the show.

Hand-stretched yufka is the traditional wrapper; thick filo or ready yufka sheets are the honest home version, doubled up so the coil holds its crunch.

Bosnian Burek is one of the world's classic dishes from 67 countries.

method

Mix the beef with the onion, salt and pepper; raw, not cooked, so it stays juicy inside the coil.
Lay out a double layer of sheets, brush with oil, and pipe or spoon a line of filling along the long edge.
Roll into a rope, not too tight, and coil it into the center of a round, oiled pan. Repeat, continuing the spiral outward, until pan and filling are done.
Brush the top generously with oil and bake at 200°C (400°F) for 35 to 40 minutes until deep golden.
Splash the hot burek with the sparkling water mixed with a little oil, cover with a clean cloth, and rest 10 minutes; this sets the signature texture.
Cut in wedges and serve warm, with yogurt to drink or spoon.

chef's tips

A loose roll bakes crisp; a strangled roll bursts.
The splash-and-cloth rest is the Balkan bakery secret for a crust that shatters then yields.
Yogurt with burek is not a suggestion in Sarajevo; it is the other half of the meal.