Phyllo

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See also Phylo, Helen of Troy's maidservant and First-In Last-Out, a queueing discipline.

Phyllo, filo or fillo dough (Greek φύλλο 'leaf') consists of paper-thin sheets of raw, unleavened flour dough. The Turkish name for phyllo is yufka, though there is also a Turkish flatbread named yufka. Yufka sheets are slightly thicker than phyllo. Kadaif, also known as shredded phyllo, is used in many of the same dishes as phyllo, but is made by a different process.

Phyllo and yufka are used in many of the cuisines of the former Ottoman Empire. The individual sheets are layered with butter and other ingredients, then baked to make flaky pies and pastries, including baklava, spanakopita, tiropita, bstilla, and börek.

In Turkish cuisine these pastries are called börek, in Egyptian cuisine they are called Gollash, in Albanian cuisine they are called byrek, in Austrian-German-Hungarian cuisine the dough is called blätterteig and pastries made from phyllo are called strudel. In Bosnia, the word burek is only used for the pastries with meat and other kinds are called pita. In Serbian language phyllo is called kore (plural) while the pastries have various names, depending on mode of preparation. In Bulgaria the dough is called kori za banitsa (pl.) and the generic name for the pastries is banitsa, although there are special names for some specific kinds.

Yufka appears to be of ancient origin. Apicius records dishes constructed from sheets of unleavened bread, separated by layers of ingredients such as chicken, pine nuts and goats-cheese.^{[citation needed]} As early as the 11th century, a dictionary of Turkish dialects (Diwan Lughat al-Turk) recorded pleated/folded bread as one meaning of the word yuvgha, which is related to the word (yufka). The idea of stretching raw dough into paper-thin sheets is a later development, probably developed in the kitchens of the Topkapi palace.^[1]

Homemade phyllo takes time and skill. It requires progressive rolling and stretching of the dough to a single, thin and very big sheet, with continual flouring of its surface, which tends to break apart. A very big table and a long roller are used. Once finished, the phyllo is floured, folded, then used as desired. Most phyllo is made with wheat flour and water, but some dessert recipes call for egg yolks in addition.

Machines for producing filo pastry were perfected in the mid-twentieth century.^[2] Nowadays most phyllo is produced by machine. Phyllo for domestic use is widely available from supermarkets, fresh or frozen.

Phyllo can be used in many ways: layered, folded, rolled, or ruffled, with various fillings (or none). Some common varieties are:

with apples: apfelstrudel
with cheese: called Peynirli börek in Turkey, burekas in Israel, Tiropita in Greece, Gibanica in Serbia, standard Banitsa in Bulgaria
with cherries
with chicken: called Tavuklu börek in Turkish cuisine, kotopita in Greek cuisine
with greens: called hortopita in Greek cuisine (prasopita when filled with leeks)
with meat: called kıymalı börek or Talas böregi in Turkish cuisine, Kreatopita in Greek cuisine, burek in Bosnia, Croatia, Serbia and elsewhere
with nuts and syrup: baklava
with potatoes: called patatopita in Greek cuisine
with powdered sugar on top: called Sekerli börek in Turkish cuisine
with spinach and feta cheese: called ispanakli börek in Turkish cuisine, Spanakopita in Greek cuisine
with boiled dough: su böregi
with a custard or cheese filling: Greek bougatsa, Turkish boğaça.