No-knead Turkish bread

No-knead Turkish bread

no knead turkish bread top down

As I have mentioned before, both me and Duncan have a soft spot for a particular type of Turkish bread – flat, fluffy loaf traditionally eaten during Ramadan. Sometimes, it’s topped with sesame seeds, sometimes with pul biber (Turkish chilli), either way it is delicious.

We got hooked on it when we used to live in North-East London next door to a Turkish bakery. They sold these amazing Turkish breads, straight from the oven, for 80p each and their tantalising smell made it impossible to go past without buying some! It’s fabulous when it’s still warm and fresh, but even a day or two later it tastes delicious cut into thin strips, lightly toasted on a griddle pan and served with a selection of mezze dishes to dip it into.

Since we no longer live in London, now I have to twist Duncan’s arm to make us Turkish bread now and again. To be honest, he is not that resistant to it as this is one of the easiest breads you’ll make.

It requires no kneading! You cannot believe it? I was a bit sceptical too, but try it – proof is in the erm…bread. It’s light and airy, full of air pockets and so irresistible that you’ll wanna eat the whole loaf at one sitting. Just a word of warning, don’t do it if you intend to go running an hour later. This last bit of info is NOT BASED on personal experience at all:).

no knead turkish bread pattern

turkish bread with mezze

turkish bread texture

no knead turkish bread side

makes
1 medium loaf
PREP
20 min
COOKING
13 min
makes
1 medium loaf
PREPARATION
20 min
COOKING
13 min
INGREDIENTS
  • 250 g / 2 cups bread flour
  • 7 g / 0.25 oz / 2¼ tsp instant dried yeast
  • 200 ml / ¾ cup + 4 tsp warm water
  • 2 tsp caster/fine sugar
  • 1 tsp fine salt
  • 15 ml / 1 tbsp olive oil, for glazing
  • handful of white and black sesame seeds
METHOD
  1. Mix the flour, sugar and salt in a large mixing bowl.
  2. Create a small well in the middle of the flour and add the yeast. Pour the water into the well and mix everything together with your hands. At this stage the dough should be very wet and fairly hard to manage.
  3. Cover the mixing bowl with cling film and leave to prove for about one hour (or until it has doubled in size).
  4. Flour a work surface and tip the proven dough out on to the work surface making sure to add lots of flour to avoid sticking. Shape the dough into a flat circle (about 2-3 cm high).
  5. Place the dough on a olive oil-greased baking tray. Cover the dough with a tea towel and leave to prove for another 45 minutes. Preheat the oven to 250° C / 480° F in the last 20 minutes of this time.
  6. Dent the top of the dough by first drawing a rough inner circle (with your fingertips) of about 3 cm from the edge of the bread. Then fill in the centre of the inner circle with criss-crossed diagonal lines about 2-3 cm apart (see 2nd picture in this recipe to get the idea).
  7. Using a pastry brush, coat the top of the bread with olive oil. Sprinkle with black and white sesame seeds and press the seeds in as far as you can to make sure that they stay in the bread.
  8. Bake the bread for 8 minutes at 250° C / 480° F and then turn the oven down to 200° C / 390° F and bake for another 5 minutes (or until golden brown).
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NUTRITIONAL INFO
calories
1345
67%
sugars
6 g
7%
fats
43 g
61%
saturates
5 g
25%
proteins
41 g
81%
carbs
200 g
77%
*per serving
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5.0
80 reviews, 142 comments
REVIEWS & QUESTIONS
Maren:
Loved it!!! Changed the black sesame seeds for Nigella seeds, which is how I remember this bread. Thank you for sharing!!
    Ania
    Ania:
    Thank you Maren, I am delighted to hear that you enjoyed it and thank you for taking the time to review, I really appreciate it. Ania
Lauren:
This was delicious. I scaled everything up by 1.5x as I needed to serve 6 adults and 2 kids. I proofed it overnight in the fridge, shaped it the next day in an oval shape so it would fit on my sheet pan, and let it rest while the oven preheated. It's wonderfully chewy with nice air bubbles. The sesame seeds are a nice touch. I'm looking forward to trying it again with different flavors. Thank you for the wonderful recipe!
    Ania
    Ania:
    Thank you Lauren, I am chuffed to hear that you enjoyed this bread as it's one of my favourite bread recipes that I make regularly. x Ania
Taz:
WOW WOW!!! 100% delicious, super easy to make and approved by the family! thank you for the recipe and the video helped a lot as well! YUM YUM!!! 😍😍😍
    Ania
    Ania:
    Thank you, Taz! I am delighted to hear that this bread has gone down so well with you and your family and that you found it easy to make too - what a bonus! x Ania
Valentina:
Delicious and so easy to make - thank you for the recipe!
One problem though - it was gone so fast it didn’t make it to the table 😂
I’d like to make 3-4 loaves at a time but I’m not sure if I should just multiply the ingredients or some other adjustment is needed.
    Ania
    Ania:
    Thank you Valentina, I am delighted to hear that this recipe went down so well that it didn't even make it to the table - that's hilarious and VERY relatable!! Yes, you will simply need to multiply all of the ingredients and if you were to make 2 larger breads instead of 4 smaller, possibly extend the baking time a little - but not a lot, 5 minutes max, I imagine. x Ania
Judy Tuckey:
We make your no knead Tuckish bread and love it. Thankyou so much for such great recipe.
Question: Do you have a recipe for wholemeal Turkish bread, please. I would like to try some using whole meal flour NOT whole wheat flour. If so, could you please advise.
Thank you.
    Ania
    Ania:
    Glad you enjoy this bread, Judy. As for wholemeal version (you don't specify what type of wholemeal flour you would like to use) the only modification that may be needed is more water but you will need to go by feel I am afraid, as I never made it with wholemeal flour. Also, I would recommend 50% whole meal and the rest white flour or else the bread won't be as fluffy. Hope this helps! Ania
Grace Elisabeth:
I love this recipe, but tweaked it a bit. I used Spelt flour instead of wheat and agave syrup instead of sugar. It looked and tasted like the bread I always buy at the Turkish bakery! This one is definitely a keeper!
    Ania
    Ania:
    Thanks Grace, I am delighted to hear that you enjoyed this bread so much and yes, it's quite forgiving so glad you were able to make it to your taste. x Ania
      Shakar999@yahoo.com:
      I tried but it was quite impossible to Mix the dough of 2 cups flour with only 4 teaspoons of water. I took a chance and added almost a cup of water and made a wonderful dough.
        Ania
        Ania:
        Glad you did that as you misread my instructions. The recipe calls for 200 ml of water, which when converted to imperial measurements is ¾ cup and 4 tsp (as per my recipe). Glad it worked out. Ania
Helen:
absolutely loved it... so quick and easy, and the result.is amazing...
had it freshly baked with a beautiful Greek salad..
    Ania
    Ania:
    Thanks Helen! I am so pleased to hear that you enjoyed this recipe and thank you for taking the time to review, I really appreciate it. x Ania
Michelina:
How many Turkish bread recipe I tried? One with egg, one with yogurt, one with milk...... And this recipe is simply vegan and I did not believe the result is this tasty until I really make. Believe me, this is the best!!!!
    Ania
    Ania:
    Thanks for your kind words, Michelina! I am delighted to hear that you enjoyed this bread so much and thank you for taking the time to review, I really appreciate it. x Ania
Francis:
Really loved the final result of this recipe but I need a few tips on working with wet dough! that felt like a losing battle most of the time. maybe I measured wrong and added in more than 200ml.
Then out comes the finished result, so lovely and fluffy. I even made a second run and replaced the seeds with chilli flakes and parsley (Added at last 5 minutes).
Thanks for sharing.
    Ania
    Ania:
    Thanks Francis, I am delighted to hear that you enjoyed the outcome! As for tips, one thing that you may find helpful is to LIGHTLY grease your hands with olive oil before handling any wet dough. Also you only just need to shape this bread (use 'stretch and fold' method) and that should not be too difficult if the amount of water added is correct. Hope this helps! Ania
      Francis:
      Thank you! That olive oil tip worked wonders. also on my 3rd time round I made sure to use the exact amount and not just eye it quickly.
      Tuned out brilliantly with a lot less clean up.
        Ania
        Ania:
        Thank you, I am delighted to hear that! x Ania
Alexis:
Love love love this bread. I live alone can I freeze it .
    Ania
    Ania:
    I'm delighted to hear that Alexis, thank you for letting me know. Yes, you certainly can - store in an air-tight box to protect from freezer burn. Hope this helps! x Ania
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