Burek
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Burek or Börek is a dish originating in Turkish cuisine, but very popular in many countries in the Balkan region, probably spread during the Ottoman Empire. In Israel this food is also fairly popular under the name "burekas" or "Turkish burekas". It is made of phyllo pastry, generally filled with cheese (most commonly feta), meat (most commonly ground beef), or vegetables (most commonly spinach).
Börek is the Turkish word for this food. In Albania it is called byrek. In other Balkan countries (most notably countries of former Yugoslavia) it is called burek, which itself comes from Turkish börek which in turn may come from Persian būrek or may be genuine Turkish word from root Bur- which means "to twist"
In Bosnia and Herzegovina the word burek refers only to the meat variant, while the one with cottage cheese being called sirnica, one with spinach and cheese zeljanica, one with potatoes krompiruša, and all of them are referred as pita (trans. pie). In Serbia and Croatia the word burek refers to both meat and cheese kind, with the cheese one being understood without an additional qualifier, and this difference often generates arguments about which burek is the real burek: the meat one (as Bosnians claim) or the cheese one (as Serbs and Croats claim).
Additional variants include fillings of apple, sour cherry, empty burek (without filling), and a modern variant of "pizza" burek. All of these are referred to as pita in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and as burek in Croatia and Serbia.
Burek is a regular offer of all bakeries, and usually eaten as "fast food". It is often consumed with yoghurt. Apart from bakeries, burek is sold in stores selling all kinds of bureks (or pitas) exclusively and maybe yoghurt are called buregdžinica. Those are very common in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and quite common in Croatia and Serbia and Montenegro.
There is also a musical album by the singer Dino Merlin with this name.
The name of the biggest internet forum in Serbia and Montenegro is [Burek Forum]
To this day in Turkey, one can hear a common expression often used by the poor, and even by the middle class, saying: "I am not rich enough to eat baklava and burek every day."
Most of the pies prepared by Albanian cooks are not sweet; instead, pie fillings are almost always salty. Thus, a piece of such a pie may well serve as the main dish of a meal.
From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Original article here. Support Wikipedia by contributing or donating.Börek
In Turkey su böreği ("water börek") is a more noodly type, usually with feta cheese. Kürt böreği ("Kurdish börek") is a fillingless börek, often consumed with powdered sugar sprinkled on top.Burek
Burek as a cultural reference
In urban areas such as Beograd and Novi Sad it is sometimes called (in Šatrovački) rekbu by young people.Byrek
Bougatsa
In Greek cuisine this dish is known as "Bougatsa", (Greek: Μπουγάτσα Με Κρέμα), usually eaten as breakfast pastries it can be filled with either cheese and a sharp cheddar between layers of filo or replace the filling with custard cream and sprinkled with powdered sugar. Another dish similar to this, is the dessert "Galaktoboureko", (Greek: Γαλακτομπούρεκο), rolled up tight filo dough filled with sweet custard cream and soaked in honey.[link]See also
References
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