Daday Etli Ekmeği (Daday Meat Bread), a closed-type flatbread filled with minced meat, onions, and various spices, is an iconic food of Daday district in Kastamonu. The thinly rolled dough is filled with the meat mixture and baked in a stone oven fired with wood. After baking, it is brushed with butter and served hot. Registered as a geographical indication product, Daday Etli Ekmeği (Daday Meat Bread) was registered as a certification mark on August 15, 2018.
Daday Etli Ekmeği (Turkey Culture Portal)
Origin
Daday Etli Ekmeği (Daday Meat Bread) originated in village ovens in the 1950s. Bakers added a mixture of minced meat and spices to simit dough and prepared this bread for their own consumption. Over time, interest in this bread increased, and in 1965, a special oven was opened solely for its production.
Recipe
The key elements that distinguish Daday Etli Ekmeği (Daday Meat Bread) from its counterparts are the geographical origin of the meat used, the use of sourdough, the wood-fired stone oven baking method, and the traditional techniques requiring mastery in preparation. It is generally recommended to consume the product hot where it is produced. It is served with beverages such as üryani sherbet, quince paste, plum vinegar, or ayran.
Ingredients
For the Dough:
- 3 cups flour
- 1 cup warm water
- 1 teaspoon salt
- Sourdough
For the Filling:
- Half-fat coarsely ground beef (preferably from cattle raised in the Kastamonu plateaus, from the neck, brisket, ribs, and leg sections; ratio: neck 10%, brisket 10%, ribs 20%, leg 60%)
- Dried onion (grated)
- Black pepper
- Red pepper flakes
- Cumin
- Salt
- Water (to soften the filling)
For Topping:
- Vegetable oil or butter (optional)
Instructions
The dough used in production is kneaded with sourdough and prepared a day in advance. The rolled dough is 1 mm thick and approximately 60 cm in diameter. The filling is made by mixing half-fat coarsely ground beef (from the neck (10%), brisket (10%), ribs (20%), and leg (60%) sections of cattle raised in the Kastamonu plateaus) with onion, red pepper flakes, black pepper, cumin, and salt. After the filling is added, the dough is closed in a half-moon shape and baked in a stone oven with oak wood for about five minutes. In alternative recipes, parsley and egg are also added to the minced meat; the dough is prepared by baking both sides on a griddle. In the region, mushroom, potato, yogurt, walnut, and spinach varieties of this product are also made.
Geographical Indication and Control
Daday Etli Ekmeği (Daday Meat Bread) is categorized as a “certification mark” and its production and presentation are subject to specific control criteria. Control is carried out by relevant local institutions under the coordination of the Daday Municipality; aspects such as oven temperature, ingredient ratios, and presentation method are within the scope of these controls.
