The world is filled with delicious morsels and delectable dishes that are worth exploring. This blog and my passion for inspiring my loyal ones to get into the kitchen, pushes me to step out of my comfort zone and try new things all the time, adapting them with a CombiSteam twist.

A pide is essentially a Turkish version of a pizza. A dough with toppings baked in the oven. The difference with a pide is that is usually contains a minced meat filling and it is folded up to enclose the toppings. You can even eat them for breakfast if you want.

I first ate these travelling in Turkey and remember vividly waiting for a bus and being hungry. Entering a small restaurant at the bus station we tried to order something to eat. The beautiful people who ran the place couldn’t speak any English and we couldn’t speak any Turkish, so we found ourselves in the restaurant kitchen showing them what toppings we wanted and helping to make our own pide. It was amazing and such a joyous thing to do. They were so kind and welcoming and the food was the thing that allowed us to communicate. I always think about that experience anytime I see or eat a pide now. It’s such a great memory!

Using your CombiSteam is perfect with this recipe because you can use it to both proof the dough and cook the finished pides. Proofing with Steam at a low temperature is perfect and means that you can do it consistently without worrying about varying room temperatures that can affect the proofing process. Cooking the pide with some steam in the hot oven is also perfect because it helps to bring the eveness to the cooking and keeps the filling beautifully moist while the outside gets crisp. It’s all about the balance.

So let’s get into the recipe. Give it a try for your next pizza night - a change is as good as a holiday. Maybe you can plan your next holiday or travel adventure while you enjoy them and find your own foodie memories that will stick with you.

Makes 2 pides (but can be doubled)

Ingredients

• 300g plain flour

• 1 tsp fine salt

• 2 x 7g pkts of dried yeast (approx 4 tsp)

• ¼ tsp caster sugar

• 250ml cup warm water

• 3 tbs olive oil

• 1 medium onion (finely chopped)

• ½ green or red capsicum (finely diced)

• 400g beef or lamb mince

• ½ tsp ras el hanout (Middle Eastern Spice blend)

• handful finely chopped fresh mint and parsley leaves

• 2 medium tomatoes (diced)

• 1 tbs lemon juice

• 1 tbs olive oil

• salt & pepper

• 1 egg beaten with 1 tbsp. olive oil to brush the pide dough

• optional toppings - feta, grated cheese, whole egg, baby spinach leaves, fresh tomato slices

Instructions

1. Place the yeast in a small bowl and pour in ½ cup warm water. Add the sugar and stir gently to dissolve the yeast, then set aside for 5 minutes while the yeast activates and gets frothy for approximately 5 minutes.

2. Combine the flour and salt in a large bowl.

3. Make a well in the middle and pour in 2 tbsp. olive oil and the yeast mixture.

4. Add the remaining warm water to the flour mixture. Using your hands, draw in the flour from the sides and work the mixture into a dough.

5. Knead for 5 minutes, until you reach a soft, smooth dough. The dough gets sticky as you knead, so add the additional 1 tbs olive oil and some extra flour if you need to help create and shape into a soft dough.

6. Place the dough in large bowl. Place the bowl into your CombiSteam. Select Steam. Set the temperature to 35°C. Allow to proof for 30 minutes or until doubled in size.

7. In the meantime, heat a large fry pan over medium heat until hot. Add the olive oil, onion and capsicum and cook, stirring occasionally until softened. Increase the heat slightly until the pan is hot again, and add the mince and ras el hanout. Season well with salt and pepper. Add the tomatoes and stir to combine. Continue to cook until cooked through and all ingredients have melded together. Finish with the fresh herbs and lemon juice.

8. Place the proofed dough onto a lightly floured surface. Knead the dough for a minute then divide the dough into two pieces and roll into two balls.

9. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough balls into 2 oval shapes of 20 cm x 40 cm around ½ cm thick.

10. Place the two dough pieces onto a baking tray lined with baking paper.

11. Select Hot Air+Steaming (Combination Steam) on your CombiSteam. Set the temperature to 220°C and allow to pre-heat.

12. Spread the filling evenly over the 2 flat breads, leaving 2 cm at the edges as a border with no filling (it is easier to spread the filling while the oval flat bread is in the tray).

13. Fold in the sides to act as border to keep the filling intact. Squeeze the oval dough at each end to make it pointy.

14. Brush the edges of dough with the beaten egg mixture.

15. Add extra toppings as desired - cheese, fresh tomato, spinach leaves, whole egg etc

16. Place the pides into the pre-heated CombiSteam. Cook for 18 minutes or until dough is golden and crispy. Remove and serve as desired.

Enjoy loyal ones. Writing this has made me hungry all over again and I hope you indulge in these really soon.

Happy CombiSteaming!

Yours in the kitchen,

The CSQ. x