Boyoz
Encyclopedia
Boyoz is a Turkish
pastry, associated within Turkey
with İzmir
, which is practically the only city where it is prepared for commercial purposes and follows the original recipe. As such, in the eyes of Smyrniots boyoz acquired the dimension of a symbol of their hometown or of their longing for it when away. The most widely preferred boyoz is plain, without addition of meat or cheese or spinach stuffings, and as cooked by a handful of master boyoz bakers in the İzmir.
Virtually all sources agree on the Judeo-Spanish roots of boyoz. It is a contribution to İzmir's urban culture by Sephardic Jews evicted from Spain
after 1492 and who settled in large numbers in a number of prominent Ottoman
cities of the period, among which İzmir stood out as one of the primary destinations. These explanations on the roots of boyoz are confirmed by the presence of a pastry very similar to boyoz in the culinary traditions of such other offshoots of Spanish culture as Argentina
, Chile
, Peru
and Mexico
, where they are common especially in the diet of Sephardic Jews, usually with cheese and spinach fillings. In Spanish
and Ladino languages, boyoz, spelled as bollos, means "a bundle, a pack".
Finally, until recently, all master bakers who prepared boyoz in İzmir were Jewish, and the present masters have all been trained by the late Avram Usta, whose name is echoed to this day in the commercial arguments adopted by some of these bakers, who market the "Boyoz of Avram Usta".
Boyoz paste is a mixture of flour, sunflower oil
and a small addition of tahin. It is kneaded by hand and the ball of paste is left to repose for 2- hours. The paste is then flattened to the width of a dish and left to repose again. It is then kneaded and opened once more, before being formed into a roll and left to repose as such for a further period of several hours. When the tissue of the paste is still soft but about to detach into pieces, it is cut into small balls and put in rows of small pans and marinaded in vegetable oil between half an hour and one hour. Their paste then takes an oval form and acquires the consistence of a millefeuille. The small balls can then be put on a tray into a very high-temperature oven either in plain form or with fillings of cheese or spinach added inside.
The usual accompaniments for boyoz are dark tea and hard-boiled eggs generously sprinkled with black pepper
. Boyoz is generally consumed outdoors, purchased from street vendors.
Turkish people
Turkish people, also known as the "Turks" , are an ethnic group primarily living in Turkey and in the former lands of the Ottoman Empire where Turkish minorities had been established in Bulgaria, Cyprus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Greece, Kosovo, Macedonia, and Romania...
pastry, associated within Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
with İzmir
Izmir
Izmir is a large metropolis in the western extremity of Anatolia. The metropolitan area in the entire Izmir Province had a population of 3.35 million as of 2010, making the city third most populous in Turkey...
, which is practically the only city where it is prepared for commercial purposes and follows the original recipe. As such, in the eyes of Smyrniots boyoz acquired the dimension of a symbol of their hometown or of their longing for it when away. The most widely preferred boyoz is plain, without addition of meat or cheese or spinach stuffings, and as cooked by a handful of master boyoz bakers in the İzmir.
Virtually all sources agree on the Judeo-Spanish roots of boyoz. It is a contribution to İzmir's urban culture by Sephardic Jews evicted from Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
after 1492 and who settled in large numbers in a number of prominent Ottoman
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
cities of the period, among which İzmir stood out as one of the primary destinations. These explanations on the roots of boyoz are confirmed by the presence of a pastry very similar to boyoz in the culinary traditions of such other offshoots of Spanish culture as Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
, Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
, Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
and Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
, where they are common especially in the diet of Sephardic Jews, usually with cheese and spinach fillings. In Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
and Ladino languages, boyoz, spelled as bollos, means "a bundle, a pack".
Finally, until recently, all master bakers who prepared boyoz in İzmir were Jewish, and the present masters have all been trained by the late Avram Usta, whose name is echoed to this day in the commercial arguments adopted by some of these bakers, who market the "Boyoz of Avram Usta".
Boyoz paste is a mixture of flour, sunflower oil
Sunflower oil
Sunflower oil is the non-volatile oil expressed from sunflower seeds. Sunflower oil is commonly used in food as a frying oil, and in cosmetic formulations as an emollient. Sunflower oil was first industrially produced in 1835 in the Russian Empire.- Composition :Sunflower oil is mainly a...
and a small addition of tahin. It is kneaded by hand and the ball of paste is left to repose for 2- hours. The paste is then flattened to the width of a dish and left to repose again. It is then kneaded and opened once more, before being formed into a roll and left to repose as such for a further period of several hours. When the tissue of the paste is still soft but about to detach into pieces, it is cut into small balls and put in rows of small pans and marinaded in vegetable oil between half an hour and one hour. Their paste then takes an oval form and acquires the consistence of a millefeuille. The small balls can then be put on a tray into a very high-temperature oven either in plain form or with fillings of cheese or spinach added inside.
The usual accompaniments for boyoz are dark tea and hard-boiled eggs generously sprinkled with black pepper
Black pepper
Black pepper is a flowering vine in the family Piperaceae, cultivated for its fruit, which is usually dried and used as a spice and seasoning. The fruit, known as a peppercorn when dried, is approximately in diameter, dark red when fully mature, and, like all drupes, contains a single seed...
. Boyoz is generally consumed outdoors, purchased from street vendors.