Explore the world · Recipe · Türkiye · Reference page
Antep-style pistachio baklava
Antep fıstıklı baklava
Layers of filo brushed with ghee and filled with crushed pistachios, cut into pieces, baked golden and soaked with syrup the moment it leaves the oven. The pistachio baklava of Gaziantep, in a home version by the Turkish chef Somer Sivrioglu.
- Servings
- 42
- Preparation
- 45 min
- Cooking
- 30 min
- Resting
- 30 min
- Total
- 1 h 45
- Difficulty
- Moderate
Equipment
- Baking tray 30 × 20 × 4 cm
- Pastry brush; sharp knife
- Medium pot and a jug
Ingredients
Syrup
Baklava
Method
For the syrup, put the water and sugar in a pot over a medium heat with the lemon juice. Take off the heat once it is thick and syrupy but not coloured. Cool at room temperature and pour into a jug.
Why Sivrioglu warns against cooling it in the fridge or in iced water: it becomes too thick to soak in.
Timer · 15 min15:00Heat the oven to 180 °C (160 °C fan).
Cut the filo to fit the tray, divide into two stacks and keep covered with a damp cloth.
Brush the tray with ghee. Lay in one filo sheet at a time, brushing each with ghee. After every three sheets scatter a very thin layer of pistachios.
Halfway through, spread a thick layer of pistachios. Continue the sheets and thin layers, but leave the last ten sheets without nuts.
Cut into 7 pieces across and 6 along with a sharp knife. Pour the remaining ghee over, making sure it runs into the cuts.
Why Cutting before baking is the only way to portion the brittle layers cleanly; the ghee in the cuts fries the edges.
Bake 30 minutes, turning the tray if needed, until golden brown.
Timer · 30 min30:00As soon as it comes out, pour the room-temperature syrup over the hot baklava. Leave 30 minutes to absorb, then decorate with crushed pistachios.
Why Hot pastry and cool syrup: the syrup soaks in without making the layers soggy.
Timer · 30 min30:00
Substitutions
- Ghee → Clarified butter (the source's alternative). Whole butter browns and spots the filo.
- Bought filo → Sivrioglu's restaurant makes its own, much thinner filo; bought filo gives fewer, thicker layers.
Common mistakes
- Hot syrup on hot baklava: it stays wet and heavy.
- Letting the filo dry while you work: keep the stacks under a damp cloth.
Storage & reheating
Keep loosely covered at cool room temperature and eat within a few days.
Allergens
Gluten · Milk · Tree nuts
Check labels: stock, bacon and sauces can contain further allergens.
Dietary
vegetarian
Gaziantep's pistachio baklava
Sivrioglu names this baklava after Gaziantep, a city in south-east Turkey where it is the classic sweet, and fills it entirely with pistachios. He calls his recipe a practical one for home cooks: his restaurant makes its own filo, far thinner than the bought pastry used here.
Layers, cuts and cool syrup
The method is a rhythm: a sheet of filo, a coat of ghee, three times, then a dusting of nuts, with one thick layer of pistachios in the middle and ten plain sheets on top. The tray is cut before baking and drenched with the rest of the ghee. After 30 minutes at 180 °C the hot baklava gets room-temperature syrup, 500 g of sugar boiled with 600 ml of water and a little lemon, and rests half an hour.
How it connects
Wine region
- origin Türkiye
