Origin and Name
Börek has its origins in the Turkish cuisine (cf. Baklava) and is one of its most significant and, in fact, ancient elements of the Turkish cuisine, having been developed by the Turks of Central Asia before their westward migration to Anatolia.
Börek in Turkish language refers to any dish made with yufka. The name comes from the Turkic root bur- 'to twist', (similar to Serbian word savijača (from savijati - to twist) which also describes a layered dough dish) and the navel shaped tortellini. Borek has been ultimately described as one of the modern survivals of the Ancient Greek plakounta (a kind of flat and flaky cake ) whose phyllo like sheets ultimately allude to the texture of the anatomical organ placenta, itself related to the navel. The Tatar böregi (Tartarian bureks) is a cheese and mint filled alternative name for the dumpling like dish called mantı which very much resemble tortellini.
Read more about this topic: Burek
Famous quotes containing the word origin:
“In the woods in a winter afternoon one will see as readily the origin of the stained glass window, with which Gothic cathedrals are adorned, in the colors of the western sky seen through the bare and crossing branches of the forest.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (18031882)