Chef-tested recipe
Hatay-style hot cheese pastry with crisp buttered tel kadayıf, stretchy unsalted cheese, lemon syrup, and pistachios
Künefe is the celebrated hot dessert of Hatay, made by enclosing fresh unsalted melting cheese between two compressed layers of buttered tel kadayıf. The pastry is cooked until deeply crisp on both sides, then soaked with cooled lemon syrup while still hot. Grape molasses mixed into the pan butter encourages an even copper-gold crust, and pistachios provide the final colour and crunch.
Recipe at a glance
- Servings
- 6 servings
- Prep Time
- 30 mins
- Cook Time
- 35 mins
- Resting Time
- 25 mins
- Total Time
- 1 hour 30 mins
- Cuisine
- Turkish, Hatay
- Course
- Dessert and pastry
- Cooking Method
- Syrup-making, layering, pressing, stovetop cooking, and flipping
- Difficulty
- Advanced
- Best Served With
- Best served hot with Turkish tea, strong coffee, or a spoonful of kaymak.
Before you begin
Ingredients & equipment
Gather what you need first, then cook through the method with confidence.
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Equipment
- Two 28 cm metal künefe panspaid link
- Medium saucepanpaid link
- Flat turning platepaid link
- Pastry brushpaid link
- Small offset spatulapaid link
- Chef’s knifepaid link
- Digital kitchen scalepaid link
- Measuring jugpaid link
Ingredients
For the lemon syrup
- Caster sugarpaid link: 400 g
- Water: 350 ml
- Fresh lemon juice: 15 ml
For the pan
- Unsalted butter, softened: 60 g
- Grape molasses: 15 ml
For the künefe
- Fresh tel kadayıf or kataifi pastry: 500 g
- Unsalted butter, melted: 180 g
- Fresh unsalted künefe cheese or low-moisture unsalted mozzarella, shredded: 400 g
- Unsalted pistachios, finely choppedpaid link: 60 g
Preparation Overview
Prepare the syrup first and cool it fully. Separate and cut the long kadayıf strands into pieces about 2 cm long. Drain moist cheese thoroughly and shred it evenly. Mix the softened butter and grape molasses and prepare two 28 cm metal pans or one pan and a flat turning plate.
Method
Combine the sugar and water, bring to a boil, and simmer for 10 minutes.
Add the lemon juice, simmer for 1 minute, remove from the heat, and cool the syrup completely.
Work 180 g melted butter thoroughly through the cut kadayıf strands until every piece is lightly coated.
Rub half the molasses-butter mixture across the base and sides of a 28 cm metal pan.
Press half the buttered kadayıf firmly into a thin, even base using the bottom of a smaller pan.
Spread the shredded unsalted cheese across the pastry, stopping 1.5 cm from the edge.
Cover with the remaining kadayıf and press firmly again to seal and level the surface.
Cook over medium-low heat for 12 to 15 minutes, rotating the pan frequently, until the underside is deep golden.
Invert onto a second buttered pan or plate, slide back into the pan, and cook the second side for 10 to 12 minutes.
Pour cool syrup gradually over the hot künefe, rest for 5 minutes, garnish with pistachios, and serve immediately.
Beginner Technique Notes
Use fresh unsalted stretchy cheese. Salty brined cheese overwhelms the syrup and does not reproduce the Hatay balance.
Press the kadayıf firmly so the layers hold together when flipped.
Rotate the pan over the burner to brown the broad surface evenly.
The syrup must be cool and the pastry hot; adding hot syrup to hot pastry makes the strands soften quickly.
Tips and Variations
Individual copper künefe pans make turning easier and provide more crisp edge.
Low-moisture unsalted mozzarella is the closest widely available substitute for künefe cheese.
Do not add rose water unless making a deliberate regional variation; Hatay-style syrup is commonly kept lemony and clean.
Serve within minutes while the cheese is still stretchy and the pastry remains crisp.
Serving Ideas
- Bring the whole copper-gold künefe to the table, scatter pistachios across the centre, and cut into wedges while the cheese is still visibly stretchy.
Storage
Künefe is best eaten immediately. Refrigerate leftovers for up to 2 days and reheat at 190°C until hot and crisp, although the cheese will be less elastic. Freeze assembled unbaked künefe for up to 1 month.
Nutritional Value
Allergen Notes
Contains wheat, milk, and pistachios. Kataifi pastry contains gluten. Verify substitute cheese is unsalted and check grape molasses for additives.
Frequently Asked Questions
What cheese is used in künefe?
Hatay künefe cheese is fresh, mild, unsalted, and stretchy. Unsalted low-moisture mozzarella is a practical substitute.
Is künefe the same as knafeh?
They belong to the same broad dessert family, but Hatay künefe has its own protected preparation and regional identity.
Why add grape molasses to the pan?
A small amount helps create the traditional even copper-coloured crust.
Can I bake it instead?
Yes, but stovetop cooking and turning produce the characteristic two crisp faces.
