Milas Style "Çaykama" (Aegean Herb Pie)

Today, we are preparing a very special, deeply rooted, and delicious dish from the culinary heritage of Milas: Milas Style Çaykama.

For this recipe, we highly recommend using authentic Aegean wild greens if possible. Aromatic herbs like dock (labada), wild poppy (gelincik), mallow (ebegümeci), and stinging nettle (ısırgan) give Çaykama its powerful, signature character. However, if you cannot find these greens, you can easily substitute them with spinach, Swiss chard, or purslane. Crispy on the outside, soft and bursting with herbal aromas on the inside; it is one of the simplest yet most profound flavors of Aegean cuisine.

The Secret Tip

The most crucial detail here is the consistency of the batter. The bottom layer must be thicker. For this reason, we do not add all the water at the beginning. First, we spread the batter—which should have the consistency of a thick custard—onto the baking tray. Later, we thin out the remaining batter with more water and pour it over the herbs.

Ingredients (Serves 6 - For a Large Baking Sheet)

For the Batter and Topping:

• 6 cups flour

• 6 cups water (to be added gradually)

• An additional 2 cups water

• ½ tsp salt

• ¾ cup olive oil (for the tray and topping)

For the Herb Filling:

• 1 bunch green onions

• ½ bunch mallow (ebegümeci)

• ½ bunch stinging nettle (ısırgan otu)

• ½ bunch parsley

• 1 cup curd cheese or ricotta (lor peyniri)

Instructions

1. Make the Base Batter: Whisk together the flour, salt, and 4 cups of water in a deep bowl until smooth and thick (like a thick custard).

2. Chop the Greens: Finely chop the green onions, mallow, stinging nettle, and parsley.

3. Layer the Bottom: Pour olive oil onto a large baking tray and spread half of your thick batter evenly across the bottom.

4. Scatter the Filling: Distribute the chopped greens and curd cheese generously over the batter layer.

5. Thin Out the Top Layer: Add the remaining water (leaving you with a total of 4 remaining cups of water to utilize across both stages) into the rest of the batter in the bowl, stirring to create a much more fluid, pourable consistency. Pour this thinned-out batter evenly over the herbs.

6. Bake: Drizzle a little more olive oil over the top. Bake in a preheated oven at 180°C (350°F) until the top is beautifully golden and crisp.