Skopelitiki Tiropita (Σκοπελίτικη Τυρόπιτα)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •heavy frying pan, 28 to 30cm
• •thin rolling dowel, 60 to 80cm, or a standard rolling pin
• •wire rack set over a rimmed tray
• •wide flat spatula

Instructions

1. 1

   Make the dough

   Stir the flour and salt in a wide bowl. Add the lukewarm water, 60ml olive oil, and vinegar, then mix until a rough dough forms. Knead for 8 to 10 minutes, until smooth and springy. If it feels dry, wet your hands once and keep kneading before you add more water.

   The dough should be firm but not hard. A sticky dough tears when rolled thin, and a dry one cracks at the edges.
2. 2

   Rest the dough

   Shape the dough into a ball, rub it with a little olive oil, cover it, and rest it for 45 minutes at room temperature. This rest matters. It lets the dough relax, so you can roll it thin without fighting it.

   If the dough pulls back hard when you start rolling, cover it and give it 10 more minutes.
3. 3

   Prepare the cheese

   Crumble the feta into small uneven pieces. If it is wet, set it in a sieve for 15 minutes while the dough rests. Skopelitiki tiropita wants salty white cheese, not a creamy filling.

4. 4

   Roll the phyllo

   Divide the dough into 6 pieces. Keep five covered while you work with one. On a lightly floured surface, roll the first piece into a very thin sheet, about 35 to 40cm across. Brush off loose flour, then brush the sheet lightly with olive oil.

   A long thin rolling dowel makes this easier, but a regular rolling pin will do. Roll from the center out and turn the dough often.
5. 5

   Fill and coil

   Scatter about 75g cheese in a loose line along the lower edge of the phyllo. Roll it up into a rope, not too tight, then coil the rope into a flat spiral and tuck the end underneath. Press only enough to hold the shape. Repeat with the remaining dough and cheese.

6. 6

   Fry slowly

   Pour olive oil into a heavy pan to 1cm depth and warm it over medium-low heat. Slide in one or two spirals, as long as they have room. Fry 5 to 6 minutes on the first side and 4 to 5 minutes on the second, until deep gold and crisp-ridged. The pan must sound calm, a steady modest sizzle. If the oil is too fierce, the outside colors while the inner coil stays doughy. This is the method that decides the pie.

   If the pie browns in under 3 minutes, lower the heat. Skopelos did not make a raw-centered pie for the sake of hurry.
7. 7

   Drain and serve

   Lift each tiropita onto a wire rack set over a tray. Let it stand 3 to 5 minutes before serving, so the cheese settles and the crust keeps its bite. Eat warm, with tomatoes in season or a few olives beside it.

Chef Tips

• •Use firm Greek feta, preferably sheep's milk, or a local goat-and-sheep white cheese if you can get it. If the cheese is very creamy or packed in too much brine, drain it first. Wet cheese makes the phyllo sulk.
• •Do not replace the handmade phyllo with a stack of ready-made sheets and still call it Skopelitiki. You can make a tasty cheese spiral that way, but it becomes another pie. I don't invent it. I find it, I test it, I write it down.
• •Fry on a rack, not a pile of paper towels. Paper traps moisture underneath, and the bottom loses the crispness you worked for.
• •These pies are best warm, not scorching. For a picnic, fry them the same morning and carry them uncovered until fully cool, then wrap loosely.

Advance Preparation

• •The dough can be made up to 12 hours ahead. Rub it lightly with oil, cover it well, refrigerate it, and bring it back to room temperature for 1 hour before rolling.
• •Crumble and drain the cheese up to 1 day ahead, then keep it covered in the refrigerator.
• •Do not fill the spirals too far ahead. The cheese salt draws moisture into the phyllo, and the fry will not be as crisp.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 190g)