Baklava Recipe: Homemade Pistachio Baklava

Homemade baklava is a little project, but a rewarding one. What matters most is thin filo pastry (yufka), good butter, fresh pistachios and a syrup that goes on at exactly the right moment. This recipe makes one tray of about 30 × 40 cm.

Ingredients

For a tray of about 30 × 40 cm you will need: 500 g filo pastry (yufka), around 20 sheets depending on the pack, 300 g butter, 300 g unsalted shelled pistachios, and for the syrup 400 g sugar, 300 ml water and 1 tbsp lemon juice. A few finely chopped pistachios for sprinkling, if you like.

Method

Start with the syrup so it has time to cool: bring the sugar and water to the boil, let it simmer gently for about 10 minutes, stir in the lemon juice and leave it to cool completely.

Melt the butter slowly and skim off the white foam. This gives you clarified butter that won't burn in the oven. Grind the pistachios coarsely to medium, never to a powder. Preheat the oven to 180 °C (conventional, top and bottom heat) and brush the tray with butter.

Now the layering: lay half of the sheets in the tray one at a time, brushing each one lightly with butter. Keep the rest of the pastry under a damp tea towel so it doesn't dry out.

Spread the pistachios evenly over the pastry. Cover with the remaining sheets, again buttering each one individually. Give the top sheet a slightly more generous layer of butter.

Cut before baking: with a sharp knife, cut the baklava into diamonds or squares, right down to the base. Once baked it will no longer cut cleanly, because the pastry shatters. Pour the remaining butter over the cuts.

Bake on the middle shelf for 40 to 45 minutes, until evenly golden brown. Better a little longer than too short, as the bottom layers need to be baked through as well.

As soon as it comes out of the oven, pour the cold syrup evenly over the hot baklava. You will hear a gentle sizzle, which is exactly what you want: the pastry soaks up the syrup without going soft. Sprinkle with chopped pistachios if you like.

Finally, let it rest: leave the baklava uncovered at room temperature for at least 4 hours, ideally overnight. Only then do syrup, butter and pastry settle into that typical texture.

Tips and common mistakes

The most common mistake is pouring warm syrup over warm baklava. Remember the simple rule: one of the two must be cold, otherwise the pastry gets waterlogged and soft.

Don't skimp on the butter, or the baklava will turn out dry and pale. With the syrup it is the other way round: too much makes it heavy and sticky, so pour it in two goes and watch how much the pastry absorbs.

Use unsalted, unroasted pistachios to keep the colour bright and the flavour fresh. Keep the finished baklava well covered in the fridge and take it out 15 to 30 minutes before serving, so it turns tender and crisp again.

Rather leave it to our bakers?

Real baklava with paper-thin pastry takes time, patience and plenty of practice before every layer is even and every cut is clean. Our bakers do exactly that by hand every day, in our own bakery, with Antep pistachios, a blend of butter and vegetable oil, and house-made syrup.

If you are short on time or simply want to treat yourself, order a whole 2.2–2.4 kg tray in our dark green Swiss Baklava box. Delivery is free across Switzerland and to Liechtenstein.

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