Balıkesir's Provincial Directorate of Culture and Tourism documents Mafiş Tatlısı with egg, yogurt, sunflower oil, salt, baking soda and enough flour to make a rollable dough. The official method calls for thin sheets cut into squares, pinched into bow shapes, fried and transferred hot into previously prepared cold syrup. Because the source does not state syrup quantities, this home version supplies a clearly identified practical syrup ratio while preserving the documented temperature contrast and shaping method.
Mafiş Tatlısı — Recipe Card
Balıkesir Fried Bow Pastries in Syrup
Makes 8 servings · Makes about 24 small bow-shaped pastries, serving 8.US cup = 240 ml · tablespoon = 15 ml · teaspoon = 5 ml. Cup and weight conversions are approximate. Australian cooks: use a 15 ml measuring tablespoon.
Ingredient quantities and servings are scaled. Cooking times, pan sizes, frying oil depth, and temperatures stay the same; cook larger batches as needed.
Ingredients
How to make Mafiş Tatlısı
Make and cool the syrup
Combine the sugar and 360 ml (1 1/2 cups) water in a saucepan. Stir over medium heat only until the sugar dissolves, then boil without stirring for 8 minutes. Add the lemon juice, simmer for 1 minute and remove from the heat. Cool completely, then refrigerate while making the pastry.
Mix the dough
Whisk the egg, yogurt, 60 ml (4 tablespoons) sunflower oil, salt and baking soda in a wide bowl. Add 240 g (2 cups) of the flour first and stir into a soft dough. Work in the remaining flour a little at a time only until the dough is smooth, supple and no longer sticky.
Knead and rest
Knead the dough on a lightly floured surface for 3 minutes. Cover and rest for 20 minutes at room temperature. Do not taste the raw dough.
Roll and cut
Divide the dough into 4 equal pieces and keep the unused pieces covered. Roll each piece into a very thin sheet, about 1.5 mm thick and roughly the size of two open hands. Cut into 6 cm (2 1/2 inch) squares.
Shape the bows
Gather the centre of each square between thumb and forefinger and pinch very firmly to make two open wings. If the pinch will not hold, touch the centre with one drop of water and press again. Keep the shaped bows in one layer under a dry towel.
Fry until crisp
Pour the frying oil into a deep, heavy pot, keeping the pot no more than half full, and heat to 170–175°C (340–350°F). Fry 4 to 5 bows at a time for 90 seconds to 2 minutes, turning once, until evenly golden, blistered and crisp with no pale raw layers at the centre. Lift out with a slotted spoon and drain for 10 seconds.
Dip in cold syrup
Transfer each batch directly from the hot oil into the cold syrup. Turn gently for 45 to 60 seconds, then lift to a serving plate and let excess syrup drain. Repeat with the remaining bows and serve after 10 minutes, when the syrup has settled but the edges remain delicate.
Bring this recipe to your kitchen with a printable copy.
Print recipeRecipe from MyTurkishRecipes · https://myturkishrecipes.com/turkish-fried-bow-pastries-mafis-tatlisi. Quantities reflect your selected serving scale. Cooking times are estimates; follow the doneness cues.
A few helpful kitchen notes
Syrup ratio
The official Balıkesir source requires prepared cold syrup but does not give its quantities. The 400 g sugar to 360 ml water ratio here is a practical home measure, not a protected specification; keep it cold before the hot pastries are added.
Rolling and shaping
Thin dough creates the characteristic light, crisp bow. Keep the other pieces covered so they do not crust over, and pinch the centre more firmly than seems necessary because the dough expands quickly in hot oil.
Frying safely
Use a deep pot, keep it no more than half full and monitor the oil with a thermometer. Dry tools completely before they approach the oil, lower pastries away from you and never use water on an oil fire.
Oil temperature
Below 170°C (340°F), the pastries absorb excess oil; above 180°C (355°F), they brown before the egg-and-flour centre cooks. Let the oil return to range between batches.
Allergens and food safety
Contains wheat, gluten, egg and dairy. Flour and egg are raw before frying, so do not taste the dough, clean hands and surfaces after handling it, and fry until the folded centres are fully cooked rather than doughy.
How to store and reheat Mafiş Tatlısı
Because the dough contains egg and yogurt, refrigerate leftovers in a covered container within 2 hours at 4°C (40°F) or below and use within 3 days. Let a portion stand at room temperature for 15 minutes before serving. Do not re-dip stored pastries in syrup, and do not freeze; both make the thin layers soggy.
Mafiş Tatlısı: questions and answers
Why did my bows open while frying?
The centre was not pinched firmly enough or the dough dried before shaping. Keep the pieces covered, dampen only the centre with one drop of water if needed and compress the pinch until it feels sealed.
Can I make Mafiş Tatlısı without deep-frying?
Baking will not reproduce the documented Balıkesir texture or rapid expansion. Mafiş is defined here by thin bow-shaped dough fried in hot oil and then dipped in cold syrup.
Can I prepare it ahead?
You can make and chill the syrup 1 day ahead. Shape and fry the dough close to serving; finished pastries are best the day they are made because the syrup gradually softens the crisp edges.
