Milk-Soaked Kadayif | Shredded Pastry Dessert Without Syrup

Spread the kadayif in a wide tray, loosen any clumps with your fingertips, and cut it into 1 cm pieces with scissors. Melt the butter and let it stand for 3 minutes. Drizzle the clear butterfat over the kadayif and rub it in with your palms so every strand is coated. Dry strands will stay pale in the oven and fall apart in the milk.

Spread the buttered kadayif evenly in a tray and press it down with your palm, especially around the edges. Shake the tray; the kadayif should move as one piece.

Bake on the bottom rack of an oven preheated to 180°C / 355°F for 20 minutes, then move to the middle rack for 10 minutes. Lift an edge with a spatula and check the underside; it should be the same deep golden color as the top. This recipe browns the kadayif more deeply than syrup-soaked kadayif because milk softens it much more than syrup does.

Use a ladle to pour the hot milk over the hot tray straight from the oven, moving from the edges toward the center. After each ladleful, wait 20 seconds and watch it absorb. Stop when milk begins to pool on the surface and set the rest aside; after 15 minutes, the tray may absorb one more ladleful. Sprinkle the crushed pistachios on top.