[1][2] Fillings for gözleme are numerous and vary by region and personal preference, and include a variety of meats (minced beef, chopped lamb, fresh or smoked seafood, sujuk, pastirma), vegetables (spinach, zucchini, eggplant, leek, chard, various peppers, onion, scallion, shallot, garlic), mushrooms (porcino, chanterelle, truffle), tubers (potatoes, yams, radish), cheeses (feta, Turkish white cheese (Beyaz Peynir), lavaş, çökelek, Kasseri, and Kashkaval), as well as eggs, seasonal herbs, and spices.

The Ottoman Turkish alphabet had no distinction between k and g sounds, so it is unclear when the consonantal shift from köz to göz happened.

It is first attested in Persian-Turkish dictionary Lügat-i Halîmî [tr] and also found in Evliya Çelebi's Seyahatnâme.

[3] Originally a breakfast item or light homemade snack, the comfort food nature of gözleme has allowed it to achieve fast-food status in Turkey in the latter part of the twentieth century, with both simple and gourmet preparations ranging from the traditional (e.g. sauteed minced beef and onion, "kıymalı"; spinach and feta, "ıspanaklı"; potato and chive, "patatesli"; etc.)

to the contemporary (e.g. chocolate and orange zest; walnut and banana with honey; smoked salmon and eggs; etc.)