I am sure there is a law somewhere that makes it illegal to eat baba ganoush with anything but proper Middle Eastern bread. Call it pocket bread, pita bread, flat bread, this is it! The ingredients are the basic bread dough – nothing fancy there. The tricky part is the process. Practice makes perfect!
Ingredients
3 cups flour (I use either all-purpose or bread flour – not much of a difference)
2 tsp instant yeast
1 tsp salt
1 tbs white sugar (honey works too)
1 cup warm liquid (can be water only or a mixture of water, milk or even half & half… whatever! Warm it up slightly and stick your finger in it. It should not feel hot or cold)
Additional 1/4 cup of warm liquid, if needed
1 tbs vegetable or olive oil
Directions
Mix the flour, yeast, salt, and sugar and add 1 cup of the liquid and oil- mix well. The dough should be slightly moist with no dry flour left. If needed, add the additional liquid gradually until the dough is soft but not too sticky. The exact amount of liquid depends on the flour, the moisture in the air, and the position of the stars in the sky! It will take experimenting to find the perfect amount but it should be somewhere between 1 to 1 1/4 cup.
Continue kneading until the dough is glossy – about 10 – 20 minutes (doable by hand but you may use a bread machine on the dough setting like this one for about 30 minutes.) Let the dough rest for about 10 minutes – it does not need to rise.
Cut into 16 equal pieces for loaves that are about 5 inches (15 cm) across. I like to use a dough cutter for this step. Shape into balls, paying attention not to have any creases or cracks. While just rolling them into balls works OK, you may want to try the more time-consuming but effective technique of pulling on the outside of the dough and pinching the edges into the center. This creates surface tension that allows the dough to be more elastic.
Let rest for 5-10 minutes then, on a floured surface, use a rolling pin to roll out each ball into a disc that is about 3 mm thick.
There are two options for cooking the bread:
Option 1: Heat a dry, non-stick, thick-based pan and cook each loaf on medium high heat: start with one side for just a few seconds (5-8 seconds should be enough – don’t let bubbles form) then flip it to seal the other side. As the inside of the loaf begins to cook, bubbles will form and push the sides of the loaf apart causing them to separate and the loaf to puff up. You may turn over the loaf at the point to make sure all sides are fully cooked, but it’s done once it completely puffs up. So, yes, you cook them one loaf at a time, but it’s really quick and fun to watch.
Option 2: Place a pizza stone on the lowest rack in the oven and preheat to 500 F for 30 minutes. Place the dough discs on the stone directly and turn the broiler on the high setting. If your oven does not allow the oven and the broiler to be on at the same time, you can turn off the oven and turn the broiler on while the bread bakes and then turn the oven back on in-between batches to maintain the temperature. Watch the bread as it puffs up and remove it once it is a pale beige color. This method allows you to bake more than one loaf at the same time.
Whichever option you choose to cook the dough, once it is done, remove the loaves from heat and place them uncovered in one layer on a kitchen towel until they cool down.
Troubleshooting and other tips!
Puff up hack: if you have a stubborn loaf that doesn’t seem to want to puff up, remove it from the heat before it starts to dry and toss it in the microwave for 3-5 seconds. It will puff right up!
The best way to store this bread is to let it cool down completely then put it in a sealed bag and place it in the freezer. When ready to eat, remove the loaves you want from the freezer and microwave. The bread should go back to its puffy, fresh state in 30 seconds or so depending on your microwave and the number of loaves you heat up at a time.
Enjoy the fresh bread with a bit of Zaatar dip: 1tsp of Zaatar (a Middle Eastern herb mixture of mostly thyme, sesame, and other spices), 1 tbs of olive oil, and an optional pinch of salt.
Taza Project 