Flat Bread

Sourdough Flat Bread

June 23, 2013 by The Partial Ingredients

For a few months I’ve been feeding a sourdough starter. I just think it’s awesome that the yeast and bacteria comes to hang out naturally with just a little warm weather and regular feeding. The hardest part is actually getting a successful rise out of the starter and it took me a few tries to get it working right. There’s a lot of tutorials online about how to use a homemade starter. This recipe for sourdough flat bread is a great way for a beginner to try it out once theirs is ready! The bread turned out great, with mild tangyness and fluffy interior. I sprinkled a little Baharat spice on the bread before baking for added flavor and served the bread with hummus.

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Moroccan Flat Bread

April 28, 2013 by The Partial Ingredients

I love flat breads since they are the perfect vehicle for amazing sauces! I have always loved Moroccan food and have been making it for a few years. This bread is not as flat as pita, but still works great as a dipping bread for sauces. The interior is pillowy, with not much crust on the outside. It wasn’t difficult to make but it does require some monitoring as you don’t want the dough to over rise. I was happy with how this turned out though I might try flattening the dough more to make it a little less thick next time. This couldn’t have been a better bread to serve alongside several tasty sauces!

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Roti Canai (Malaysian Flat Bread)

October 10, 2012 by The Partial Ingredients

Roti is a flat bread that is similar to naan but uses a different technique of shaping and stretching the dough. For my Malaysian Rendang I chose to serve this bread along side it to soak up the delicious flavors of the Beef Rendang! I am a big fan of all flat breads so I was looking forward to trying a new one out. The method is pretty easy to follow though I wish my dough turned out a little stretchier. The bread is flaky, tender and breaks apart easily. Like naan, the oil traditionally used is ghee, or clarified butter, which gives the bread its tasty flakiness. The dough is rested for several hours which means there’s some amount of prep and wait time involved–but it was way worth it! It was a perfect accompaniment for the Beef Rendang.

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Shish Taouk (Lebanese Chicken Skewers) with Hummus and Tabouleh

September 9, 2012 by The Partial Ingredients

Who doesn’t love grilled chicken on a stick? A little while ago I tried the Greek version, Chicken Kalamaki, and I was sold on grilled chicken marinated with Mediterranean ingredients. This time I wanted to explore Lebanese grilled chicken, or “Shish Taouk,” which is first marinated in a blend of yogurt, tomato paste, herbs and spices, garlic and lemon juice. The combination sounded amazing and I figured it would go well with the Hummus and Tabouleh I had already prepared. The chicken smelled so good while it was grilling and the outside started to caramelize nicely from the tomato paste. I used pita bread as the vehicle to serve all 3 foods (dab pita in the hummus + a scoop of tabouleh + piece of chicken on top= heaven!) Everything worked so well together and it was a great way to celebrate the end of summer.

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Rye and Spelt Injera (Ethiopian Flat Bread)

August 25, 2012 by The Partial Ingredients

This post was a long time in the making as I have been thinking about and craving this Ethiopian flat bread for years, but never got around to making it until now! Injera is similar to Indian Dosas as it is cooked on a flat pan like a crepe. The bread is very sour and spongey, making it an accompaniment for all sorts of curries and stews. The bread is usually made with teff flour but I chose this recipe that uses a mixture of rye and spelt flours. Making sourdough is a neat process since you’re basically supporting a little cosmos in a bowl–full of fermenting bacteria and yeast. It does take several days to make the starter so as with most sourdough recipes it will require some patience. It sounds gross, but there is definitely a method to the madness because sourdough is amazing in all forms. This bread was the perfect vehicle for the two Ethiopian dishes I planned for it, and I couldn’t be happier with how it turned out!

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Chickpea and Coconut Curry Dosas

May 23, 2012 by The Partial Ingredients

When I first heard about these thin little pancakes stuffed with a curry filling I was pretty intrigued. I had never made anything like these pancakes before and they really are more like crepes. It took a couple tries (and throwaways) to perfect the thin pancake. The cake uses spelt flour which is kind of a unique grain so it’s harder to find at grocery stores. If you have a non-stick pan definitely use it on these for easier flipping. The curry filling was the easiest part to make and the flavors were great–a little spicy and a little sweet. Since the curry filling is enough for 4 meals, I made 1 batch of dosa batter each day. You can’t go wrong with coconut curry and wrapped up in the thin pancakes made it all the better!

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Parmesan and Rosemary Focaccia Bread

April 16, 2012 by The Partial Ingredients

Focaccia bread is great for sandwiches and as a side dish with dinner. This bread is yeast based and, as always, it requires a little more time to prepare. The result however is a tasty, flat(ish) bread that is flavored with rosemary and olive oil. I topped the bread with a little grated parmigiano-reggiano and the cheese got nicely brown and crispy. I dipped the bread in a little balsamic vinegar and olive oil and it worked great as an appetizer.

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Naan

October 8, 2011 by The Partial Ingredients

Naan is an Indian flat bread baked in a Tandoor oven at high temperatures. I consider naan to be one of the best ways to get that last bit of curry sauce in a bowl eaten. It is similar to pita bread, though it is much lighter with lots of air pockets in the center. For a yeast based bread, Naan is pretty easy to make. As with any yeast bread, It’s just more time consuming since the yeast has to rise for several hours. I had a little trouble getting the naan as flat and thin as I wanted but in the end I would deem this recipe a success. I salted the dough just before baking in the oven and I thought this improved the flavor quite a bit. Naan can be served as a side dish with gee (clarified butter) or used for dipping in most kinds of Indian curry.

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