Recipe
Man’oushe Za’atar
منقوشة زعتر
Flatbread under a slick of za'atar and olive oil, baked hot and fast. The whole thing turns on letting the herb sit in the oil before it goes anywhere near the dough.
- 100 minutes
- Serves 6
Ingredients
- 500 g strong white flour
- 7 g dried yeast
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1½ tsp salt
- 320 ml warm water
- 3 tbsp Jannat extra virgin olive oil, for the dough
- 6 tbsp Jannat za'atar blend
- 6 tbsp Jannat extra virgin olive oil, for the topping
- 1 tbsp Jannat hulled sesame seeds
Method
Whisk the yeast and sugar into the warm water and leave it ten minutes, until it foams. Stir in the flour, the salt and three tablespoons of the olive oil, then knead for eight minutes by hand, until the dough is smooth and still slightly tacky.
Oil the bowl, turn the dough over in it, cover it and leave it somewhere warm for an hour, until doubled.
Heat the oven as high as it will go, with a baking stone or a heavy tray inside. Meanwhile stir the za’atar into the remaining six tablespoons of olive oil to a loose, spoonable paste and leave it. The herb needs twenty minutes in the oil to open up, and it is the step most recipes leave out.
Divide the dough into six and roll each piece into a disc about 20 cm across. Press dimples across the surface with your fingertips so the oil has somewhere to sit, spread the za’atar paste to within a centimetre of the edge, and scatter the sesame over it.
Bake one or two at a time for six to eight minutes — until the base is set and the rim has taken colour, but the topping is still glossy. Eat them folded, within the hour.
