Persian bread Nan-e Barbari
This time I would like to share with you my experience of making Persian bread. As some of you may have understood, I have an infatution with bread and baking. It never stops to fascinate me, the types, techniques, the various ingredients and the nearly infinite amount of products.
My close Persian friends and sisters Sara and Nahid, helped me discover the many wonders of the rich Persian cuisine, offering endless amazing dinners. Colorful, varied and truly delicious.
Nan-e Barbari is a type of flat bread, the name means «related to the Barbars». These are a people living near the eastern borders of Iran. After it was brought to Teheran, it became popular. It is the most common bread in Iran and often served with Lighvan cheese, similar to Feta cheese. It’s outside crispiness and inner softness, makes it ideal for scooping up sauces from the plate. It is also called Tabrizi bread, because of it’s connections with the city of Tabriz.
Before baking, the dough is covered with roomal, a flour paste consisting of flour, water, oil and sometimes sugar. This gives it a crispy texture and golden appearance. In my recipe the roomal is just flour and water, giving me equally satisfying results.
You need the following;
- 600 gr flour
- 300 gr pizza or «00» flour
- 2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp dry yeast
- 650 ml tepid water
- sesam or black nigella seeds
For the roomal;
- 2 tbs flour
- 6-7 tbs water
This recipe is enough for two oval flat bread or six smaller.
Mix the yeast and water in a bowl. In a second bowl mix the two flours and salt. Let the mixture pass a sieve into the first bowl. The consistency of the dough will be quite sticky. Let it stay covered for 10 minutes. Take the edges and fold into the center 10 times, taking care to change sides. Cover and let stay for 15 minutes. Repeat the folding process again. Cover again and let stay for 1 hour. Meanwhile warm oven til 250 C, preferably with a baking stone for best results.
Mix 2 tbs flour and 6-7- tbs water in a casserole. Cook on low heat, mixing until you get a liquidy roux, taking care not to cook to long. According to my experience, the roux needs to be smooth to brush the dough. After the 1 hour rising of the dough, it will be full of air bubbles. Put the dough on a floured surface, dividing the amount of dough needed with a dough knife.
Fold the first piece into a round shape and stretch it to oval shape. Put in a form on baking paper. Stretch lines along the dough with your fingers or with a round shaped tool to create a deep line through the bread . Brush the roomal on the bread and spread the Nigella, sesame seeds and coarse salt on the surface.
After putting it in the oven lower to 220 c. Bake for 25 minutes or until tanned with brown color and the bread gives a hollow sound upon tapping from the bottom. Try baking all the bread at the same time, preventing it from rising too much. If not, put the rest into the fridge.
If you have any questions, I will be happy to try to answer them.
