Ta — Emmer Flatbread
Dense, nourishing flatbread made from emmer flour, barely leavened, baked on a hot hearth or against the wall of a clay oven. Compact crumb, golden crust, slight fermentation tang.
Dense, nourishing flatbread made from emmer flour, barely leavened, baked on a hot hearth or against the wall of a clay oven. Compact crumb, golden crust, slight fermentation tang.
Approach and see how the bread that feeds the Royal House is born. We grind the emmer grain between two stones until fine flour, knead with Nile water and a leftover of yesterday's dough, which awakens the dough as the sun awakens the earth. My bakers shape hundreds, for among us a man's wealth is counted by his loaves. Eat it warm, broken by hand: it tastes of the Two Lands themselves.
- •Emmer flour — as needed (base of the dough)
- •Nile water — as needed (hydration)
- •Sourdough starter (leftover soured dough) — a handful (fermentation and flavor)
- •Salt — a pinch (seasoning)
Ta — Emmer Flatbread
Dense, nourishing flatbread made from emmer flour, barely leavened, baked on a hot hearth or against the wall of a clay oven. Compact crumb, golden crust, slight fermentation tang.
Why this dish? Emmer bread is the heart of Egyptian diet, from peasant to queen. At the Theban court, Ahmose saw hundreds of loaves stacked, the unit of account for rations as for the royal meal itself.
Approach and see how the bread that feeds the Royal House is born. We grind the emmer grain between two stones until fine flour, knead with Nile water and a leftover of yesterday's dough, which awakens the dough as the sun awakens the earth. My bakers shape hundreds, for among us a man's wealth is counted by his loaves. Eat it warm, broken by hand: it tastes of the Two Lands themselves.
Ingredients (period version)
- Emmer flour — as needed (base of the dough)
- Nile water — as needed (hydration)
- Sourdough starter (leftover soured dough) — a handful (fermentation and flavor)
- Salt — a pinch (seasoning)
Ingredients
- Whole spelt flour (or einkorn) — 400 g
- Warm water — 250 ml
- Natural sourdough starter (or 5 g fresh yeast) — 80 g (fermentation)
- Salt — 8 g
Method
- Mix flour and salt, add starter then warm water little by little.
- Knead 8-10 minutes into a supple dough, cover and let rise 3-4 hours (or until doubled).
- Divide into round flatbreads 1.5 cm thick.
- Bake on a very hot stone or sheet (240°C) 12-15 minutes, until the crust is golden and sounds hollow.
How it was made : Egyptians baked bread in conical clay molds, on the hot hearth, or against the wall of bedja ovens. Emmer, a hulled wheat difficult to thresh, gave a dense crumb; sand grains from the mill famously wore down Egyptian teeth, as mummies attest.
The contemporary twist : Serve as small stacked flatbreads "Egyptian-style" with a drizzle of oil and coriander salt, nodding to the bakery scenes painted in Theban tombs.
Ahmose · Charactorium
