Arab stuffed bread is easy to make and looks cute too.
Arab cuisine researcher Aki Komatsu said flatbread is the staple food in Arab regions, but it comes in a variety of shapes according to country and region. Komatsu shared recipes for two types of stuffed bread using flatbread dough.
“In Syria and Lebanon, there are specialty shops for stuffed breads, which are eaten for breakfast or as a snack,” Komatsu said. “I used to buy one for a few dozen yen on my way home from a language school in Syria. You can also enjoy arranging it.”
She shared the recipes for a triangular meat pie and a cheese boat, common pastries in Arab countries.
The same dough is used for both pastries. She kneaded it until smooth and let it rest in a bowl for about an hour. She then pressed the dough down to deflate it.
Lean ground beef works well for the meat pie. Fatty meat makes it difficult for the dough to stick together when shaping it.
Komatsu placed the meat filling on the rolled-out dough, brought the edges together to form a triangle and pinched them together tightly with her fingers. Lifting each third of the dough at a time makes it easier to shape.
For the cheese boat filling, crumbly, unstrained cottage cheese works well for sprinkling over the dough. Black cumin’s bitter and refreshing aroma adds an authentic Arab flavor to the bread. The spice is available online or at halal food shops, or it can be substituted with chopped parsley. Komatsu placed the filling over the dough before folding the edges to form a boat shape.
The bread was baked in a toaster oven until golden brown. The dough is so thin that there is little chance of it being undercooked. You won’t it mess up.
The bread has a light texture and is crunchy where the layers overlap. The ingredients can be changed to suit your taste, so once you learn to make it you’ll enjoy it even more.
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