By Majida Mehana
Zaatar is a popular mix in the middle east. The main ingredient is the plant zaatar/thyme (origanum syriacum).
It is mixed with other herbs and is offered in breakfasts, brunches, and public gatherings as a snack.
It is often eaten with Lebanese bread or cooked on a dough. The mix can be bought from most middle eastern food stores or made at home. There are probably hundreds of ways to do the mix. The plant grows up in villages and every family collects the green leaves and does its own mix. Farmers also grow the plant for commercial use.
I will share the family recipe along with the dough recipe. Similarly, the dough recipe can be done in many ways.
Part 1: Dough for Zaatar pizza (It is called Mankouche)
Ingredients:
½ Kg Flour
Yeast (envelope or quantity for ½ Kg flour)
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon to 1 spoon sugar
Step 1:
Get 200 ml Water: Heat for two minutes until lukewarm.
Step 2:
Mix the flour, salt, sugar, and yeast.
Knead for 10 minutes as follows:
Don’t put all the water at once. Make a circle in the middle and add a little of water. Knead then add more water.
Keep adding water and knead for 10 minutes.
Step 3:
When done, cover and leave to rest.
If the location is warm, it takes half an hour.
In a cold location, leave for an hour.
The dough should double in size.
Step 4:
Sprinkle flour and extend the dough on a tray.
The dough can be of any size. In gatherings, the size can be a round circle and as small as a standard mug.
Put Zaatar/thyme or Cheese or both. Halloumi cheese works well with a bit of butter.
Step 5:
Cook for 20 minutes in the oven.
If the oven is hot, it might take less.
Part 2: Preparing the Zaatar Mix at home
If there is no readymade zaatar mix available, the mix can be made at home.
Ingredients:
An easy mix is the following:
2 tbs dried thyme (Zaatar).
1 1/2 (1.5) tbs sesame seeds toasted.
½ to 3/4 tbs sumac.
Sprinkle of salt.
** Ingredients can be changed to taste.
Steps:
- Grind the thyme, sumac, and salt until the consistency is a bit coarse. They should not look like powder.
- Toast the sumac and add them to the mix.
- Mix with olive oil. It should be slightly runny. The consistency can be up to taste.
Enjoy!
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