Armenian jingalov hats. This is one special kind of unleavened bread.
I had never seen anything like it, and it was very intriguing. The result surprised me and made me wonder what else could be stuffed inside a flatbread.
Traditionally made with far more various herbs jingalov hats is a common snack in Armenia. It can contain up to 20 different herbs. My local supermarket does not stock that many.
But I have to say that 4 is a good amount too. I used dill, parsley, spring onions and spinach. Together with a little chilli, paprika and some lemon juice for tanginess as often sorrel would be used. I would encourage you to experiment and try as many different herbs as you can.
As far as I have seen they are traditionally cooked on a griddle, but a pan will work fine. I used my panini machine. At least the old thing gets to do something for once!
There is one especially important thing to keep in mind – as soon as you mix the herbs with the other ingredients and the salt, they will start releasing moisture. The longer the herb mix sits the wetter it will get. Making 6 breads I mixed it all at once and it was not too bad. But if you want to work more slowly or make more breads, then I would suggest mixing the filling in batches so that it does not get too soggy by the time you make the final breads.
This recipe is for 6 flatbreads. If you would like to make more simply multiply the amount of ingredients.
Watch the video down below for detailed instructions.
Ingredients
For the dough –
240g (8.5oz) strong white bread flour
10g (0.35oz) wholemeal flour
5g (0.17oz) salt
10g (0.35oz) oil. I used olive oil, but you can use any oil you like.
140g (4.95oz) water
For the filling –
Large bunch of parsley, picked
Small bunch of dill, picked
Bunch of spring onions, chopped
Bunch of spinach, chopped
*Wash you herbs the day before and leave them to dry properly.
10g (0.35oz) lemon juice
10g (0.35oz) oil
6g (0.2oz) salt
3g (0.1oz) paprika
Pinch of chili flakes
Black pepper to taste
Method
- In a bowl combine the water, salt, oil & wholemeal flour. Mix well to dissolve the salt. Add the white flour and mix to a dough.
- Tip the dough out on your table and knead it for around 5 minutes.
- Divide into 6 equal pieces and shape into balls.
- Cover & refrigerate for 1 hour. During this time, the gluten in the dough will relax and make it easy to do the final shaping. A firm dough is easier to work with.
- Preheat your pan or panini press.
- Just before you are ready to make the breads mix the filling. Combine all ingredients and toss them together in a large bowl.
- Roll out the dough. Add a large handful of filling. Seal it up and roll it out flat. Be careful to not poke too many holes in the dough. The bread does not have to be super flat. Start with thicker ones and once you feel confident make them thinner.
- Cook for around 5 minutes in total. Once the dough has browned it is done. You can optionally brush it with a little oil although not traditional, it would give it a golden-brown crust all over.
Enjoy!
I did not write exact amount of herbs as you can easily stuff these breads with far more herbs than I did. Or you could use a little less.
Watch the video here
