Ingredients
Dough
- 600 gplain flour
- 350 mlwarm water
- 1 tspsalt
- 1 tspsugar
Layering
- 150 gmelted butter, ghee or tail fat
To serve
- qurutob
- tea
Directions
- Mix the flour, salt and sugar with the warm water into a soft dough and knead for 10 minutes.
- Rest it, covered, for 1 hour, which lets the gluten relax enough to stretch the sheets translucent later.
- Divide into four and roll each piece out as thin as you can, ideally stretching it over the backs of your hands until it is translucent.
- Brush the whole sheet generously with melted fat.
- Use more fat than seems sensible. Fatir is layered with fat specifically so that it soaks up sour qurut sauce without collapsing, and a lean one goes straight to mush.
- Roll the sheet up into a long rope, then coil the rope into a flat spiral and tuck the end underneath.
- Rest the coils for 20 minutes, then press and roll each into a disc about 20 cm across and 1.5 cm thick.
- Press a pattern into the centre with your fingertips or a chekich, leaving the rim thicker so it rises higher.
- Bake in a tandoor if you have one, or at 220°C (425°F) on a preheated stone for 15 to 18 minutes, until golden and blistered.
- Brush with more fat as it comes out of the oven.
- Tear it by hand into a bowl for qurutob, where the bread goes in first and the sour qurut sauce is poured over it.
Technique
- It is a festive bread rather than an everyday one, and the fat content is what makes it so.
- The coil is what creates the layers, exactly as in a Mauritian farata or an East African chapati.
- Tail fat is the traditional choice and gives a distinctly different flavour from butter.
Substitutions
- Ghee or clarified butter, which is what most households now use.
- A pizza stone in a very hot oven in place of a tandoor.
Variations
- Made small, as individual breads.
- With onion worked between the layers.
- Sweetened slightly and eaten with tea.
History
Festive bread torn into qurutob, layered with fat so it soaks up the sour sauce.
Frequently asked questions
What is Fatir?
Fatir is a bread & pastry from Tajikistan: flaky layered bread rolled with fat and baked in a tandoor. Festive bread torn into qurutob, layered with fat so it soaks up the sour sauce.
How long does Fatir take to make?
Fatir takes 30 min plus 1 hr 20 min resting of preparation and 20 min of cooking. The recipe makes 4 breads. It is rated medium to make.
What can I substitute in Fatir?
Yes, within limits. Ghee or clarified butter, which is what most households now use. A pizza stone in a very hot oven in place of a tandoor.
What is the most important thing to get right in Fatir?
It is a festive bread rather than an everyday one, and the fat content is what makes it so.
