Mhadjeb

Ingredients

Dough

• 500 gfine semolina
• 1 tspsalt
• About 320 ml warm water
• 100 mlsunflower oil, for oiling hands and surface

Filling

• 4 tbspolive oil
• 3onions, finely chopped
• 2 tbsptomato puree
• 4ripe tomatoes, grated
• 1red pepper, finely diced
• 1 tbspsweet paprika
• 1 tspground cumin
• ½ tspcayenne, or 1 tsp harissa
• 1 tspdried oregano
• salt and black pepper

To cook and serve

• a little oil, for the griddle
• harissa and lben, to serve

Directions

1. Mix the semolina and salt, then add the warm water gradually and knead for 12 to 15 minutes, wetting your hands as you go, until the dough is very soft, smooth and elastic, almost sticky.
2. Divide into 8 balls, roll them in oil to coat, set them in an oiled tray and rest, covered, for at least 30 minutes; the rest is what lets the dough stretch to transparency.
3. For the filling, cook the onions in the olive oil over medium-low heat for 15 minutes, stirring, until completely soft and just beginning to turn gold.
4. Add the pepper, paprika, cumin and cayenne and cook 2 minutes, then the tomato puree for another 2 minutes until it darkens.
5. Stir in the grated tomatoes and oregano, season, and simmer for 15 minutes until the filling is thick, jammy and holds a channel when a spoon is drawn through; a wet filling will tear the dough. Cool completely.
6. Oil a smooth work surface generously. Flatten a ball of dough with oiled palms, then push it outward from the centre with your fingertips, working around it in circles, until it is a thin square you can see the table through.
7. Spoon 2 tbsp of cold filling into the middle, then fold the four sides in over it like an envelope to make a square parcel, pressing the seams flat.
8. Cook on a lightly oiled flat griddle or heavy pan over medium heat for 3 to 4 minutes a side, pressing gently with a spatula, until crisp, blistered and deep gold with no doughy patch.
9. Serve straight from the pan, cut in half so the steam escapes, with harissa on the side and cold lben to drink.

Technique

• Everything depends on the dough being over-hydrated and well rested. If it tears as you stretch it, it needs more resting time, not more flour.
• Oil, not flour, is used on the surface and the hands. Flour would dry the dough and stop it stretching.
• The filling must be cold and thick. Warm or loose filling steams inside the parcel and bursts through the layers on the griddle.
• Mhadjeb is street food across Algeria, folded and griddled to order in front of the customer, and is at its best within minutes of leaving the pan.

Substitutions

• A 50–50 mix of fine semolina and strong white flour is easier to stretch for a first attempt, at some cost in flavour and chew.
• No fresh tomatoes: 400 g tinned chopped tomatoes reduced hard for 20 minutes works well.

Variations

• Mhadjeb bel djben adds crumbled fresh cheese to the onion filling.
• A version rolled into a cylinder rather than a square is sold in Setif.
• Some cooks add cooked, mashed courgette to the filling to stretch it.

History

A Ramadan street food of the Algiers and Blida region: semolina dough is stretched translucent by hand, folded round a pepper-tomato filling and griddled.

Frequently asked questions

What is Mhadjeb?

Mhadjeb is a street food from Algeria: semolina crepes folded around spiced tomato-onion filling, griddled to order. A Ramadan street food of the Algiers and Blida region: semolina dough is stretched translucent by hand, folded round a pepper-tomato filling and griddled.

How long does Mhadjeb take to make?

Mhadjeb takes 40 min of preparation and 30 min of cooking. The recipe makes 8 crepes, 4 servings. It is rated hard to make.

What can I substitute in Mhadjeb?

Yes, within limits. A 50–50 mix of fine semolina and strong white flour is easier to stretch for a first attempt, at some cost in flavour and chew. No fresh tomatoes: 400 g tinned chopped tomatoes reduced hard for 20 minutes works well.

What is the most important thing to get right in Mhadjeb?

The filling must be cold and thick. Warm or loose filling steams inside the parcel and bursts through the layers on the griddle.