Ingredients
Dough
- 400 gplain flour
- 1 tspsalt
- 240 mlwarm water
- no fat and no yeast: this is a lean unleavened dough
Herb filling (aim for 12 to 20 different greens, about 800 g total)
- spinach, chard and beet greens as the bulk
- sorrel and dandelion leaves for sourness
- coriander, dill, parsley and tarragon
- spring onion tops and wild garlic or chives
- purslane, nettle tops (blanched) and corn salad (mache)
- mint and a little basil
Dressing
- 3 tbspsunflower oil
- 1.5 tspsalt
- ½ tspblack pepper
- 1 tbsplemon juice or a splash of sour plum juice
To cook
- a dry saj, cast-iron griddle or heavy frying pan
- 20 gbutter for brushing (optional)
Directions
- Mix the flour, salt and warm water into a soft dough, knead for 8 minutes until smooth and elastic, then cover and rest for 30 minutes; the rest is what lets you roll it paper-thin without tearing.
- Wash and dry the greens completely. Any water left on the leaves turns the filling to soup and the bread will steam and split open.
- Chop the greens very finely, all of them, into shreds no wider than a grain of rice, and pile them into a big bowl; the mix should look and smell overwhelmingly green.
- Dress the greens with the oil, salt, pepper and lemon juice and toss with your hands, then leave them 10 minutes; they will wilt and lose about a third of their volume, which is what makes them packable.
- Divide the dough into 6, roll each into a very thin round about 30 cm across, and heap a large handful of greens over one half, leaving a 2 cm border.
- Bring the empty half over, or gather the edges up into the centre and pinch them closed, then flatten the parcel gently with your palms into a disc, pressing the filling out to the edges.
- Cook on a dry saj or heavy pan over medium-high heat for 3 to 4 minutes a side, until dark blistered spots appear and the dough is dry and papery; no oil goes in the pan.
- Brush with butter if you like, stack under a cloth to keep them pliable, and eat hot in the hand while the greens are still bright.
Technique
- This is the emblematic dish of Artsakh and the Syunik region, made in spring when the wild greens are up, and its identity is the sheer number of different herbs, traditionally at least a dozen and often twenty.
- The filling must be raw and finely chopped. Cooked greens weep, and coarse chopping tears the thin dough from inside as you roll and press.
- The dough carries no yeast and no fat, which is why it must be rolled thin and cooked hot and fast; a slow pan gives you a tough dry cracker.
- Balance the mix: bitter greens like dandelion, sour ones like sorrel and aromatic ones like tarragon in roughly equal thirds, over a bulk of mild spinach or chard.
Substitutions
- Outside spring, use a supermarket mix of spinach, chard, coriander, dill, parsley, spring onion, watercress and rocket, adding sorrel or a squeeze of lemon for the missing sourness.
- No saj: a cast-iron pan or a pizza steel at high heat gives a close result; a griddle plate on a barbecue is better still.
Variations
- A Goris version adds a spoon of crumbled dry cheese to the greens.
- Some cooks fry the folded breads in a film of oil for a crisper, richer bread.
- In Stepanakert they are made small, the size of a hand, and sold as street snacks.
History
Flatbread stuffed with up to twenty foraged herbs, from Artsakh, sold by women at market stalls.
Frequently asked questions
What is Zhingyalov hats?
Zhingyalov hats is a bread & pastry from Armenia: flatbread stuffed with a dozen chopped wild herbs; Artsakh specialty. Flatbread stuffed with up to twenty foraged herbs, from Artsakh, sold by women at market stalls.
How long does Zhingyalov hats take to make?
Zhingyalov hats takes 50 min of preparation and 20 min of cooking. The recipe makes 6 flatbreads. It is rated medium to make.
What can I substitute in Zhingyalov hats?
Yes, within limits. Outside spring, use a supermarket mix of spinach, chard, coriander, dill, parsley, spring onion, watercress and rocket, adding sorrel or a squeeze of lemon for the missing sourness. No saj: a cast-iron pan or a pizza steel at high heat gives a close result; a griddle plate on a barbecue is better still.
What is the most important thing to get right in Zhingyalov hats?
The filling must be raw and finely chopped. Cooked greens weep, and coarse chopping tears the thin dough from inside as you roll and press.
