Taboon
Taboon is a flatbread baked in a clay oven of the same name, lined with hot stones. The stones press the characteristic dimples into the dough, where oil and sauce collect — which is why musakhan, chicken with onion and sumac, is served on taboon. At home we bake it on a hot stone or an upturned tray in the hottest oven, and make the dimples with our fingertips. The dough is simple: wheat flour with some wholemeal, water, yeast, salt and a spoonful of olive oil.
Your own work in that: 25 min.
- Dough 15 min
- Rising 90 min
- Dividing 10 min
- Resting the dough 20 min
- Baking 50 min
Step by step
0 / 8 doneKnead the dough
Mix both flours with the yeast, sugar and salt. Add the lukewarm water and olive oil and knead 10 minutes until smooth and soft, slightly tacky.
Ingredients: 400 g plain wheat flour · 100 g wholemeal wheat flour · 330 ml lukewarm water · 5 g dried yeast · 1 tsp sugar · 9 g salt · 2 tbsp olive oil
Leave to rise
Cover the bowl and leave the dough somewhere warm for 1.5 hours, until clearly doubled.
Ingredients: 400 g plain wheat flour · 100 g wholemeal wheat flour · 330 ml lukewarm water · 5 g dried yeast · 1 tsp sugar · 9 g salt · 2 tbsp olive oil
Heat the oven
Put a pizza stone or an upturned baking tray in the oven and heat it at the highest setting (250–275°C) for at least 40 minutes. A properly hot base is essential — on a cold one the bread will not bake through. At that temperature the stone and tray are fiercely hot: handle them only with dry oven gloves.
Ingredients: 400 g plain wheat flour · 100 g wholemeal wheat flour · 330 ml lukewarm water · 5 g dried yeast · 1 tsp sugar · 9 g salt · 2 tbsp olive oil
Divide the dough
Turn the dough onto a floured surface and divide into 6 pieces (about 145 g each). Shape into balls, cover with a cloth and leave 20 minutes.
Ingredients: 400 g plain wheat flour · 100 g wholemeal wheat flour · 330 ml lukewarm water · 5 g dried yeast · 1 tsp sugar · 9 g salt · 2 tbsp olive oil
Six balls under a cloth — the dough relaxes.Stretch a round
Stretch one ball by hand or with a rolling pin into a round about 18 cm across and 5 mm thick. Do not press the air out of the edges.
Ingredients: 400 g plain wheat flour · 100 g wholemeal wheat flour · 330 ml lukewarm water · 5 g dried yeast · 1 tsp sugar · 9 g salt · 2 tbsp olive oil
Make the dimples
Press your fingertips into the round, making deep dimples all over it, every 2–3 cm. They are what will hold the oil and sauce.
Ingredients: 400 g plain wheat flour · 100 g wholemeal wheat flour · 330 ml lukewarm water · 5 g dried yeast · 1 tsp sugar · 9 g salt · 2 tbsp olive oil
Deep dimples — the mark of the oven stones.Bake
Slide the round onto the hot stone and bake 5–7 minutes until it puffs and brown spots appear on top. Bake the remaining rounds the same way, one after another.
Ingredients: 400 g plain wheat flour · 100 g wholemeal wheat flour · 330 ml lukewarm water · 5 g dried yeast · 1 tsp sugar · 9 g salt · 2 tbsp olive oil
Brown spots and blisters — the bread is done.Keep under a cloth
Stack the baked breads and cover them with a cloth — the steam keeps them soft and pliable.
Ingredients: 400 g plain wheat flour · 100 g wholemeal wheat flour · 330 ml lukewarm water · 5 g dried yeast · 1 tsp sugar · 9 g salt · 2 tbsp olive oil
Before you start
What to serve it with
Taboon is the base for musakhan: chicken braised with onion, sumac and olive oil. It is also served drizzled with olive oil and za'atar, with hummus and with grilled meat.
In a pan
Without a stone, bake the breads in a dry, very hot cast-iron pan: 2–3 minutes per side, pressing the edges with a spatula. They will puff less and come out closer to pitta.
Storage
The bread is best on baking day. Keep cooled breads in a bag for up to 2 days or freeze them — reheat sprinkled with water for 3 minutes at 200°C.
