Nan-e-Barbari has a beautiful golden colour. The outside has a crunchy crust with a soft chewy, delicious centre. Sesame and Nigella seeds add a lovely crunch and flavour to the bread.

It is the fag end of the rainy season. It is the time of the year when the clouds wear beautiful colours and form breathtaking patterns. Every morning is mesmerizing and the sunsets are charming. The great artist above ensures that no two patterns on the canvas of the sky are the same.

The forest floor is a soft carpet with moss lending hues of green and brown. Ferns have sprung up from every nook and corner of the Earth. The springs are still gurgling, sending fresh bubbly water to small mountain streams.

Days are warm and evenings get cooler as we hurtle towards Autumn.

Butterflies are back, flitting on Mexican sage and wildflowers that are their favourite.

Cold nights call for light meals and baking bread is a must. It is an ideal accompaniment to soups or stews and this combination makes the best dinner that is light and nourishing.

Last evening we baked Nan-e-Barbari.

Barbari is a traditional Persian flatbread and one of the most popular bread eaten in Iran. It has a beautiful golden brown colour with a signature shape including long indented stripes and is topped with sesame and nigella seeds. It is crunchy from the outside with a soft chewy texture in the middle.

It is super easy to make at home. You only need a few basic ingredients and a large bowl to make this traditional bread.

Enjoy it for breakfast or dinner.

Nan-e-Barbari

Ingredients

Dough

4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons instant dry yeast
1 ½ to 1 ¾ cup water
1 ½ teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon sugar

Glaze

2 teaspoons all-purpose flour
1/3 cup water
½ teaspoon sugar
½ teaspoon vegetable oil

Topping

Sesame seeds
Nigella seeds

Instructions

To prepare the dough, mix flour, yeast, salt, sugar oil and water. Knead this mixture using your hands or a stand mixture for about 5 to 8 minutes. The dough will be very smooth and sticky.
Lightly grease the top of the dough and let it rise in the same bowl for about an hour or until almost double.
Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface. Gently deflate and divide the dough into two pieces.
Shape each piece into a log about 10 inches long. Cover the logs and allow them to rise for 25-30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 200 degrees C.
In the meantime prepare the glaze. Combine all the ingredients in a small pan and mix well with a whisk. Bring it to a boil and cook over medium heat until it thickens and coats the spoon. Remove from the heat and keep aside.
Transfer one log onto a lined and dusted baking tray. Gently deflate, stretch with fingers or roll out with a rolling pin.
Keep stretching all the edges to shape into a flat oval shape roughly 14” x 5”.
Brush over a thin layer of glaze.
With your fingertips, make indentations along the bread lengthwise, about 1 inch apart.
Sprinkle Sesame and Nigella seeds. Bake for about 20 minutes.
Repeat the same for the other piece of dough.
Once baked, cool in the rack. Serve warm.

Linking to #BreadBakers

#BreadBakers is a group of bread loving bakers who get together once a month to bake bread with a common ingredient or theme. Follow our Pinterest board right here. Links are also updated each month on this home page.

We take turns hosting each month and choosing the theme/ingredient.