Egypt baladi aish and tahina are staples in Egyptian cuisine. They are served at every meal. The wheat bread is subsidized by the government and at meals the bread is often used as a utensil to enjoy the amazing flavors Egypt has to offer. The sauce called tahina is outstanding on the bread and was also used in our ta’amiya (fava bean falafel). Yum!
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Egypt Baladi Aish and Tahina (Pita Bread and Sesame sauce)
Ingredients
- For the Aish:
- 1 teaspoon dry yeast
- 1 1/4 cup warm water
- 2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
- 1/2 Tablespoon salt
- 1/2 Tablespoon oil
- For the tahina sauce
- 1/2 cup of tahini
- 4 Tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 8 tablespoons water
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- For the Aish:
- In a bowl sprinkle the yeast over the warm water and stir to dissolve.
- Stir in 1 1/2 cups of flour a little at a time and stir about 1 minute
- This mixture is called sponge. Let it rest for a minimum of 10 minutes and up to 2 hours.
- (this is a good time to make your tahina sauce - instructions below.)
- Sprinkle salt over the sponge and stir in oil
- Add in more flour a little at a time until the dough is too stiff to stir. Turn it out onto a slightly floured surface and knead 8-10 minutes until smooth & elastic.
- Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover and place in a warm place to rise (about 1 and 1/2 hours).
- Once the dough has doubled in size, punch it down and divide it in half. Divide each half into 4 equal pieces and flatten each piece into a circle less than an 1/4 inch thick.
- While you allow the circles to rise again (covered), preheat your oven to the highest setting.
- On a pizza stone (preferred) or baking tray in the middle rack, place as many dough rounds as you can comfortably fit on it (leave a few inches space between each round).
- Bake for a few minutes until the bread has puffed up like a balloon.
- Serve warm with Tahina, YUM!
- For the Tahina:
- Mix all ingredients with a whisk until smooth.
