20210923+1026 100% Whole-grain Pita + Man’oushé with CLAS

To learn more about concentrated lactic acid sourdough (CLAS), please see here and here. 

 

 

I  Lebanese cuisine. Over the years, my family has enjoyed many Lebanese dishes that I cook. But I have not baked any Lebanese bread. Lebanese Man’oushé pies look so delicious, especially meat pies. I didn't have time to prepare meat toppings today, so I made several pies with available ingredients.

As you know, I have had great success in making 100% whole-grain bread using CLAS. So the Man’oushé dough I made today was also whole-grain.

My recipe is super simple, but the bread is delicious and tender. When making bread with CLAS, I take it for granted that I can expect excellent flavors no matter what bread I make. I thought of Rus when I was baking; I can't tell you how much I appreciate him sharing this fantastic technique with us.

 

 

Dough

A.

10% whole rye CLAS

(Depending on the formula, the whole rye CLAS can be replaced by other whole-grain CLAS like wheat, spelt, durum, etc. through refreshing on the night before baking, but I usually don't bother because whole rye CLAS makes very delicious bread)

90% fresh hard white whole wheat flour, ground by Vitamix

69% water

 

B.

8% sugar

1% salt

3% olive oil

0.3% dry yeast

 

C.

14% water

 

DT 31C/87.8F –ish

 

Mix

By Zojirushi bread machine

A. x 10 mins

B.+ C. x 10 mins

 

Shape

160g each, 8"

See pictures

 

Proof

Room temp ~28C/82.4F –ish x 60 mins

 

Bake

Pre-heat 550F

No steam

550F x 2 mins, middle rack

 

 

I put each dough ball on parchment paper, and I rotated the paper instead of the dough when I rolled it out. I found it much easier than having to handle the wet dough directly. 

 

160g each, ~8"

      I was so excited to see the dough ballooned! Baking at 550F, putting the dough in the middle rack ensures that the dough can balloon before it's cooked. High hydration, well-developed thin dough(intact, not torn), and high heat are the key elements that made my bread puff.  Pita

 

Bad picture; I was in a rush to get the next pie out of the oven.  

 

 

 

 

 Homemade Za'tar.  I prefer more sumac (freshly ground) than thyme.  The pie was tart, just the way I like.

         Parmesean.  There are so many variations of cheese pies.  I look forward to making them when I'm more prepared with ingredients. 
           20211026 Another bake to fine-tune the formula In this bake, I aimed to make the pita less soft, more rustic, and thicker. So, I reduced the hydration to ~76%, sprinkled ground, rolled oatmeal on the pie, rolled it out smaller, and baked longer at ~4:30 mins.  It turned out almost ideal, but the interior was still a bit too moist.  Maybe I'll reduce the hydration further next time.             I  Za'tar man’oushé