Algerian recipe
How to make Kesra
كسرة
Eastern Algeria; baked all over the country
A round, flat semolina bread cooked on a clay or iron griddle. It is eaten warm or cold with almost anything, from stews to olive oil, honey or a glass of fermented milk (leben).
Ingredients
- 500 g medium or fine semolina
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 4 tablespoons olive oil or melted butter
- About 250 ml warm water
- A teaspoon of nigella seeds (optional)
Method
- Mix the semolina, salt and nigella seeds, then rub in the oil or butter with your fingertips.
- Add the water little by little and knead gently into a soft dough that holds together. Do not overwork it.
- Divide into two balls and flatten each on a floured surface into a round about 1 cm thick. Prick it all over with a fork.
- Cook in a dry heavy frying pan or on a griddle over a medium heat for 6 to 8 minutes on each side, turning a few times, until golden and cooked through. Cut into wedges.
Made it at home? Tick it off and it goes into your kitchen passport.
The name comes from an Arabic root meaning 'to break', as the bread is broken by hand to share.
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