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Kubaneh, Yemenite Bread with Spicy Tomato Sauce

Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes

The Yemenite bread you need to try.

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Kubaneh is a Yemenite bread that traditionally is baked overnight to be served on Shabbat morning. It’s an incredible yeast bread with a crispy crust, and soft buttery inside. This version bakes in 45 minutes, so you can enjoy it any day of the week.

To achieve the wonderful taste of a real kubaneh, it’s best to use samneh, Yemenite clarified butter, or niter kibbeh, spiced clarified butter from Ethiopia, or ghee, the more readily available Indian clarified butter. It is easy to prepare samneh at home, a simple process that takes about ten minutes. But you can also use store-bought ghee (available at most Whole Foods stores and at Indian markets) or niter kibbeh (available at Ethiopian markets). Want to make it even easier? Simply use butter.

Did you know that it’s a custom to serve round Challah in place of the traditional braided which symbolizes the “circle of life?”  Get more Jewish food thoughts here.

Serve with a simple spicy tomato salsa on the side, the traditional Yemenite way.

Ingredients

Servings 6

Kubaneh

  • 1 pound and 2 ounces all purpose flour 3⅔ cups
  • 1 tablespoon + 2 teaspoon instant yeast
  • ¼ cup light brown sugar
  • cups warm water
  • 2 teaspoons kosher salt
  • ½ cup 4 ounces butter, homemade clarified butter (recipe below), ghee or samneh, all should be at room temperature
  • 2 tablespoons milk
  • 1 tablespoon honey

Homemade Clarified Butter (samneh)

  • cups 10 oz., 2 ½ sticks butter

Spicy Tomato Sauce

  • 3 ripe tomatoes
  • ½ – 1 Serrano or jalapeño pepper seeded and finely chopped
  • ½ teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
Instructions

Nutritional Facts

Nutrition Facts
Kubaneh, Yemenite Bread with Spicy Tomato Sauce
Amount per Serving
Calories
832
% Daily Value*
Fat
 
57
g
88
%
Saturated Fat
 
35
g
219
%
Trans Fat
 
2
g
Polyunsaturated Fat
 
3
g
Monounsaturated Fat
 
16
g
Cholesterol
 
143
mg
48
%
Sodium
 
1407
mg
61
%
Potassium
 
272
mg
8
%
Carbohydrates
 
73
g
24
%
Fiber
 
3
g
13
%
Sugar
 
14
g
16
%
Protein
 
9
g
18
%
Vitamin A
 
2180
IU
44
%
Vitamin C
 
9
mg
11
%
Calcium
 
50
mg
5
%
Iron
 
4
mg
22
%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Instructions

Kubaneh

  • Put flour, instant yeast and sugar in bowl of stand mixer fitter with dough hook and mix for one minute. Add warm water and mix slowly for 2 minutes. Add salt, and mix for 5 minutes longer on medium-low speed. Dust a large clean bowl with flour and transfer dough to it.
  • Cover with towel and keep in a warm spot in the kitchen (above the stove) for 45-60 minutes, until dough doubles in volume. Gently push down dough to its original volume.
  • Brush a 9 inch springform pan with a little of the butter or samneh. Using your hands, lightly grease working surface and rolling pin with butter or samneh.
  • With greasy hands, divide dough into 2. Roll first half to a paper-thin rectangle, about 10 inch x 20 inch in size. Use your hands to spread half the butter/samneh all over, and roll up the dough into a 20 inch long cylinder. Cut cylinder into 5 sections and arrange them in the pan, keeping about 1 inch gap between them. Repeat with the second half of the dough.
  • Cover pan with towel and let rise again for about 45 minutes, until dough doubles in size.
  • Preheat oven to 400°F degrees.
  • Mix milk and honey in a small cup (you can heat in the microwave for a few seconds) and very gently brush the top of the kubaneh.
  • Bake kubaneh for 15 minutes, reduce oven temperature to 325°F and continue baking for 30 minutes longer, until top is brown and crispy. Remove from oven, let sit for 5 minutes and serve with a spicy tomato dip (recipe below) on the side.

Homemade Clarified Butter (samneh)

  • Put butter in a small pot over medium heat and cook until melted completely. The butter will start separating and white thick foam will form on top. Use a large spoon to skim foam and discard it. Continue cooking butter for about 8 minutes longer, butter should bubble, but not too aggressively, until golden-brown.
  • Remove any remaining foam, remove from heat and let cool for 10 minutes. Pour into a container through folded cheesecloth or a very fine strainer. Cover and let cool in fridge for an hour. This can be done in advance (samneh can be stored in fridge for months).

Spicy Tomato Sauce

  • To make the spicy tomato sauce, halve tomatoes and grate on coarse hole grater into a bowl. Mix in peppers, salt and olive oil. Cover and let sit at room temperature until serving.

Notes

If you’re using Active Dry Yeast you need to proof it first. Put ½ cup warm water, the yeast and a teaspoon of sugar in a glass and stir briefly. Let the mixture sit for 5-10 minutes until it visibly foams. Put flour, yeast mixture, and the rest of the sugar and water and the salt in bowl of stand mixer fitter with dough hook and mix for 8 minutes on medium-low speed. Dust a large clean bowl with flour and transfer dough to it. Continue with recipe.
If you can find Yemenite schug you can mix that with grated tomato to make the sauce even easier.

 

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