Simit
Simit is a circular, sesame-crusted bread from the former Ottoman Empire, known for its crispy outside and soft inside, often called a Turkish bagel. It's a popular street food that can be eaten for breakfast with cheese, jams, or tea, and is a staple in countries like Türkiye and Greece.
Yield: 6 Pieces
Materials
For the dough
- 500 gr flour (3¼ cup)
- 2 tsp dry instant yeast
- 1 tsp salt
- 300 ml warm water
For the coating
- ½ cup molasses grape or date
- ¼ cup water
- 1 tbsp flour
- 300 gr toasted sesame seeds (about 1 and 1/2 cups)
Instructions
Making the dough
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, yeast and salt.
- Gradually pour in the water and mix it with your hand. Knead it for 5 minutes or until you get a smooth and non-sticky, elastic dough
- Alternatively, you can use a stand mixer with a dough hook for this step.
- Cover it and let it rise for about 1 hour, until it doubles in size
Preparing the coating
- In a medium sized bowl, whisk together the molasses, water and flour. Set it aside.
- Put the sesame seeds in another bowl. Put it aside. If the sesame seeds are raw, toast them in a pan beforehand.
Shape the simit dough
- When the dough doubles in size after 1 hour, punch it down and transfer on a floured surface. Shape it into a log and cut it into 6 equal pieces. And then cut each piece into two. You will have 12 pieces in total.
- Grab two pieces and roll them into a rope, 20 inches/50cm in length
- Put these side by side and stick the ends by pinching
- Twist in opposite directions to make a braid.
- Combine the two ends by pinching them together and make a ring.
- Repeat this for the remaining dough balls.
Coat the simit dough and bake
- Preheat the oven at 425C/220C. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and put it aside
- Soak the simit ring into the molasses mixture first and then put it into the sesame seed bowl. Transfer onto a parchment paper lined baking sheet and bake for 15-20 minutes, until golden.
Notes
