Թ ո ն ր ի հ ա ց
tonir bread
In Artsakh, lavash comes second in preference to tonir hats, a round, yeasted bread about as thick as focaccia baked against the walls of an above-ground tonir oven. Perfect with butter and jam for breakfast, the simple, crusty bread sustained us on our road trip from Artsakh back to Armenia on May 2, 2018, the day Armenia erupted in protests against the parliament for failing to vote in Nikol Pashinyan as prime minister. That morning, we picked up a stack of bread in Stepanakert, watching as the women stretched rounds of dough over a small, round batat before striking it against the oven walls. Several hours later, as we stood in the sun at a roadblock near the high- altitude mining town of Vardenis, we were glad for the snacks.
To make tonir hats at home, we use the recipe for Matnakash (page 68), modifying the shaping and baking technique at the end. We like the puffiness of the bread, though if you’d like it to be flatter, pierce the stretched dough several times with a fork before sliding it into the oven.
Makes 2
1 cup [140 g] all-purpose flour
1/2 cup [120 ml] lukewarm water (see page 38)
1/4 tsp instant yeast
1 recipe Matnakash dough (page 68)
DOUGH
1 cup [240 ml] lukewarm water (see page 38)
1 tsp instant yeast
3 cups plus 2 Tbsp [440 g] all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
1 Tbsp kosher salt
Follow the instructions for making Matnakash (see page 70) until the shape-and-bake step.
To shape and bake, place a baking stone or baking steel in the bottom rack of the oven and remove the middle rack. Preheat the oven to 500°F [260°C]. Alternatively, use an overturned half-sheet pan in place of a baking stone (see page 41).
Dust the counter with flour and place the dough portions on top. For each portion, gently stretch and pat the dough into a 10 in [25 cm] round as if you were making pizza. Ensure there is enough flour underneath the dough to keep it from sticking to the counter, then cover loosely with a kitchen towel and let it rest until slightly puffy, about 25 minutes.
Pick up one of the portions and gently stretch it into a 12 in [30.5 cm] round. Dust a pizza peel with flour and place one round on top. If this step sounds tricky, put the dough on the dusted pizza peel and stretch it into a round without picking it up. Open the oven and, with a quick jerk, transfer the round onto the pizza stone. Turn the oven down to 450°F [230°C].
Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the top turns deeply golden brown. Remove from the oven and set on a cooling rack. Repeat with the remaining round. While the bread is still warm but cool enough to handle, dust any excess flour off the bottom of the bread.
Slice tonir hats or serve whole and allow guests to tear off pieces. Alternatively, the bread keeps in a zip-top plastic bag on the counter for 3 days or frozen for up to 1 month.
