Kubaneh Bread with All the Fixings

(Weekend Project Alert!)

Once you make this magically fluffy, buttery bread, you’ll understand why patience is a virtue. A cross between brown bread and brioche, kubaneh is designed to sidestep the prohibition against cooking on the Sabbath; the dough is prepared on Friday, then slow-baked overnight, permeating the whole house with the irresistible aroma of caramelized yeast and dough. I first discovered kubaneh while working on a story for the now-departed Gourmet magazine, when my research took me to the Tel Aviv suburb of Rosh HaAyin, where many Yemenite Jews settled after being airlifted to Israel in the years immediately following the founding of the modern state in 1948. I had tried several other Yemenite breads, including jachnun, a dense log of sweet, oily dough; pan-fried, flaky malawach; and lachuch (this page), all of which have become comfort-food staples in Israel. But this one, introduced to me by sisters-in-law Ilana Tzana’ani and Daphna Sa’ad, was different. To make the bread, the dough is risen twice, divided, spread out gossamer-thin, lavished generously with softened butter, then rolled and shaped into snails that are sealed snugly into a tightly lidded vessel for a long and lazy overnight bake in the oven. My favorite way to eat it is to peel the eggs, tear off slices of bread, and dip them both into a table full of accompanying condiments: hand-grated tomatoes called resek, spicy schug, and chilbeh, a whipped fenugreek-and-herb sauce that Yemenites traditionally use to cut through the richness of food.

Serves 8

Active Time: 2 hours

Total Time: 11 to 15 hours, depending on length of baking

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus more for greasing

1 cup lukewarm water

⅓ cup sugar

3¼ cups unbleached all-purpose flour, plus more as needed

1 tablespoon instant (rapid-rise) yeast

1½ teaspoons fine sea salt

8 large eggs in their shells, rinsed and dried

1 tablespoon Za’atar Spice Blend (or store-bought)

Cardamom-Kissed Schug, for serving

In a microwave-safe bowl, heat ¼ cup (½ stick) of the butter until just melted, 20 seconds. In the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk together the water, sugar, and the melted butter. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, yeast, and salt. Add it to the mixer, fit the mixer with the dough hook, and knead, adding flour by the tablespoonful if needed, until a smooth, glossy, and only slightly sticky dough forms, 5 to 6 minutes. Remove the dough from the bowl, lightly butter the bowl, return the dough to the bowl, turn to coat, and cover with plastic wrap. Let the dough rise in a warm place until doubled in size, 45 minutes to 1 hour, then punch it down and let it rise for another hour.

Preheat the oven to 225°F.

Use a sharp knife to divide the dough into 8 equal pieces and set the remaining ¾ cup (1½ sticks) softened butter next to your work surface. Butter an aluminum kubaneh pot or 9- to 10-inch oven-safe pot with a tight-fitting lid and set aside.

Using about 2 teaspoons of the butter, liberally butter a 15-inch square on your work surface, then scoop up about 1 tablespoon of the butter into your hands and, using your fingers, spread a piece of the dough out into an 11 x 13-inch rectangle, working the butter into the dough as you go. The dough will be quite thin; don’t worry if some parts rip or a few holes appear in the dough. Fold the dough lengthwise, then roll up like a jelly roll, then curl it into a snail. Repeat with the other 7 pieces of dough. Nestle them in the buttered pot. Nestle the eggs between the pieces of dough, sprinkle with za’atar, and seal the pot tightly (for extra insurance, cover the pot with foil before you place the lid on top). Bake until golden and fragrant, a minimum of 8 hours and up to 12; the longer you bake it, the darker it will become, and by the end the eggs will be hidden among the dough balls. Serve fresh from the oven, or at room temperature, with the eggs and all the condiments.

Resek (Grated Tomatoes)

Makes 3 cups

8 very ripe medium tomatoes (2 pounds)

¾ teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste

Pinch sugar (optional)

Using a box grater, grate the tomatoes into a bowl, discarding the skins. Add the salt, and a drop of sugar, too, if your tomatoes need a wintertime acidity assist.

Chilbeh (Fenugreek Relish)

Makes 2 cups

3 tablespoons ground fenugreek

2¼ cups very cold ice water

1 cup lightly packed fresh parsley leaves

1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

2 teaspoons Cardamom-Kissed Schug, or more to taste

½ teaspoon kosher salt

In a medium bowl, stir the fenugreek with ¾ cup of the ice water. Soak for 20 minutes, letting the fenugreek settle to the bottom. After 20 minutes, drain as much water as you can from the bowl and repeat 2 more times so the fenugreek has soaked for a total of 1 hour. Place the fenugreek seeds and parsley in a blender or food processor. With the motor running, slowly drizzle in the remaining ¾ cup ice water and blend on high until the mixture is light and fluffy, stopping and scraping down the sides of the blender if necessary, 45 seconds to 1 minute. Add the lemon juice, schug, and salt and blend an additional 5 to 10 seconds. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.