Fahad Inc. Dishes: Paper-Thin Traditional Bread

Fahad Inc. Dishes

Ra-gagg~ paper-thin traditional bread

The word ra-gagg comes from ragga meaning thin and delicate. This is one of the most traditional breads known in the UAE and has many uses. Once the art of making this bread is mastered, it becomes very simple to do and up to 50 pieces can be made in an hour. You have to practice to a avoid burning your hand each time you fashion the dough around the hot griddle!
The bread is made daily during Ramadan and is the accompaniment to Fa-reed. It is also a popular winter-time bread, eaten fresh and warm from the griddle with oil drizzled over, then folded into pieces and eaten with fresh honey.

4 cups whole-wheat flour
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
water (tepid from tap)

Put flour and salt in a large bowl, slowly start adding the water and make a thick dough. Knead well. When the dough has lost much of its elasticity, work in around 1 cup more water at the end to make the dough slightly soft, yet pliable. Cover with a wet cloth and leave for 12 hours.
Use a thick, ungreased iron or aluminum tortilla griddle for cooking the bread over the heat. Once it is hot, take a bowl of water, dip your hand in the water, then take a ball of dough. Place it on the outer edge of the griddle, then gently push it around the whole surface in a circular fashion, with a metal spatula or the side of your hand. Put any dough which drops off in the center of the griddle back into the bowl for the next bread to be baked.
Once the outer edges are slightly golden, the bread is cooked. Remove from griddle with a spatula or blunt end of a knife.