Nane casoki or bulgur bread

Bulgur is a major ingredient in Turkish cooking, and is used widely in the cuisine of the Near East. Germinated wheat is cooked in copper kettles, dried, and then crushed. Bulgur is to the Kurds rather like couscous semolina is to the Maghreb. Nevertheless, semolina bread is rare, although there is the Algerian matlou, made with fine semolina and wheat flour or with only wheat flour, or Moroccan kesra. Both serve as bread in a way, but bulgur bread is an exception. Cracked wheat is also used to make kebbe and tabbouleh, as well as in lamb meatballs, such as Azerbaijani kufta.

The Kurds were therefore tempted to do the impossible: to prepare the cracked wheat in such a way that it could be used for bread. And they succeeded. Each culture seems to have its room for maneuver when it comes to reinventing bread using grains and tubers that most of the world’s bakers would consider unsuitable for use. There is always a way to innovate. In this bread, the cracked wheat is mixed with wheat flour, which serves as a binding agent. So how do they manage to mix grains with little inclination to stay together? The French agronomist Parmentier was faced with the same problem when it came to potatoes.

In a large bowl, mix the same volume of bulgur and wheat flour. To this, add finely chopped onions, salt and warm water to form a dough. Leave dough to rest for the time you think it needs. Divide dough, and roll out the dough rolls to shape circles (or another shape) 20 cm in diameter. Cook in oven for 2 minutes on each side.