Pita Bread and Chicken Kebabs

Right now, I am running dangerously low on EVOO, lemons and garlic in my pantry. Why? Because I cooked Lebanese, of course!

I love the flavors of Lebanese food, and even though it is easily available everywhere, I have never attempted a full Lebanese meal before. I have made hummus several times and I am a huge fan! But, this was my first time making the babaganoush, pita bread and shish taouk chicken kebabs. We ate this with crunchy lettuce, slivers of raw red onion and cucumber sticks, and lime wedges on the side. It was a hearty meal and we really enjoyed it - even my eighteen month old.

In this post, I will share my recipe for the pita bread and the kebabs. I will share my recipes for the dips in my next post.

I found the recipe in an ancient little baking booklet on breads. It has no cover and the printing looks like it was done on a home printer, and the font is very childish. I don't remember where I got it. But it has some great bread recipes.

I originally planned to make the pita bread in the oven, and I even made one 'test' pita. It turned out great! But because I was pressed for time, and my little girl was getting hungry, I made them on the stove top. They turned out fine and even though all of them didn't puff, they were still delicious! I realized I didn't roll some of them out smoothly enough, and the creases in the bread made the steam escape while they were puffing up. Never mind, they were still delicious!

Again, with the kebabs, I intended to bake them, and I am sure they would have turned out fabulously in the oven, but I just didn't have the time. So, using very little oil in a non-stick pan, I shallow fried the chicken, turning the pieces often for uniform color. They were really, really good. I loved the warmth of the cinnamon and cumin in the marinade. The recipe is a variation of an Indian kebab dish I make often. I just made some changes to make it less Indian.

Because I made this for dinner, the pictures taken at night aren't great. But the meal was! :)

Pita Bread

Ingredients
2 1/2 tsp active dry yeast
1/2 cup warm water
2 tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
3 - 3 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup warm water

Method
In a large bowl, add the half cup of warm water and the sugar. Sprinkle the yeast over the water and allow it to proof for 5-10 minutes, until creamy and frothy.
Stir in the oil, salt and one cup of the flour, and mix until smooth.
Add the remaining flour, half cup at a time, until you have a soft and slightly sticky dough. For pita, you want a moist dough
Knead the dough until smooth and elastic, with your hand or using a dough hook, for about 10 minutes.
Form the dough into a smooth ball and transfer it to an oiled bowl. Cover with cling film. Set aside for anywhere between 1-6 hours to rise.
Half an hour before you bake them, punch down the dough, and shape into 10 uniform balls of dough. On a lightly floured surface, roll each one out into a smooth and uniform circle. Cover and allow them to rest until the oven and baking sheet are very hot.

If you are going to bake them, half an hour before baking, preheat your oven to 450, with your baking sheet inside the oven.
Before you bake them, spray or lightly sprinkle your baking sheet with some water. Place 1 or 2 dough circles into on the baking sheet at a time. Bake for 3-4 minutes, or until completely puffed. You don't want them to brown, or they will become too crisp. But who am I to stop you? If you want them brown and crisp, go ahead! :)

If you are cooking them on a stove top, heat the griddle and lightly grease it. Place one circle of dough and let it cook for 10-15 seconds until small bubbles form on the surface. Turn over and let it cook on medium heat for a further 30 seconds. Flip and cook until it puffs up. If one or two of them (or all of them) don't puff, don't fret. Just let them cook for about 2 minutes more and take them off the griddle. I can assure you that they will still be delicious.

Whether you are baking them or cooking them on a stove top, wrap the cooked pita breads in a slightly damp tea towel to keep them soft until you eat them.

Chicken Kebabs

Ingredients
4 boneless chicken thighs
4 large cloves of garlic, crushed to a smooth paste
1 1/2 tsp of cumin powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon powder
1/4 tsp (or more) chilli powder
1/2 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp black pepper powder
1/2 tsp garam masala (A combination of cinnamon, cloves, pepper corns, cardamom, cumin, fennel seeds and nutmeg.)
1 tbsp tomato puree
1/2 tsp brown sugar
2 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil1/2 tsp salt

Method
Cut the chicken into bite-size pieces and marinate for at least an hour. Or you could leave it overnight in the fridge.
Shallow fry them, turning them frequently until cooked. About 10 minutes per batch of kebabs.
Or you could bake them in a single layer on a greased baking sheet at 200 for 20-25 minutes.
Or skewer them and grill them until cooked. About 5 minutes on each side.

These kebabs are very flavorful and were lovely with the creaminess of the hummus and the smoked flavor of the babaganoush. The pita breads were perfect to make little Mediterranean 'tacos'. The ones that didn't puff made very good wraps.

Technorati Tags: Pita, Homemade, Chicken, Kebabs, Recipe