Platter with three Canjeero / Lahoh Breads
(click to enlarge)

Canjeero / Lahoh Bread


Djibouti / Somalia / Somaliland / Southeast Ethiopia / Kenya / Yemen   -   Canjeero / Anjero / Lahoh
Makes:
Effort:
Sched:
DoAhead:  		 11 ea
***
6 hrs
Yes		 The main bread of: Yemen, Djibouti and North Somalia (Lahoh); South Somalia, southeastern Ethiopia, and northern Kenya (Canjeero, Anjero). It's soft and pleasantly chewy.

1
1
2
4-1/2
3
2
1
4
ar
c
t
c
c
T
t
t
c

Cornmeal (1)
Yeast, dry
Water
Water (2)
Sugar
Baking Powder  
Salt
Flour, all-purp.
Oil (3)

See Gallery for more details. These breads weigh about 4-1/2 ounces each. Figure they will take about 9 minutes each for cooking and waiting for temperature to recover.

Prep   -   (4-5 hours - 15 min work)
  1. Select a mixing bowl that will accommodate some expansion. I use an 11-1/2 inch medium depth stainless steel bowl.
  2. Place CORNMEAL, Yeast, and 2 cups Water in the mixing bowl. Whip well to blend. Let sit at room temperature for 1 hour or a little more.
  3. Stir Baking Soda and Salt into the mixing bowl, then start mixing in the FLOUR a few ounces at a time, whipping it in with a wire whisk.
  4. Cover loosely with plastic wrap or a cloth and let sit in a comfortably warm place for 3 to 4 hours, or until it is quit foamy.
Run   -   (2 hrs)
  1. Adjust liquid in your batter if necessary so it pours fairly well. If you have to stir in more Water, let it sit for another 30 minutes to restore bubbles.
  2. Make sure everything is ready to go.
  3. Bring your griddle up to about 400°F/200°C and give it time to stabilize. I recommend an Infrared Thermometer to confirm temperature.
  4. Wipe the surface of the griddle with a lump of paper towel soaked with Oil. I do this even on my non-stick griddle.
  5. Pour on about 4-1/2 ounces of the batter. Then tilt the pan around to spread it out to about 9 inches (see Note-3).
  6. Cover the pan and let cook for about 4 minutes, or until the edges start to lift off the griddle and the top is set so you can touch it firmly without it sticking. If your temperature is right, the bottom should be lightly browned. Lift off the griddle and set aside. Best to set it on a straw mat for a few minutes so it can steam off on both sides, them move to a plate.
  7. Re-oil the pan and repeat until you have used all the batter.
  8. Serve at room temperature - see Serving. Bagged in plastic, this bread will keep for days in the fridge.
NOTES:

  1. Cornmeal:

      This should be finely ground White Cornmeal.

  2. Water:

      You may notice I call for a lot more water at this point than in most recipes on the Internet. This is from my experience. My first batch used 3 cups as given in the pattern recipe, and was left to ferment overnight, as many recipes call for. It was unusable as the gluten in the flour had linked making it stringy and sticky, impossible to pour or even ladle. 4 cups in the next batch and 3 hours fermenting was much better, but still a little thick and getting thicker. Your flours may need a different amount of water.

  3. Spreading Batter:

      If you cannot tilt the pan (it's awkward with my large Lefse Griddle), the batter must be liquid enough to spread well, and applied in a spiral as is done for Injira in Ethiopia. You don't want to spread the batter with a spatula, as that will break all the surface bubbles.

  4. Serving:

      This bread is a standard breakfast item throughout the region. It may be topped with butter, ghee, olive oil, sesame oil, sugar or honey. It is also served at lunch and other meals to accompany stews, curries, and soups, instead of rice. Often one disk will be placed flat on the plate, with a another disk rolled up and cut in half on the side. It is also commonly served with tea. It's also excellent as a snack with beer.

  5. Comments:

      Wikipedia says the preferred flour is Sorghum. No recipe I have seen calls for this, they all call for 1 cup Cornmeal and 4 cups of All Purpose Flour (or a similar ratio for different quantities). Quite a few do allow additional of 1/2 cup of Sorghum flour mixed in with the Cornmeal as an option. I have seen mention of a "Red Lahoh" made from whole grain sorghum flour, but nobody I've read claims to have actually seen it.
  6. U.S. measure: t=teaspoon, T=Tablespoon, c=cup, qt=quart, oz=ounce, #=pound, cl=clove in=inch, ar=as required tt=to taste
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