Malawach or Melawwaḥ (Hebrew: מלוואח), is a Jewish Yemenite

flatbread A flatbread is bread made usually with flour; water, milk, yogurt, or other liquid; and salt, and then thoroughly rolled into flattened dough. Many flatbreads are Unleavened bread, unleavened, although some are leavened, such as pita bread. A Se ...

that is traditional in

Yemeni cuisine Yemeni cuisine is distinct from the wider Middle Eastern cuisines with regional variation. Customs The generous offering of food to guests is one of the customs in Yemeni culture, and a guest not accepting the offering is considered an insult ...

as well as

Israeli cuisine Israeli cuisine primarily comprises dishes brought from the Jewish diaspora, and has more recently been defined by the development of a notable fusion cuisine characterized by the mixing of Jewish cuisine and Arab cuisine.Gold, Rozann''A Region's ...

. The name of the dish comes from the

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

"ملوح", literally “board-like bread”. It was brought to

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

Yemenite Jews Yemenite Jews, also known as Yemeni Jews or Teimanim (from ; ), are a Jewish diaspora group who live, or once lived, in Yemen, and their descendants maintaining their customs. After several waves of antisemitism, persecution, the vast majority ...

. Malawach resembles a thick

pancake A pancake, also known as a hotcake, griddlecake, or flapjack, is a flat type of batter bread like cake, often thin and round, prepared from a starch-based Batter (cooking), batter that may contain eggs, milk, and butter, and then cooked on a ...

but consists of thin layers of

puff pastry Puff pastry, also known as , is a light, flaky pastry, its base dough () composed of wheat flour and water. Butter or other solid fat () is then layered into the dough. The dough is repeatedly rolled and folded, rested, re-rolled and folded, encas ...

brushed with

oil An oil is any nonpolar chemical substance that is composed primarily of hydrocarbons and is hydrophobic (does not mix with water) and lipophilic (mixes with other oils). Oils are usually flammable and surface active. Most oils are unsaturate ...

or fat and cooked flat in a frying pan. It is traditionally served with hard-boiled

egg An egg is an organic vessel grown by an animal to carry a possibly fertilized egg cell (a zygote) and to incubate from it an embryo within the egg until the embryo has become an animal fetus that can survive on its own, at which point the ...

s, ''

zhug Sahawiq (Yemeni Arabic: , IPA: aħaːwiq, is a hot sauce originating in Yemeni cuisine. In other countries of the Arabian Peninsula it is also called mabooj (), and bisbaas. In Israel, it is commonly known as zhoug or zhug (from Judeo-Yemenit ...

'', and a crushed or grated tomato dip. Sometimes it is served with

honey Honey is a sweet and viscous substance made by several species of bees, the best-known of which are honey bees. Honey is made and stored to nourish bee colonies. Bees produce honey by gathering and then refining the sugary secretions of pl ...

History

According to Rabbi

Gil Marks Gilbert Stanley Marks (; May 30, 1952 – December 5, 2014) was an American food writer and historian noted for his reference and cookbooks on the subject of Jewish food. He was the founding editor of ''Kosher Gourmet'' magazine. He moved to Isra ...

, a Jewish food historian. Malawach is made from the same dough as

Jachnun Jachnun or Jahnun (, , ) is a Jewish pastry, originating from the Adeni Jews, and traditionally served on ''Shabbat'' morning, with resek agvaniyot (a freshly grated tomato dip), hard-boiled eggs, and zhug (a type of spicy green herbal condiment ...

, and both originated as a variation of puff pastry, brought to

Yemen Yemen, officially the Republic of Yemen, is a country in West Asia. Located in South Arabia, southern Arabia, it borders Saudi Arabia to Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, the north, Oman to Oman–Yemen border, the northeast, the south-eastern part ...

by Jews expelled from Spain. It later became ''"ajin"'', an enriched dough made by the

Preparation

Malawach was traditionally prepared at home by the women in the Yemenite Jewish community, and is made out of a laminated dough similar to

that has been enriched with either butter, Clarified butter, or margarine if

pareve In ''kashrut'', the dietary laws of Judaism, pareve or parve (from for "neutral"; in Hebrew , ''parveh'', or , ''stami'') is a classification of food that contains neither dairy nor meat ingredients. Food in this category includes all items tha ...

; creating a very flaky consistency with many layers, similar to a

croissant A croissant (, ) is a French cuisine, French pastry in a crescent shape made from a laminated yeast dough similar to puff pastry. It is a buttery, flaky, ''viennoiserie'' pastry inspired by the shape of the Austrian cuisine, Austrian ''Kifli, ...

. The dough is divided into balls, and is rolled out, and then commonly placed between

wax paper Waxed paper (also wax paper, waxpaper, or paraffin paper) is paper that has been made moisture-proof and grease-proof through the application of wax. The practice of oiling parchment or paper in order to make it semi-translucent or moisture-pr ...

and placed in the

freezer A refrigerator, commonly shortened to fridge, is a commercial and home appliance consisting of a thermally insulated compartment and a heat pump (mechanical, electronic or chemical) that transfers heat from its inside to its external enviro ...

. It is then fried in a small amount of oil from a frozen state, as if it is fried fresh, the butter or other fat will seep out of the dough, making it harder to work with and not flaky. Freezing the dough helps the butter or other fat remain in solid form once the malawach comes into contact with the hot oil, causing the creation of its signature flaky layers, and causing the bread to rise somewhat. Malawach is typically fried as one large

, though sometimes it is fried in smaller pieces. It is served hot, traditionally with

zhoug Sahawiq (Yemeni Arabic: , IPA: aħaːwiq, is a hot sauce originating in Yemeni cuisine. In other countries of the Arabian Peninsula it is also called mabooj (), and bisbaas. In Israel, it is commonly known as zhoug or zhug (from Judeo-Yemenite ...

, resek, and hardboiled egg, although a variety of other pairings and dips are now popular as well such as honey, jam, labneh, shakshouka,

baba ghanoush Baba ghanoush ( , , ;"baba ghanouj"
(US) ...

matbucha Matbucha (, ''maṭbūkhah''; ) is a North African condiment or cooked salad consisting of cooked tomatoes and roasted bell peppers seasoned with garlic and chili pepper, and slow-cooked for a number of hours. It is traditionally served in North ...

, and

muhammara The muhammara or mhammara (, "something that has turned red") is a dip made of walnuts, red bell peppers, pomegranate molasses, and breadcrumbs. It is commonly associated with Syria,. Muhammara can also be found in Western Armenian cuisine. In ...

, among others.

Popularity in Israel

Malawach has historically been a staple of the

. Through exodus of Yemenite Jews from Yemen in the mid-20th century, and their subsequent

aliyah ''Aliyah'' (, ; ''ʿălīyyā'', ) is the immigration of Jews from Jewish diaspora, the diaspora to, historically, the geographical Land of Israel or the Palestine (region), Palestine region, which is today chiefly represented by the Israel ...

, it has become a very popular dish in Israel, and a favorite comfort food for Israelis of all backgrounds and origins. Malawach is traditionally made at home by members of the Yemenite Jewish community, but with the newfound, widespread popularity of malawach in Israel in recent decades, it is now commonly served at restaurants in Israel, many of which are dedicated to serving malawach and related dishes such as

jachnun Jachnun or Jahnun (, , ) is a Jewish pastry, originating from the Adeni Jews, and traditionally served on ''Shabbat'' morning, with resek agvaniyot (a freshly grated tomato dip), hard-boiled eggs, and zhug (a type of spicy green herbal condiment ...

. It is commonly used as a sandwich wrap similar to a

laffa Laffa, also known as lafa or Iraqi pita, is the Modern Hebrew term for a large, thin flatbread with an Iraqi origin. Laffa is a simple bread that is traditionally vegan and cooked in a ''tannur'' or '' tabun'', both of which are clay ovens. It ...

, and is commonly served with

shakshouka Shakshouka is a Maghrebi dish of eggs poached in a sauce of tomatoes, olive oil, peppers, onion, and garlic, commonly spiced with cumin, paprika, and cayenne pepper. Shakshouka is a popular dish throughout North Africa and the Middle East. ...

hummus Hummus (, ; , , also spelled hommus or houmous), (full name: Hummus Bi Tahini) is a Levantine cuisine, Levantine Dip (food), dip, spread (food), spread, or savory Dish (food), dish made from cooked, mashed chickpeas blended with tahini, le ...

sabich Sabich or sabih ( ) is a sandwich of pita or laffa bread stuffed with fried eggplants, hard-boiled eggs, chopped salad, parsley, Amba (condiment), amba and tahini sauce. It first appeared in Ramat Gan in Israel in the 1960s. Its ingredients a ...

, and many other dishes. It is also commonly served as a dessert with

labneh Strained yogurt, Greek or Greek-style yogurt, yogurt cheese, sack yogurt, kerned yogurt or labneh is yogurt that has been strained to remove most of its whey, resulting in a thicker consistency than normal unstrained yogurt, while still preser ...

and

jam Fruit preserves are preparations of fruits whose main preserving agent is sugar and sometimes acid, often stored in glass jars and used as a condiment or spread. There are many varieties of fruit preserves globally, distinguished by the meth ...

. It is also used as a

pizza Pizza is an Italian cuisine, Italian, specifically Neapolitan cuisine, Neapolitan, dish typically consisting of a flat base of Leavening agent, leavened wheat-based dough topped with tomato, cheese, and other ingredients, baked at a high t ...

crust. Frozen malawah is commonly available in grocery stores across the nation, by brands such as Ta'amti, and Osem, and is exported abroad to

kosher (also or , ) is a set of dietary laws dealing with the foods that Jewish people are permitted to eat and how those foods must be prepared according to Jewish law. Food that may be consumed is deemed kosher ( in English, ), from the Ashke ...

supermarkets in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, France, and other nations. Frozen malawach can be used as a substitute for dough in different recipes such as

bourekas Bourekas or burekas (),() are a popular Baking, baked pastry in Sephardic Jewish cuisine and Israeli cuisine. A variation of the Börek, burek, a popular pastry throughout southern Europe, northern Africa and the Middle East, Israeli bourekas are ...

sambusak A samosa () () (Hindi: समोसा) ( Persian: سمبوسه) is a fried South Asian and West Asian snack. It is a pastry with a savory filling that mostly consists of vegetables like spiced potatoes, onions, and peas, but can also include ...

, and many others.

References

{{Flatbreads Yemeni breads Yemenite Jews Israeli breads Mizrahi Jewish cuisine Jewish baked goods Puff pastry

History

Preparation

Popularity in Israel

See also

References