The Breads of Egypt: Semit - سميط

My grandfather Abdelhamid El-Mazni was a real foodie. He was born in Cairo in 1931, a Cairo that is so different from the one I grew up in. Like most grandparents, he had lots of stories to tell, many of them were from his early years, growing up in Cairo in the 30s and 40s of the past century. One of the stories I remember vividly was his trips to the cinema. He would take the tram on his own, pay for the ticket in mallim (a sub-unit of Egyptian pounds that doesn’t exist anymore) then pay for the movie ticket and proceed towards the snacks guy. The order of the day would always be a hard-boiled egg topped with dukkah (دُقّة) served with Semit, a bread ring encrusted in sesame seeds.

The story was a classic mix of adventurous youth, reflection over how much has changed and a lesson in being responsible on your own. But the food memory stayed with him and he, probably unintentionally, opened my eyes to a combination I wasn’t aware of. Semit with eggs and dukkah is still found in Cairo these days but the competition is much fiercer today than it was back in the 1940s. Food memories can be very powerful and stay with people their entire lives. Even the idea of something delicious can stay with people a long time. Here I am, more than 17 years after my grandfather’s passing tell you about it and, maybe, keeping it going for a little while longer.

Dukkah (sometimes spelled as Duqqa) is a very old and traditional mixture. The most commonly used ingredients are sesame seeds, coriander seeds and cumin seeds. These days, peanuts are used to bulk up the dukkah but back in the day, people used to add the seeds found inside apricot stones. Dried split chickpeas can also be found but the general theme of dukkah is frugality. It’s something that has been associated with poverty in Egypt and still is. Yet to my confusion, searching for recipes in English yielded recipes using things like hazelnuts and pistachios which are far more expensive and don’t really grow in Egypt. My recipe for homemade dukkah (found below) is simple and traditional but feel free to add other things like black pepper, fennel seeds, split chickpeas or whatever you like.

The Semit on the other hand is a simple bread dough. What makes it special is the shaping method and the sesame crust. Though Turkish in origin (with the Turkish spelling simit), dipping the dough in sugarcane molasses and the egg and dukkah combination is definitely Egyptian. The addition of sugar and oil to the dough doesn’t seem at all common in Turkish recipes but are common in Egypt as they produce a softer bread. The shape is made by coiling two long pieces of dough as shown in this video.

Estimated time:

Mixing and kneading: 10 minutes

Rising: 1 hour, 30 minutes + 10-15 minutes

Baking: 15-20 minutes

Ingredients:

For the dukkah:

4 Tablespoons unsalted peanuts

4 Tablespoons sesame seeds

2 Tablespoons cumin seeds

2 Tablespoons coriander seeds

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon chili powder (optional)

For the dough:

500 grams all-purpose flour

250 grams water

2 Tablespoons (30 grams) oil (sunflower, canola, corn or any neutral oil)

2 Tablespoons (30 grams) sugar

2 teaspoons (10 grams) salt

1 teaspoon yeast

For the sesame crust:

1 Tablespoon molasses

100 ml water

50 grams sesame seeds

Steps:

For the dukkah:

1- Grind the cumin seeds and coriander seeds finely in a grinder. Add the salt, chili powder, peanuts and sesame seeds. Pulse briefly for a few times until the peanuts and sesame seeds are finely crushed but not ground too fine that their oils start to separate.

2- Transfer the dukkah to a glass jar and store in a cool, dark place.

For the Semit:

1- In a large mixing bowl, add all the ingredients for the dough, mix well then knead for 5-10 minutes until smooth, elastic and well developed. Leave the dough to rise for an hour to an hour and a half or until almost doubled in size.

2- Divide the dough into 8 equal pieces, around 100-105 grams each. Shape into balls and leave them to rest for 10 minutes.

3- Roll out two pieces, one by one, into thin long cylinders about 35-40 centimeters long. Pinch both sides together on one end then pull them towards you by dragging your hand backwards to coil the two pieces together. Form the coil into a ring by pinching the two ends together. See the video above.

4- Place the shaped semit onto a parchment-lined baking tray and repeat with the rest of the dough until you have four pieces. Leave them to rise for 30 minutes.

5- Preheat your oven to 200 °C the prepare the sesame crust. Mix the molasses with the water in one bowl and add the sesame seeds to another bowl. Carefully pick up one piece of semit, place it into the molasses, flip to coat both sides, the place it into the sesame seeds. Push lightly to make sure the sesame seeds stick then put each piece back on the tray.

6- Bake at 200 °C for 15-20 minutes or until the semit is risen, golden brown and the sesame seeds are lightly toasted. Leave to cool for about 20-30 minutes then enjoy them as they are, with a cup of tea or with some boiled eggs and dukkah.