Cheese-stuffed Tamees bread
Tamees is the bread of Afghan ovens that Saudi mornings adopted, until the dawn queue in front of its shops became a familiar sight, and the cheese-stuffed version is one of its most beloved.
The home version saves the queue and makes the ingredients clear in your own hands.
Mix the flour, yeast, sugar, and salt, add the warm water and oil, and knead for ten minutes until you have a soft, tender dough softer than ordinary bread dough. This softness is the cause of the Tamees bread's bubbles and lightness. Cover it for an hour until it doubles in size.
With an oiled hand, divide the dough into four balls. Flatten each ball in your palm and place a quarter of the grated cheese in its center, then close the dough around it into a tight ball with no cheese showing.
On an oiled surface, press each stuffed ball and flatten it with your fingertips into a wide disc half a finger thick, so the cheese spreads as a hidden layer between the two faces of the dough.
Heat the oven to its maximum (250) with an inverted tray or a baking stone inside. Brush the surface of the Tamees with water and scatter the nigella seeds, then transfer it to the hot surface to bake for six to eight minutes until it puffs and its surface browns with golden spots and the cheese melts inside. Maximum heat is the basis of Tamees ovens.
Cut it into quarters so the cheese strands stretch when separated, and eat it hot with tea or with honey and chili in the style of Tamees shops.
The glycemic index (GI) measures how quickly a food raises blood sugar, while the glycemic load (GL) measures how much a full serving raises it. Together they give the complete picture.
A low value (≤55) means a gradual rise in blood sugar — the most suitable range for diabetes and insulin resistance.
Glycemic load reflects the impact of the full serving. To lower it: take half a serving, or pair the recipe with a source of protein and fiber.
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000-calorie diet per FDA food-label reference values — your daily needs may be higher or lower. Values are derived from the recipe's ingredients via the USDA database.
The most common problems when preparing Cheese-Stuffed Tamees Bread, and how to fix them:
The ball was not sealed tightly, or it was flattened too hard over the filling. Seal the dough with a firm pinch and flatten from the center gently.
The oven was not hot enough, or it was baked on a cold tray. Maximum heat and a preheated tray are two essential conditions.
This is its required soft nature. Oil your hand and the surface instead of adding flour, because excess flour robs it of its lightness.
It was not flattened enough. Flatten it wide to half a finger's thickness, and it will puff in the oven and return to its correct thickness.
It is served hot with the cheese strands stretching, so it is at its best the moment it comes out of the oven.
It holds for a few hours wrapped in a cotton towel, and is reheated on a hot griddle for a minute before eating.
Keeps baked for a month, and is reheated straight from frozen in a hot oven for four minutes so the cheese turns soft again.
| Original Ingredient | Tested Substitute | Ratio | Flavor Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| The cheese filling | No filling | same amount | It returns to a plain Tamees like the version in our library |
| Mozzarella with white cheese | Kiri cheese with za'atar | 150 g | The known creamy shop version |
| Half the white flour | Whole-wheat flour | 1:1 for the half | Brown whole-wheat Tamees as many ovens serve it |
| The home oven | A well-heated thick skillet with a lid | same amount | Less browning and a good result |
| Ingredient | 4 loaves | 2 loaves | 8 loaves |
|---|---|---|---|
| Flour | 400 g | 200 g | 800 g |
| Cheese | 200 g | 100 g | 400 g |
| Water | 260 ml | 130 ml | 520 ml |
Heat the oven to its highest setting with an inverted tray inside for a full fifteen minutes before baking. Tamees needs strong heat from beneath to puff and brown its surface in minutes as in wood-fired ovens, while a lukewarm oven yields a pale flatbread, not Tamees.
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