Kubaneh (Yemenite Overnight Bread)

How I make it

The dough

1. Put the flour, yeast, salt, and sugar in a large bowl. Add the water and mix well.

2. The dough should be wet but not runny. If it is too dry, add another 1/2 cup of water.

3. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 1 hour.

4. Knead again, cover, and let rise again until doubled in volume, about 1 hour.

In the pot

1. Melt the butter and margarine in a kubaneh pot (an aluminum pot with a tight-fitting lid that goes in the oven). Let cool slightly.

2. Set the bowl of dough next to the pot, along with a deep dish holding the flour for dusting.

3. With wet hands, pinch off a grapefruit-size ball of dough, roll it in the flour, put it in the pot, and roll it in the melted fat.

4. Wet your hands again and repeat until all the dough is in the pot.

5. Cover with the lid and let rise for another hour. Meanwhile, heat the oven to its maximum (480°F) and place the rack in the lower part of the oven so the pot fits easily.

Baking

1. Bake at the maximum temperature for 1 hour.

2. Lower the heat to 210°F and bake overnight.

3. Optional, but very helpful: two hours before serving, remove the lid, raise the heat to 340°F, and bake for 1 hour.

4. Carefully flip the kubaneh in the pot so it does not fall apart, and bake with the browned side up for another hour at 340°F.

5. Serve with fresh or cooked tomato sauce, schug, green tahini, and, for a traditional touch, hilbeh.

What I've learned

• An hour at maximum heat sounds scary, but yes, a full hour.
• For a pareve kubaneh, I replace the butter with more margarine.