SC - The Great Qata'if Experiment

[margali]

Take qata'if bread as required; spray the dish with a little rosewater,
and place the bread thereon in layers, putting between each layer
almonds and sugar, or pistachio ground fine; spray again with rosewater.
When the bread fills the dish pour on a little sesame oil and cover with
syrup. Hang over it a fat plucked chicken, smeared with saffron; when
cooked, remove. Small stuffed qata'if are also treated this way.

There being a question in my mind on the exact ingredient, qata’if,
described as follows:

 "This is of various kinds. Stuffed qata'if are baked into long
shapes, stuffed with almonds and fine ground sugar, rolled around and
laid out; then sesame oil, syrup, rose water, and fine-ground pistachios
are thrown on. Fried qata'if are baked into loaves, stuffed with almonds
and fine ground sugar kneaded with rose water, rolled and fried in
sesame oil, then taken out and dipped in syrup and removed. Plain
qata'if are put into a dish and immersed in sesame oil, then syrup is
added, rosewater and fine ground pistachios."

We did sort of come to a group decision that it is most possibly a sheet
of dough thicker than filo, possibly equivalent to lavash. Since I
discovered a middle eastern deli/grocery where my favorite BBQ place WAS
[sniff, the only vinegar based pulled BBQ in Hartford, CT.] that
actually carried Qata'if, I bought a box and decided to make it with
that.  Big mistake. Next time, I will have real cold pressed sesame oil
[I just stopped on the way home and bought some, along with more
rosewater as they have my favorite brand.] I will also look into a
lavash type dough recipe.
I was also thinking that something like the yummy and easy flaky pastry
that Cariadoc brought to the pennsic potluck might actually work quite
well. I may try it both ways and see what happens.

At the A&S display at Coronation I got many positive responses for it
flavor-wise, including a number of people who were surprised at how
little savory flavor the chicken/saffron drippings made to a sweet dish.
I really wanted to not enter the result as I was very dissatisfied with
it on presentation. It did seem to be a big hit with the under 5 crowd
and the little girl wanted her daddy to make her shredded wheat like
that from now on...:->

judhab khubz al-qata'if as recreated:
1 chicken [I used a 2.5 lb pullet]
1 pinch [approx. 12 – 15 strands] Kasmir mogri Saffron
1 tbsp boiling water
3 tsp rosewater
1 box commercial qata’if
8 oz finely ground almonds
8 oz granular sugar
1tbsp sesame oil[ I had to use toasted oriental style ;-(  ]
1cup sugar
1cup boiling water

Using 1 cup of boiling water make a simple sugar syrup by removing it
from heat at the point of boiling and dissolve the 1 cup of granular
sugar therein. Reserve.
Make a saffron solution by placing the threads of saffron in a heatproof
small container such as a ramekin of ceramics or tempered glass and
pouring the 1 tbsp boiling water over the threads which have been
crushed with the back of a spoon. You may place the water in the ramekin
and crumble the threads into the water if you prefer.

Take the commercial box of qata’if from the freezer and defrost as per
directions.

Take 1 suitable whole chicken with the package of internal organs
removed and soak in salted water for 30 minutes to remove any remaining
blood from the follicles of the skin. It is appropriate to leave the
deposits of fat in the body cavity to be renderd during the cooking
process.

Taking a suitable heatproof baking dish such as a casserole dish of
metal or ceramics, spread 1 tsp of rosewater in the base. Due to the
size of the baking dish, I am able to fit in 1 box of qata’if.

Take half of the qata’if and place it in the bottom of the pan and press
down lightly to make it level. Place a layer comprised of 8 oz ground
almonds and 8 oz ground sugar and drizzle 1 tsp of rosewater on top.

Place the second half of the qata’if over the filling and press down
lightly to flatten. Drizzle with the last tsp of rosewater and then
gently pour over the cooled sugar syrup, making sure that you spread it
evenly over the whole top surface. [ I was dealing with a relatively
small amount of qata'if, and used a fairly small pan.]

Lacking an oven with a rotisserie, or a reflecting oven able to be used
in conjunction with either a Coleman range or fire, I placed the chicken
drained and patted dry which had the saffron solution liberally rubbed
over the skin on a rack suspended over the casserole of qata’if in a
manner so as to allow the drippings from the chicken to fall into the
baking dish. I baked the chicken and qata’if at 350 degrees Fahrenheit
for 60 minutes or until the chicken is fully cooked.

There is no indication whether this is to be served together as a unit
warm, or cold. There is no indication as to the qata’if being either a
main course or a dessert. In a feast situation I would probably serve
the pair as a hot combination with several other dishes as an entrée. It
does not refrigerate or travel well.

margali
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