Numtak Balep

Ingredients

• 8¾ ozWheat flourfor the dough
• 1⅓ ozSoft wheat semolinaadds crispness (optional)
• ½ cupWaterlukewarm, add gradually
• 1 tspSaltinto the dough
• 2 tbspYogurtsoftens the dough
• 1 tspDry yeastor fresh yeast
• ½ tspBaking powderleavening instead of yeast, with a pinch of baking soda (optional)
• 1 tspSugaractivates the yeast
• Cuminto season the dough
• 1 tbspVegetable oilkneaded into the dough
• 4¼ cupsFrying oilfor deep-frying, 170–180 °C

Method

1. Mix the wheat flour with the salt and ground cumin in a bowl; add the soft wheat semolina if you want extra crispness. If you'd rather use baking powder and a pinch of baking soda as the leavening instead of the yeast, add both now.
2. Dissolve the sugar and dry yeast in the lukewarm water and let it stand for a few minutes, until the surface turns cloudy and starts to foam. With the baking powder version you skip this step; the water simply goes in at step 3.
3. Add the yogurt, vegetable oil and the yeast water to the flour mixture bit by bit and knead everything into a smooth, soft dough; add only as much water as you need to keep the dough from sticking.
4. Cover the dough and let it rest — anywhere from 10 minutes to 2 hours, depending on how much time you have.
5. Knead the dough briefly, divide it into equal portions and shape each one into a smooth ball.
6. On a lightly floured surface, roll the balls out very thin into round flatbreads, about 2 millimetres.
7. Heat the frying oil in a wok or a deep pan to 170–355 °F.
8. Slide in one flatbread at a time, push it under with a slotted spoon and keep spooning hot oil over it until it puffs up. Then fry it golden on both sides, about 30 to 60 seconds per side.
9. Drain the breads on kitchen paper and serve them straight away, while they're still hot and plump.

Tips and variations

The dough also works with no leavening at all: just flour, water, salt and oil, 10 minutes of rest, done. If you go with baking powder and baking soda instead of yeast, give the dough a full 2 hours. Instead of rolling, you can flatten the breads with your hands and let them prove another 10 minutes before frying. For something punchier, use chickpea flour with pepper and finely chopped garlic, fried in a shallow pan with less oil. Yogurt chutneys are the natural partner — mint-chilli, cucumber-coconut-coriander or mango-ginger.