Iraqi Sabich in Pita with Amba and Zhug with homemade pita bread and homemade zhug (s'chug)

👨‍🍳 Method

For the homemade pita bread ✓ Homemade · or skip – back to store-bought

1. 1
   Mix the flour, yeast, sugar and salt in a large bowl.

   Bowl
2. 2
   Add the lukewarm water and olive oil and Knead about 10 minutes, until the dough is smooth, pliable and doesn't stick to your hands.

   BowlStand mixer

   💡For yeast dough, use the windowpane test: a small piece stretches into a thin, translucent sheet without tearing, and that's the sign the kneading is done. Add flour only by the tablespoon, and only if the dough is still sticky after a few minutes: too much flour makes a tough dough.
3. 3
   Cover and Let rise about an hour in a warm place, until the dough doubles in size.

   Plastic wraporKitchen towel

   💡Let rise in a warm, draft-free spot. The dough is ready when it has doubled, and a gentle finger press leaves a dent that fills back slowly; if it springs right back, wait longer.
4. 4
   Preheat the oven to 250°C (480°F), with an upside-down baking sheet inside, for at least half an hour.

   Oven

   💡Put things in the oven only once it's reached temperature, after the heating light has gone off: an oven that hasn't reached temperature changes baking times, and the bake burns outside or stays underbaked.
5. 5
   Divide the dough into 10 balls and roll each ball into a circle about ½ cm thick.

   Rolling pin

   💡Don't roll too thin: in a round half a centimeter thick or more, the steam in the dough puffs it into a pocket; a round that's too thin dries into a cracker.

   💡Dough that springs back needs rest: cover the balls for 10 minutes and the gluten relaxes.
6. 6
   Cover the rounds with a towel and let rest 15 minutes.

   Kitchen towel
7. 7
   Bake on the hot baking sheet, 3–4 pitas at a time, 3–5 minutes, until the pitas puff into a pocket and take on a little color.

   OvenBaking sheet

   💡Full heat and a scorching-hot baking sheet are what make the pocket: in an oven that isn't hot enough, the pita bakes flat.

   💡Check by the cue (until…), not just the clock: every oven bakes a little differently.
8. 8
   Wrap immediately in a towel, so the pitas stay soft.

   Kitchen towel

For the Tahini sauce

1. 9
   Mix the tahini, lemon juice and garlic and season with salt.
2. 10
   Gradually add cold water while stirring, until the sauce is smooth, pale and pourable.

   💡When you add the first water, the tahini thickens and looks like dough: that's fine. Keep adding water and stirring, and it loosens into a smooth sauce.

To assemble

1. 11
   Heat the oil in a deep pot and fry the eggplant slices in it until golden, and drain on paper towels.

   StoveSlotted spoonCandy/oil thermometerDeep pot for frying

   💡Fry eggplant for sabich until golden and completely soft, and drain well: it soaks up oil, and the paper draws out the excess.

   💡Keep the oil at 170–180°C: too cold, and the food soaks up oil; too hot, and it browns outside before the inside cooks. Without a thermometer, dip the tip of a wooden spoon in the oil: when medium bubbles form around it right away, the oil is hot enough.

   💡Don't overload the oil: every piece that goes in cools it down. Fry one piece as a test, then the rest in several batches, and transfer to paper towels.
2. 12
   Open the pitas and spread tahini sauce inside.
3. 13
   Arrange the eggplant and slices of hard-boiled egg in the pita.
4. 14
   Remove the seeds from the peppers.

   💡The seeds and white membranes are where the heat is: remove them all for a mild schug, leave some in for a hot one.
5. 15
   Grind the peppers in a food processor with the garlic and cilantro.

   Food processor

   💡In a food processor, grind in short pulses and check between pulses: it's easy to go from coarse to paste. (Sesame for tahini, on the other hand, is ground continuously.)
6. 16
   Add the olive oil, salt and black pepper and grind to an even paste.

   Food processor
7. 17
   Add the amba, schug, salad and pickles.