Jingalov hats comes from Artsakh and is unlike any other bread. It's a thin, unleavened flatbread stuffed with a mixture of finely chopped fresh herbs — traditionally up to 20 different varieties. The result is flaky, aromatic, and intensely herby. Cooked dry on a hot pan, it's one of the most satisfying vegetarian dishes you'll ever eat.
The herb mix
Essential: spinach, green onions, cilantro, flat-leaf parsley, fresh dill, sorrel or sour grass. Add as many as you can find: beet greens, Swiss chard, watercress, tarragon, mint, chives, basil, fenugreek leaves, lemon balm. The more varieties you use, the more complex and layered the flavor — some households in Artsakh use upwards of 15–20 different herbs in a single batch.
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for rolling
- ½ tsp salt
- ¾ cup warm water
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 5 cups mixed fresh herbs and greens, finely chopped (spinach, scallions, cilantro, parsley, dill, sorrel, and any others you can find)
- 1 tsp salt (for the filling)
- 1 tbsp olive oil (for the filling)
- Juice of ½ lemon
- ½ tsp black pepper
- Plain yogurt or matzoon, for serving
Instructions
- Make the dough. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour and salt. Add the warm water and olive oil, and mix with a fork until a shaggy dough forms.
- Knead until smooth. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 5–6 minutes, until it's smooth, elastic, and no longer sticky. Shape into a ball.
- Rest the dough. Cover the dough with a damp towel or plastic wrap and let it rest at room temperature for 20 minutes. This relaxes the gluten and makes it much easier to roll paper-thin later. There's no yeast here — this bread doesn't rise, so don't skip the rest but don't expect it to puff up either.
- Wash and dry the herbs thoroughly. Rinse every herb well and spin or pat completely dry — any lingering water will make the filling soggy and tear the dough when you fold it. Trim off tough stems.
- Chop everything finely. Finely chop all the herbs and greens together until you have a loose, confetti-like pile, about 5 cups packed. Transfer to a large bowl.
- Season the filling. Add the salt, olive oil, lemon juice, and black pepper to the chopped herbs and toss well. Taste — it should be bright, salty, and vibrant, almost like a loose herb salad. Do not cook the filling; it will cook through from the residual heat of the dough while it's on the pan.
- Divide and roll the dough. Divide the rested dough into 6 equal balls. Working one at a time (keep the rest covered), roll each ball out as thin as you possibly can — ideally translucent in spots — into a rough oval or circle about 9–10 inches across.
- Fill and seal. Pile a generous handful of the herb mixture over one half of the rolled dough, leaving a small border. Fold the other half over to cover the filling and pinch the edges firmly together all the way around so nothing leaks out during cooking. Gently flatten the whole packet with a rolling pin so the herbs spread evenly inside.
- Cook dry, no oil. Heat a dry cast iron or heavy nonstick pan over medium-high heat — no oil at all. Cook each flatbread 2–3 minutes per side, pressing down lightly with a spatula, until the dough is speckled with golden-brown char spots and you can see the herbs steaming visibly inside.
- Serve immediately. Jingalov hats is at its absolute best straight off the pan, while the dough is still warm and the herbs inside are hot and fragrant. Cut into wedges and serve with plain yogurt on the side.
Tips for the Best Jingalov Hats
Roll the dough thinner than feels natural — a thick dough will taste doughy and overwhelm the delicate herb flavor. If the dough tears while you're filling it, patch it with a small scrap of extra dough rather than starting over. And only cook what you'll eat in one sitting: jingalov hats loses its texture fast and doesn't reheat well, so leftovers are best repurposed the next day chopped into a salad rather than warmed back up.