Ingredients
- Half a sack of flour
- 10 kg of potatoes
- Half a kilo of bitter yeast (sourdough)
- 2 handfuls of salt
- As much water as it takes
How It Is Made
1. First, learn when to make bread from the local bakery. This is called seizure. Preparations for bread begin. First, potatoes are boiled, peeled and grated. Cover it and keep it aside.
2. Place bitter yeast into a small bowl. (Bitter yeast: it is the dough taken from the bread you have made before). Flour and warm water are poured on it and the yeast is kneaded. Cover it and wait for it to ferment until the morning. Kneading the dough begins two hours before the shift time. Flour is sifted into the boat. The flour is piled on one side of the vessel and salt is added on top. The mashed potatoes on the other side are first mixed with hot water. This way the potatoes are heated. The incoming yeast is poured onto the potatoes. Yeast is mixed with potatoes. The flour on the other side of the bowl is gradually fed into this mixed dough. Prepared water is poured over the remaining flour in the bowl and mixed. This mixed dough is mixed with other yeast dough. It is kneaded for an hour until it absorbs its water. Flour is sprinkled on the dough. It is covered with a handkerchief (table cloth). The boat is covered with thin blankets in summer and thick blankets in winter. Wait for the dough to ferment for an hour. To understand that the dough is fermented, the dough is pressed by hand. If the hole made by your hand is filled, the yeast of the dough has arrived.
3. The boat is taken to the oven. A handkerchief is spread on the bench (counter). Flour is sprinkled on top to prevent the dough from sticking. Take some dough from the boat with a grinder, roll it between your hands on the board, and place it on a handkerchief. Cover the dough with another tissue.
4. Now it’s time to put the dough in the oven. The baker puts the shovel into the mouth of the oven. A person sprinkles flour on a shovel. One person puts the dough on the shovel. Press five fingers onto the dough to prevent it from forming a crust. The baker puts the dough on the shovel into the oven. They put the dough on the bench into the oven one by one.
5. When the dough is slightly baked, the baker deber (replaces) the breads. After the bread is baked, it is laid on a handkerchief, the bread is placed on top and allowed to cool.
Source: Afyonkarahisar Local Flavors, Afyonkarahisar Governorship Provincial Culture and Tourism Directorate Promotional Publications, Ankara 2018
