Istanbul Sesame Ring (Simit)

La storia di questo piatto

Born of the Bosphorus mist and the muezzin's first call, the simit is Istanbul itself twisted into a golden ring—a humble crown sold from wooden carts since the days of sultans, belonging equally to the fisherman and the pasha.

Ingredienti

• 500 g Strong bread flour (W280 strength)
• 280 ml Lukewarm water
• 10 g Fresh baker's yeast
• 1 teaspoon Sugar
• 10 g Fine sea salt
• 2 tablespoons Extra virgin olive oil
• 3 tablespoons Pekmez (grape molasses) or honey
• 300 ml Water for the molasses bath
• 200 g Raw sesame seeds

Preparazione

1. Dissolve the yeast with the sugar in the lukewarm water—never hot, as heat kills the yeast and ruins all your work. Let it rest until you see a light foam forming on the surface: this is the sign that the yeast is alive and ready to work for you. Pour the flour into a large bowl, make a well, place the salt at the edges without letting it touch the yeast, then begin mixing by gradually adding the activated yeast water and oil.
2. Now work the dough with your hands, pushing and folding with energy on a lightly floured surface for at least 10 minutes: this small effort rewards you with soft bread. You'll know it's ready when it becomes smooth as a baby's skin and, when stretched between two fingers, elongates without tearing. Form it into a ball, place it in an oil-greased bowl, cover with a damp cloth, and let it rise in a warm corner of your kitchen until doubled: be patient, it takes its time.
3. Gently deflate the dough without tearing it, then divide it into 8 equal pieces, weighing them if you want them perfectly identical. Take each piece and stretch it on the work surface to form a cord about 50 centimeters long: if it retracts instead of stretching, the gluten is still tight—cover it and let it rest for a couple of minutes before trying again. Fold each cord in half, twist it on itself like a rope, then join the two ends to form a ring: it should look like a round braid, not a smooth circle.
4. In a wide shallow dish, mix the pekmez with water until you get an amber-colored, fluid liquid: this is the secret that gives the simit that dark, glossy color, without which it would remain pale as ordinary bread. Dip each ring in the pekmez bath for just a few seconds, turning it well, then immediately roll it in the raw sesame seeds, pressing with your hands so they stick everywhere, thick as a golden armor.
5. Arrange the sesame-coated rings on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, well spaced so they don't touch, and cover them with a kitchen towel for a second, brief rise: they should only puff up slightly, not double as before. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 220°C in static mode, placing an empty baking sheet inside that you'll use for baking: sliding onto an already-hot sheet is the trick that gives the simit the crispy base it must have.
6. Carefully transfer the simit to the hot baking sheet, or bake them directly if you've left the dough to rest already on the baking sheet, and bake at 220°C. For the first 15 minutes, don't open the oven for any reason, or the ring will lose its shape and color. They're ready when the sesame is toasted dark golden, the crust sounds hollow when you tap it with your knuckles, and your kitchen fills with that aroma of toasted bread and molasses: it's the air you breathe in Istanbul at dawn.
7. Remove from the oven and let the simit cool on a wire rack without rushing: eaten piping hot, they lose their beautiful crispness, but when they're warm, they reveal the perfect contrast between crust and soft crumb, just like the street vendors sell them from their glass cart. Serve them like this, perhaps with a piece of white salty cheese and a steaming cup of black tea: taste slowly, and if you feel something is missing, next time try adding a pinch of nigella seeds mixed with the sesame.