Suzanne Zeidy, Rawah Badrawi

Siwan Date Pita

Arghafni Nyumem

Preparation info
  • Makes

    12

    small pitas
    • Difficulty

      Easy

Appears in
Egypt: Recipes and stories from an ancient land
Egypt

By Suzanne Zeidy and Rawah Badrawi

Published 2026

  • About

In Siwa, dates are soaked in water creating a syrup that is then mixed with flour and used to make tender white pitas that have a mild, sweet aftertaste. Siwans bake their bread in traditional mud ovens, though a hot home oven works just as well.

Ingredients

  • 5 dried dates, chopped
  • 500 ml (17 fl oz/2 cups)

Method

Place the chopped dates in a small bowl and cover with the boiling water. Set aside for 5 minutes. Stir well to get as much of the date sweetness into the water, then strain the water into a measuring cup, squeezing the liquid out of the dates.

In a large bowl, mix together the flour, yeast and salt. Add the olive oil. Slowly pour the water into the flour mixture with one hand while mix