Featured recipe

Patir

Flaky butter flatbread

Patir is the rich bread of the Ferghana Valley, especially Kokand and Margilan, made for weddings and guests: dough worked with butter or rendered fat and folded so it bakes into soft, flaky layers, stamped in the middle with a chekich (bread stamp) and slapped onto the walls of a tandir. It keeps for days and is famously carried on long journeys. This version uses butter and a hot oven. A common mistake is skipping the rest after layering; the dough springs back and the layers merge. Chef's tip: prick the centre deeply with a fork, as Uzbek bakers do with their stamp; it stops the middle puffing and keeps the rim thick and soft.

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90 min

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