What is a Jingalov Hat?
A Jingalov Hat is a delightful Armenian Green Sandwich
“Hat” is pronounced, “hut,” in Armenian.
The reference on line talked of lavash filled with greens or Armenian jingalov hats and it showed a photo. I had to know more.
Armenian lavash is paper thin, usually baked in a tonir, a subterranean clay oven heated by wood logs or on an open outdoor grill. The filling is composed of many herbs and greens, usually a combination of neutral, herbal and sour greens. How do I make these at home?
YouTube is most always the answer. Several videos exist. My favorite is Heghineh, a video from her kitchen in LA. http://youtube.com/heghineh1 The video shows her mixing the lavash dough in her mixer, cutting the greens and herbs together with her hungry daughter, all the while helping her son who is sitting on the counter. The discussion of ketchup is precious vs. the traditional butter.
This video is aimed for the home cook and is presented by Kate Leahy, one of the authors of Lavash.
Others videos: https://youtu.be/rHgj37bHKKE and https://youtu.be/V8KmgXWf0GY
Next, I searched the local library card catalogue and found the Chronicle published cookbook, Lavash by Kate Leahy, John Lee and Ara Zada, copyright 2019. It is an amazing book—not just a cookbook but a history of Armenia with wonderful stories of the people they met in Armenia while researching the book. Lest anyone think that writing a cookbook is an easy job, read about the injuries the photographer John Lee suffered while filming.
I was still not confident enough to begin the recipe on my own. So we took a field trip to St. Petersburg to the Armenian church, St. Hagop, (https://www.sthagopfl.org), hoping to find someone who could direct us to an Armenian restaurant nearby. We found a woman who was very
generous with her time talking about lavash and other Armenian food. But alas, one restaurant was mentioned and when we visited it was closed (owner was in Armenia), but there was only one Armenian entree on the menu.
I am still longing for the taste of this wonderful bread with greens. Hope to make it soon on my panini grill. Stay tuned.
Wow, you are one brave soul!