Our first recipe!
Arguably, you can’t get much more geared up for sharing good times than tear ‘n’ share bread – literally!
Whether you’re looking for a robust snack or something to mop up the juices of a saucy main course, tear ‘n’ share bread is such a crowd pleaser. You can make it look as polished as you like, but even a more rustic style of presentation can create a show-stopping visual effect.
It’s very easy to create different flavours of tear ‘n’ share bread and I’d encourage you to have a go at experimenting. That’s exactly what I did and you can find some of my favourite variations below.
The basic dough recipe here has been adapted from Jamie Cooks Italy; how you flavour it really is up to you!
~Jo Eats!
Tear and Share Bread
A simple but tasty tear-and-share bread recipe, with loads of options for fillings. A perfect side dish or a snack by itself for an evening with friends.
Ingredients
Bread
- 500 g Bread Flour
- 7 g Instant Dried Yeast
- 5 g Salt
Spicy Jalapeño and Mozzarella
- 135 g Jarred Jalapeños drained weight
- 2 Mozzarella Balls approx 250g
- 100 g Cheddar grated
Green Chilli Chutney
- 70 g Coriander fresh
- 30 g Mint fresh
- 2 Green Chillis
- 1 tsp Cumin ground
- 2 tsp Lemon Juice
- 1 tsp Salt
- 100 g Paneer Cheese crumbled
Smoky Paprika
- 3 tbsp Smoked Paprika
- 2 tbsp Caraway Seeds
- Olive Oil
- 100 g Cheddar optional
Instructions
Bread
- In a jug, mix 300ml of lukewarm water with the yeast. Put the flour and 5g of salt into a large bowl, making a well in the middle, then gradually pour the yeast/water mixture in, stirring as you go. Knead for ten minutes or so by hand, or around 5 minutes on low-medium in a stand mixer, until smooth.
- Place in a lightly oiled bowl, cover with a damp tea towel or cling film and prove in a warm place for 2 hours, or until at least doubled in size.
- Lightly oil a large baking dish or ovenproof pan (about 25-30cm diameter for a round dish) then dust with a little flour. Lightly dust a clean surface and tip out your dough. Pull or roll out the dough into a rough rectangle about 30cm x 60cm.
- Spread on your desired filling. Then, starting from the longest side, roll up into a long sausage shape. Slice the sausage into rough pieces, about 5cm wide, and lay them into the pan, cut-side down. You can get creative here, but it is particularly pleasing to create a swirl effect.
- Preheat your oven to 200°C/390°F and leave the bread in the pan to prove for another hour or so. The pieces you have laid out will gradually nudge together.
- Place the dish in the middle of the oven for 30 minutes or until golden.
Fillings
- Spicy Jalapeño and MozzarellaPerfect with a couple of pals and beers, or served on the side of a veggie chilli. Blitz up the jalapeños in a food processor with a touch of oil or water to loosen the mix a little – you don't want it too moist. If you prefer, you can simply finely chop the jalapeños. Spread thinly over the dough, dotting over pieces of mozzarella and sprinkles of cheddar, before rolling up for the second prove stage. To vary, try different cheeses like smoked mozzarella and parmesan.
- Green Chilli ChutneyBlend all the ingredients (except the cheese) in a food processor, to create a smooth chutney. Taste and adjust; you don't want to overwhelm the herbs but adding a touch more lemon can help things zing along. Spread over the dough, cover with cheese and roll up for the second prove stage. You can adjust the ingredients easily: keep the chillis green to help maintain the vibrant colour but you could experiment with different variants like birds-eye, which help ramp up the heat, or just add one green chilli if you want to keep it mild.
- Smoky PaprikaThis couldn’t be simpler – mix the paprika in a small bowl with enough oil to make a thick, spreadable paste. Spread over the dough, sprinkle with caraway seeds and cover with cheese (if using) and roll up for the second prove stage. I really like caraway seeds; they have a distinctive flavour and I think they smell wonderful. You don't need much to make a big impact so adjust the quantities to suit you.
Notes
Most of the filling combinations are readily adaptable. Avoid raw meats as they may not cook properly once encased in the dough. Similarly, uncooked vegetables might make the bread soggy – however, if you fancy cooking up a ratatouille and let it cool, this makes a tasty bread.