BEST! Lahoh (Yemeni Fermented Pancake)

Discover How to Mkae Lahoh (Yemeni Fermented Pancake)! Lahoh (or Lahooh), a staple in Yemeni cuisine, is a flatbread or pancake made of fermented batter and is cooked only on one side. It has a soft, airy, spongy texture with a unique honeycomb-like surface and is served, sweet or savory, for breakfast or as a light meal.

Lahoh (Yemeni Fermented Pancake)

Bring a Touch of Yemen to Your Kitchen! Here you’ll find an easy-to-follow recipe with step-by-step pictures, helpful info plus tips that will help you make ‘Lahoh’ an easy way at home. A very good recipe to make when you are bored of the regular breakfast.  I hope you will try the recipe and enjoy ‘Lahoh’ as much as I do!!

What is Lahoh?

Lahooh is a traditional Yemeni sourdough flatbread with a spongy texture and can be also described as a pancake cooked without being flipped. It is used in both sweet breakfast dishes and savory meals and is also a key part of the Yemeni dish known as Shafoot (Shafut). Variations also exist across North Africa (Somalia, Somaliland, and Djibouti) and it is also similar to the better-known Ethiopian injera.

What is Shafoot?

Lahoh is a key part of a Yemeni dish known as Shafoot. It is prepared by layering slices of Lahoh and yogurt sauce and often garnished with greens, veggies, or fruits like pomegranate or whatever is in season.

Ingredients

Here are the ingredients you’ll need to make this recipe. For the quantities of each ingredient, check out the recipe card at the bottom of this post.

• Flour – A combination of flour such as wheat flour, whole wheat flour, millet flour, sourgum, corn flour, rice flour, semolina, etc.
• Salt – Add salt to your taste.
• Sugar – Optional (a small amount of sugar helps good fermentation).
• Dry yeast – Use either instant or active dry yeast (helps the batter to rise faster).
• Water – Use warm water.
• Baking soda – Not traditional (helps to get bubbles on the surface).
• Oil – A little oil to grease the pan.

How Do You Make Lahoh?

Like any traditional food, there are countless recipes for Lahooh.

Traditional Lahoh is a type of sourdough flatbread made from naturally fermented batter made with flour, salt, and water. Sourdough flatbread or pancake is made from a ‘sourdough starter’ which is a fermented flour and water mixture that contains wild yeast and lactic acid bacteria. However, nowadays, Lahoh is also made using commercial yeast.

You can make the batter only with wheat flour but it is common to use a mix of flour. I used a combination of plain flour, whole wheat flour, and millet flour. Feel free to use other types of flour such as sourgum, corn flour, semolina, rice flour, etc. as you like.

When cooking Lahoh, you don’t flip it over. The bottom side of the Lahoh should be golden brown and the top should covered with little bubbles. There isn’t a standard size, so just feel free to make them in any size you like.

Lahoh with a characteristic honeycomb-like appearance!

Top Tips for Getting Perfect Porous Surface

Lahoh batter is really easy to make, but it takes some practice to make spongy pancakes with a honeycomb-like surface. If the bubbles don’t form properly, that means something is wrong. Many things can go wrong; the consistency of the batter, fermentation, the pan, the pan heat, etc.

Good Fermentation

• You need a well-fermented batter to make Lahoh with the right texture.
• After good fermentation, the batter will be frothy, bubbly, and smell fermented.
• Cover and leave the batter for fermentation in a warm place (or inside the oven with the oven lights on) for an adequate time.
• Don’t rest your batter too long and don’t let it bubble too much, otherwise, you will not get a lot of bubbles on the surface of your pancakes.

The consistency of the batter

• The consistency of the batter is very important and it should be easily spreadable.
• You will not get spongy pancakes with either thick or thin batters.
• If the batter is too thick – Try thinning the batter with 1-2 tablespoons of warm water, stir it well, and rest for about 10-15 minutes.
• If the batter is too thin – Add one tablespoon of flour, stir well, and rest for about 10-15 minutes.

The pan

• You need the right pan to make them with tiny holes and a cast-iron pan is preferable.
• If the bubbles don’t form properly, you may need to try another pan.
• Don’t grease the pan with oil – oil prevents the forming of bubbles.
• If needed, use a lightly oiled paper towel to clean the pan and then wipe off all the oil.

The pan heat

• Heat is a crucial factor, so you need to control the heat throughout the cooking process.
• The pan should be hot but you cannot spread the batter if your pan is too hot.
• If the pan is not hot enough, the batter will not stick to the pan and bubbles will not be formed.

How to test your pan heat?

You can check the right temperature by splashing water on the surface of the pan. Water should sizzle and evaporate after dancing for a moment on the surface of the pan.

Cooking tips

First, you need to heat your pan over medium heat. However, before pouring the batter for each Lahoh, you need to lower the temperature on the surface of the pan so that you can easily spread the batter consequently, that will help to form a lot of tiny bubbles.

You can lower the temperature on the surface of your pan before pouring the batter; by splashing water on the pan, wiping the surface of the pan with a wet cloth, or removing the heated pan from the heat and then placing it on a wet towel for a few seconds, and then return to the heat.

Serving Suggestion

You can serve them with sweet toppings. I love to serve them drizzled with warm honey and butter. You can also serve them with sweet sauce (chocolate, caramel sauce), maple syrup, or jam to match your mood. Lahoh also goes well with savory side dishes like curry, chili sauce, or cheese.

Storing Suggestions

You can make the batter in advance and then store it in the fridge. The leftover batter also can be kept in the fridge for a week or so.

Lahoh will keep up to a week in the fridge a plastic bag or in an airtight container, or up to two months in the freezer. Stack them with the bubbly sides facing each other – so that they do not stick to each other.

How to Use Yeast?

You can use either instant yeast or active dry yeast. If you use instant yeast, just can just mix it with flour. If you use active dry yeast, make sure to activate it before adding it to the batter.

How to Activate the Yeast?

In a small bowl, mix 1/2 teaspoon sugar and 50ml warm water and then sprinkle the dry yeast. Cover and let stand for about 10 minutes until frothy in a warm place. make sure to use warm water (100°F to 110°F or 37°C to 43°C); hot water kills the yeast while cold water will not activate the yeast.

More Yeasted-Batter Pancake Recipes

Pancakes are one of the oldest, simplest, ubiquitous, and remarkably versatile foods, so every culture has ‘pancakes’ that they are proud of. “Around the World in Pancakes & Buddies” is one of the fantastic food journeys I am bound on. Would you like to join me?

Lahoh (Yemeni Fermented Pancake) Step-by-Step Recipe

(Check out the printable recipe at the end of the post)

Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 15 minutes
Resting time: 1 hour
Servings: 4

Ingredients

50g plain flour
50g whole wheat flour
50 millet flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp sugar
1 tsp active dry yeast or instant yeast
250 ml warm water, adjust as needed

Notes

• Use any combination of flour as you like.
• if you use instant yeast, just mix it with dry ingredients. If you use active dry yeast, you need to activate the yeast first.

Instructions

Place the flour, salt, and sugar in a large bowl and mix well. Add yeast if you use instant yeast and mix again.

Add half of the water and whisk until you have a thick paste. Mix in the yeast mixture if you use active dry yeast.

Add the rest of the water, a little at a time, and continue to whisk until you have a smooth batter without lumps. Cover and leave the batter for fermentation in a warm place. This could take 1 hour or more, depending on the temperature.

After good fermentation, it should look bubbly and frothy on top.

Gently stir the batter. Don’t beat out the bubbles as they give the Lahoh its bubbly texture. Stir in baking soda after dissolving it in a tablespoon of warm water. The batter should be free-flowing, adjust the thickness adding more warm water if needed. Let rest for another 10 minutes.

By the time you start cooking the Lahoh, the batter should appear full of tiny little bubbles.

Heat a pan over medium-high. Do not grease the pan with oil. If you do so, make sure to wipe off the oil fully with a paper towel. Splash some water on the surface of the pan to test the right temperature. Water should sizzle and evaporate after dancing for a moment on the surface of the pan.

Gently stir the batter before scooping and pour the batter using a ladle into the heated pan. Rotate the pan so that the batter spreads over its entire area.

You will see a lot of tiny bubbles start to pop up on the surface of the pancake as it cooks.

Gradually, the surface will be porous while the batter is getting dry.

Do not flip. Cook only on one side until the batter is dry on top and the edges are easy to peel up.

Before stacking, first, remove it to a cooling rack for a few seconds so that the moisture evaporates. Repeat with the remaining batter.

Stack the Lahoh with the bubbly sides facing each other. Keep them warm on a plate covered with a clean towel.

Serve and enjoy!

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More Delicious Pancakes to Try

Pancakes are one of the oldest, simplest, ubiquitous, and remarkably versatile foods, so every culture has ‘pancakes’ that they are proud of. “Around the World in Pancakes & Buddies” is one of the fantastic food journeys I am bound on. Would you like to join me?