Jingalov Hats

Jingalov hats (ժինգյալով հաց) is Armenia's great herb flatbread — a thin, unleavened bread folded around a filling of finely chopped fresh greens and cooked on a hot griddle until blistered. It's vegan by nature, costs next to nothing, and is handed to you hot off the pan: the original Armenian fast food.

Where it comes from

The dish belongs to Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh), where jingal (or zhingyal) means the wild greens that grow all over the region. For generations it was a food of scarcity — foraged herbs wrapped in the simplest possible dough, sometimes called forest bread — and over time it became a badge of identity for Artsakh Armenians, who carried the recipe with them across Armenia.

How it's made

The dough couldn't be simpler: flour, water, salt and a little oil, rolled out paper-thin. The cook piles a generous handful of chopped herbs onto one half, folds the dough over into a long oval, pinches the edge tightly shut, and cooks it on a dry, very hot pan or saj (a domed metal griddle) for a couple of minutes a side, until it's freckled with char. No cheese, no meat — the greens are the whole point. The craft is in the chopping and the balance of the mix, not in the cooking.

The herbs

A good jingalov hats traditionally carries up to twenty different greens, blending aromatic, sour and slightly bitter leaves so that no single flavour takes over. Depending on the season and what's growing, the mix can include:

• Aromatic & leafy: spinach, chard and beet greens, spring onions, chives, cilantro (coriander), parsley, dill, tarragon, mint, basil, lemon balm
• Sour & bitter: sorrel, dandelion greens, watercress, arugula, radish tops, chervil, fenugreek leaves

That improvisation — whatever is fresh that week — is the soul of the dish, so no two are ever quite the same.

Good to know

This little spot on Teryan 62, in the centre, has built its name on one thing done well — organic greens brought in from Artsakh, folded and griddled to order. Open daily 10:00–22:00; eat in, take away or get it delivered, cash and cards accepted. Tel. +374 10 582205. Order two: one is never enough.