lagana
Lagana, the flat bread with minimal crumb, crispy crust and distinct sesame aroma, is a classic choice among the foods of Clean Monday, with its flavour marking the beginning of the fast of Great Lent. It is unleavened bread and its name comes from the ancient Greek “laganon”, which was a flat dough made of flour and water.
A short history
Both its history and the tradition that forces its presence on the table to this day are so old that they are lost in the centuries. Lagana, therefore, is mentioned as a bond in many texts of antiquity, such as the Ecclesiastes of Aristophanes, where we find the phrase “lagana pettettai” which means “lagans are made”.
However, the connection of this bread with fasting is probably connected to the fact that such unleavened bread was consumed by the Israelites during their exit from Egypt.From that time until the time when Christ blessed leavened bread, the consumption of unleavened bread was required during the Passover.
Today, of course, we consume it mainly on the first day of fasting, which is why many recipes for lagana do not even include oil. So, on Clean Monday, the bakers work feverishly to prepare this delicious bread, which goes well with the rest of the Lenten dishes and especially with the taramosalata, tahini and halva.
How it is made
The traditional recipe only requires flour, water, salt, some herbs, such as anise for aroma and of course, plenty of sesame (white and black) on its surface.
However, there are also new and very creative versions of it, which are not inferior in taste at all, while they also give a more special taste to the Clean Monday table. So we try very delicious laganas with wholemeal flour, with green and black olives, with sun-dried tomatoes, with pepper, with onion and with many more delicious ingredients that the bakers add to the dough.