Homemade Kataifi (Greek Shredded Dough)
Beautiful, unusual, and made from everyday ingredients! Kataifi looks like the finest strands of dough — perfect for all kinds of Middle Eastern and Mediterranean sweets and pastries. Piping out the strands is a fun, satisfying process. I expected it to be tricky, but it turned out to be quick and easy!
Cooking method
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Step 1:
How do you make kataifi dough? Gather your ingredients. Sift the flour into a bowl and stir in the salt. Pour in the water a little at a time, whisking thoroughly after each addition. Then whisk in the eggs until the batter is completely smooth. You want a thin batter, about the consistency of crêpe or pancake batter.
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Step 2:
Transfer the batter to a pastry bag. The opening should be as small as possible so the batter comes out in a very fine stream. If you don't have a pastry bag, use a sturdy zip-top bag and snip off just the very tip of one corner.
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Step 3:
Heat a skillet over medium heat — no need to grease it. Working quickly, drizzle the batter onto the pan in thin threads and let them set for just 5 to 7 seconds. As soon as you can lift them with a spatula, take them off and pipe the next batch. A nonstick skillet makes this easiest.
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Step 4:
Pile the finished dough onto a large baking sheet. In texture it's a lot like slightly undercooked pasta. This makes a generous batch. To store, wrap it first in parchment and then in a bag and keep it in the freezer — or use it right away without freezing. Thaw frozen kataifi the same way you would puff pastry. It keeps in the freezer for up to six months.
- You can swap part of the flour for cornstarch to make the finished pastries extra crisp.
- Always wash eggs before using them, since even a shell that looks clean can carry harmful bacteria. A food-safe wash and a brush work best.
- Sifting the flour aerates it, so your baked goods come out light and rise well.
- Use filtered or bottled water with a neutral taste. Tap water can leave an off, distinctive flavor in the dish.
Caloric content of the products possible in the composition of the dish
- Chicken egg - 157 kcal/100g
- Egg white - 45 kcal/100g
- Egg powder - 542 kcal/100g
- Egg yolk - 352 kcal/100g
- Ostrich egg - 118 kcal/100g
- Whole durum wheat flour fortified - 333 kcal/100g
- Whole durum wheat all-purpose flour - 364 kcal/100g
- Fine wheat flour - 348 kcal/100g
- Flour - 325 kcal/100g
- Salt - 0 kcal/100g
- Water - 0 kcal/100g
