Za'atar, Sumac, Nigella and Muhammara: The Flavors on Our Fatayer, Explained
Za'atar is an herb blend, sumac is a tart red berry, nigella is a peppery black seed and muhammara is a roasted pepper and walnut spread. Those four ingredients carry most of the flavor on Deiyaa fatayer. Here is what each one is, where it comes from, how it tastes and how we use it.
Za'atar
Za'atar is a Levantine herb blend of wild thyme or oregano, sumac, toasted sesame and salt, mixed with olive oil and spread on flatbread.
Origin. The word za'atar refers both to the wild thyme that grows on Levantine hillsides and to the blend made from it. Families dried the herb in summer, rubbed it fine, and mixed it with sesame and sumac to last the year. Every region and every household has its own ratio, from herb-heavy green blends to redder, sumac-heavy ones. It is one of the oldest seasonings still in daily use in the eastern Mediterranean.
Taste. Herbal and floral from the thyme, tangy from the sumac, nutty and rich from toasted sesame, with salt to pull it together. Mixed with olive oil and baked, it turns toasty and savory in a way that is hard to describe until you smell it coming off a hot tray.
How we use it. Our Za'atar Manakish are pressed flat and covered edge to edge, in two versions. Classic Za'atar & Olive Oil is the traditional red-brown blend. Green Za'atar with Onions uses a greener, fresher thyme blend with soft diced onion baked in. Sesame is the allergen to know about.
Pairing. Labneh, sliced tomato, cucumber, olives and fresh mint. Fold a warm manakish around all of it for the classic Levantine breakfast, with mint tea or strong coffee alongside.
Sumac
Sumac is a dried, ground red berry that tastes tart and lemony without being sour.
Origin. Sumac grows as a shrub across the Levant, Turkey and Iran. The deep red berries are dried and ground into a coarse, slightly sticky powder. Long before lemons were common in the region, sumac was how cooks added sourness to food, and it still is.
Taste. Bright, tangy and fruity, like lemon zest with the sharpness turned down a notch. It does not dissolve into a dish the way lemon juice does. It sits on the surface, so you taste it in the first bite.
How we use it. Sumac is the reason our spinach fatayer taste fresh instead of heavy. In the Sumac Spinach filling it works with onion and lemon juice to brighten the greens. It is also one of the ingredients in every za'atar blend we use, so you are eating sumac on the manakish too.
Pairing. A squeeze of lemon, a spoon of plain yogurt, or a salad of chopped cucumber and tomato dressed with more sumac and olive oil. Sumac Spinach fatayer are vegan, so they suit a dairy-free table.
Nigella (black seed)
Black seeds are nigella seeds (habbat al-barakah), a peppery, slightly bitter seed traditionally sprinkled on cheese pastries.
Origin. Nigella sativa is a small flowering plant native to south and southwest Asia. Its seeds have been used in Levantine, Turkish, Indian and Egyptian kitchens for thousands of years, on breads, in cheese and in pickles. The Arabic name, habbat al-barakah, means the blessed seed. You may also see them sold as black cumin or kalonji, though they are not related to true cumin, and they are not black sesame.
Taste. Peppery, a little bitter, faintly oniony and smoky, with a light crunch. A small amount goes a long way, which is why they are sprinkled on top rather than mixed in.
How we use it. Order the Black Seed flavor of our Cheese Fatayer, Box of 12 and every open boat gets a scatter of nigella across the cheese before it goes into the oven. The seeds toast as the cheese bubbles. This is the flavor many Levantine bakeries consider the standard cheese fatayer, and it is often among the cheese pieces in the Deiyaa Box.
Pairing. Pickles and mint tea. The bitterness of the seed and the salt of the cheese want something sharp and something sweet next to them.
Muhammara
Muhammara is a Levantine spread of roasted red peppers, walnuts, pomegranate molasses and Aleppo pepper.
Origin. Muhammara is associated with the city of Aleppo, where red peppers and walnuts are both grown, and it spread across the Levant as a mezze dish served with bread. The name comes from the Arabic word for red. Traditional recipes also include breadcrumbs, olive oil, garlic and cumin, and the pomegranate molasses gives it a sweet-sour depth that plain pepper spreads do not have.
Taste. Sweet from the roasted peppers and molasses, smoky, nutty from the walnuts, and gently hot from Aleppo pepper, which is a mild, fruity chile rather than a sharp one. It is rich without being heavy.
How we use it. On the Muhammara flavor of our Cheese Fatayer, we spread it over the cheese before baking, so the pepper and walnut caramelize slightly against the melted cheese. Because of the walnuts, this flavor contains nuts. Every box is also made in a kitchen that handles nuts, sesame, wheat and dairy.
Pairing. Cucumber and pickles to cool it, olives, and a plain cheese or za'atar piece alongside so the muhammara does not have to do all the work.
Putting them on one table
These four ingredients are why a box of assorted fatayer tastes like more than bread and cheese. Za'atar gives herbs and sesame, sumac gives tang, nigella gives pepper and crunch, muhammara gives sweetness and heat. All of it sits on the same organic, non-GMO whole wheat olive oil dough, hand-formed at the bakery. Fresh boxes go out to Chicago's southwest suburbs. Frozen boxes ship overnight anywhere in the contiguous US and bake at 375°F for 12 to 15 minutes. Start with a Cheese Fatayer box in Black Seed or Muhammara, a Za'atar Manakish box and a Sumac Spinach box, and you have tasted all four.
Frequently asked questions
Is za'atar the same as thyme?
Not quite. Za'atar is both the name of a wild thyme that grows in the Levant and the name of the blend made from it: dried thyme or oregano, sumac, toasted sesame and salt. Thyme is one ingredient; za'atar is the finished mix.
Does sumac taste sour?
Sumac tastes tart and lemony, but gentler than lemon juice or vinegar. It is bright and fruity rather than sharp. In spinach fatayer it lifts the greens and balances the onion without making the filling taste sour.
Are nigella seeds the same as black cumin or black sesame?
Nigella seeds are sometimes sold as black cumin or kalonji, but they are not related to true cumin, and they are not black sesame. They are the seeds of Nigella sativa, peppery and slightly bitter, traditionally sprinkled on cheese pastries.
Does muhammara contain nuts?
Yes. Muhammara is made with walnuts along with roasted red peppers, pomegranate molasses and Aleppo pepper, so the Muhammara cheese fatayer contains nuts. Every Deiyaa product is also made in a kitchen that handles nuts, sesame, wheat and dairy.