Soparnik

Dalmatian chard pie baked under hearth embers and brushed with garlic-crushed olive oil

Origin: Poljica, Dalmatia, Croatia

From the journey of Olive.

Nothing else in Europe is cooked quite like this, and the olive oil at the end is what the whole thing is for. Soparnik comes from Poljica, the strip of hinterland between Split and Omiš that governed itself as a peasant republic from the thirteenth century until Napoleon dissolved it in 1807. Two sheets of unleavened dough are rolled almost to transparency, a filling of raw chard and spring onion is spread between them, the edges are sealed with a twisted crimp, and the whole disc is slid directly onto the stone hearth. Embers and ash are raked over the top and it bakes buried, for a quarter of an hour, with no tin and no oven. The ash is then swept off with a brush, and only now does the dish acquire its character: olive oil crushed together with raw garlic is painted generously over the hot surface, where it soaks into the blistered dough and the garlic cooks just enough in the residual heat to lose its harshness. It is cut into diamonds and eaten warm with the fingers. Without that finish it is a dry pie. With it, it is one of the best things on the Adriatic, and it explains why the dish is inseparable from the region's oil. The eastern Adriatic has grown olives since Greek colonists reached the islands in the fourth century BCE, and Istrian oil has repeatedly topped world rankings in the last two decades. It was poor food and Lenten food, made with what a household had, and it now carries an EU protected designation as Poljički soparnik. Older women in Poljica still make it on the hearth and regard oven versions with tolerance rather than approval.

Ingredients

Dough

500 g plain flour
300 ml warm water
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Filling

800 g Swiss chard (blitva), leaves only, washed and finely shredded
6 whole spring onions, finely sliced
4 tbsp flat-leaf parsley, chopped
1 tsp salt
0.5 tsp freshly ground black pepper
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

To Finish

6 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, the best you have
4 cloves garlic, crushed to a paste with a pinch of salt

Method

Mix the flour, salt, oil, and warm water into a soft dough and knead for eight to ten minutes until smooth and elastic. Rest, covered, for thirty minutes.
Shred the chard leaves as finely as you can, discarding the thick white stalks, and mix with the spring onions, parsley, salt, pepper, and 3 tbsp of oil.
Do not salt the filling more than a few minutes ahead, and do not let it stand.
Divide the dough in two and roll each piece out on a floured surface into a circle about 40 cm across and as thin as you can manage without tearing.
Lay the first sheet on a floured baking tray or a peel, spread the filling evenly to within 3 cm of the edge, and lay the second sheet over the top.
Press the two edges together, then roll and twist the rim inwards all the way round to seal it into a rope.
Prick the top in a few places with a fork.
For the traditional method, slide the disc directly onto a clean hot hearth, rake embers and ash over the top, and bake for 15 to 20 minutes. Otherwise bake on a preheated stone or heavy tray at 250°C for 12 to 15 minutes until blistered and lightly charred in patches.
Brush off any ash thoroughly with a dry brush, then crush the garlic to a paste with salt and stir it into the 6 tbsp of olive oil.
Paint the garlic oil generously over the whole hot surface, let it soak in for five minutes, then cut into diamonds and serve warm.

Notes

Use the best olive oil you have for the finish. It is applied raw to a hot surface and eaten within minutes, so its quality is the single most noticeable thing in the dish. Istrian or Dalmatian oil if you can get it. Swiss chard (blitva) is the traditional filling. Spinach works and is milder; beet tops are closer to the original. Keep the stalks for another dish. A pizza stone heated at maximum for forty minutes is the best domestic substitute for a hearth. A heavy baking tray preheated the same way is next best. It is eaten warm rather than hot and is good at room temperature. It does not keep well overnight, as the sheets soften. Serve with a glass of Dalmatian red or with nothing at all. It is street food and hearth food rather than a course.

The Gastrographer

Name: Soparnik
Prep time: 45 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 1 h 30 min
Yield: 6
Cuisine: Croatia
Ingredients: 500 g plain flour; 300 ml warm water; 1 tsp salt; 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil; 800 g Swiss chard (blitva), leaves only, washed and finely shredded; 6 whole spring onions, finely sliced; 4 tbsp flat-leaf parsley, chopped; 1 tsp salt; 0.5 tsp freshly ground black pepper; 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil; 6 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, the best you have; 4 cloves garlic, crushed to a paste with a pinch of salt

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Journey Point Map Key

Ingredient originTrade or transit route

Became a culinary stapleColonial / trade control