Time Traveling Table

By 800 BC, people in England had been growing and grinding cereal grains for thousands of years, but the food coming out of their kitchens wasn’t necessarily as basic as we might imagine. At Must Farm in Cambridgeshire, archaeologists discovered the remains of actual meals, including grain-based foods prepared with animal fats. It’s a fascinating glimpse into how people were combining everyday ingredients to make something more interesting than plain grain and water.

We don’t have an exact Bronze Age flatbread recipe, but combining emmer flour with rendered beef fat is a historically informed way to explore the possibilities. If you’ve been on this journey with us, you’ll know that we’ve already made emmer flatbread before, BUT that one didn’t have any fat.

You may be asking yourself, how much could a bit of tallow really change the flatbread? Because I was absolutely thinking this. I mean, I figured it HAD to change something, but I’ve learned that a little bit of fat goes a long way.

I wouldn’t say these were soft and supple like modern-day flatbread, but they were definitely better than the incredibly dense earlier breads. The tallow actually seemed to make the emmer a smidge sweeter, which I wasn’t expecting. Who knew such a small addition could make such a noticeable difference?

Makes: 8 small flatbreads
Preparation Time: 15 minutes, excluding grinding
Grinding Time: Approximately 2½ hours by hand, or considerably less using an electric grain mill
Resting Time: 20–30 minutes
Cooking Time: 10–15 minutes
Total Time: 45–60 minutes, excluding grinding

Ingredients

• 240 g (approximately 2 cups) finely ground emmer flour or hand-ground emmer meal
• 30 g (2 tbsp) rendered beef tallow
• 120 ml (½ cup) lukewarm water, with a little extra if needed

Method

1. Prepare the emmer. If using whole emmer grains, grind them as finely as reasonably possible, avoiding large, hard fragments. Grinding this quantity by hand took approximately 2½ hours. For a quicker alternative, use shop-bought emmer flour or an electric grain mill. Weigh the finished flour after grinding.
2. Incorporate the fat. Gently melt 30 g (2 tbsp) of beef tallow and allow it to cool until warm rather than hot. Rub it into 240 g (approximately 2 cups) of emmer flour using your fingertips until evenly distributed.
3. Add the water. Gradually add 120 ml (½ cup) of lukewarm water, mixing by hand until the ingredients come together into a soft dough. Different grinds of emmer may absorb water differently, so avoid adding all the water at once.
4. Check the consistency. The dough should resemble soft modelling clay, with a slight tackiness. It should hold together when pressed and flatten without crumbling, but should not leave thick patches of dough stuck to your hands.
   • If too dry or crumbly: Add lukewarm water, approximately 5 ml (1 tsp) at a time, mixing thoroughly after each addition.
   • If too wet or sticky: Work in a little extra emmer flour, approximately 1 tsp at a time, until the dough becomes manageable.
   • If slightly grainy: This is normal with hand-ground emmer. The resting period will help soften the texture.
5. Rest the dough. Cover with a clean tea towel and leave to rest for 20–30 minutes, allowing the emmer to absorb the moisture. Check the consistency again afterwards. If the dough has become too stiff or cracks when pressed, work in a few drops of water before shaping.
6. Shape the flatbreads. Divide the dough into 8 equal portions. Flatten each by hand into a round approximately 10–12 cm (4–5 inches)