When I was talking about mallawah to my young friend Seth, he seemed to salivate over the description of this buttery, flaky pan bread. A traditional doughy staple of Yemenite Jews, it became a popular Israeli food manufactured under various brand names. Fortunately for us expatriates, it is now sold across the U.S. in the frozen section of kosher markets. Let’s just say, it takes awhile to make from scratch. Lucky for Seth, I had a 3-minute mallawah in my overflowing freezer — a tasty alternative to the more laborious homemade version. He wolfed it down contentedly, even without the accompaniments with which it is usually served.
