Biga
Biga is an Italian bread preferment of flour, water and a little yeast, usually a stiff unsalted mass of about 45 per cent water, fermented ahead and then mixed into the final dough.
Pane carasau (Natasha Syanova’s home method)
Pane carasau · Carta di musica
Eight thin Sardinian sheets from a yeast dough of semolina, all-purpose flour, salt and water. Bake each round until it inflates, split it while hot, then bake the sheets again until crisp.
A measured home version
This recipe follows Natalya Syanova's home formula for pane carasau. It makes four dough balls and, after each inflated round is split in two, eight large sheets. The measured ingredients are semolina, all-purpose wheat flour, salt, cold water and instant yeast. Syanova also offers fresh yeast or sourdough starter as alternatives; the directions here follow the instant-yeast branch only.
The recipe describes one baking as a flexible wrap and a second bake as the crisp cracker form. This entry records the twice-baked sheet and notes that the first split sheets can be used before the second bake. Panificio S'Ulaore separately describes carasau seasoned with olive oil as guttiau; that finishing option is not included in this measured dough formula. This entry does not combine Syanova's measured home quantities with the different su framentu recipe on Ricette di Sardegna, which leaves salt and added water unmeasured.
Sources for this section
Rise, roll and puff
Mix the semolina, all-purpose flour and salt, stir in the instant yeast and gradually add cold water. Knead for 10–15 minutes until smooth and elastic, then cover the dough in a lightly oiled bowl and let it rise for 1–2 hours until doubled. Divide it into four balls, cover and let them rest for 15 minutes.
Preheat a baking stone or inverted baking sheet to 260°C. Roll each ball into a 2–3 mm circle. If the dough springs back or resists, let it rest briefly before rolling further. Bake one circle at a time for 2–3 minutes, until it inflates and is lightly browned, then remove it promptly. The measured method gives a visual puffing cue but no oven-surface or internal temperature beyond the set oven temperature.
Sources for this section
Split and dry
While each inflated round is still hot, split it through the edge into two thin layers with a serrated knife. Work carefully around the hot bread and preheated baking surface. For the crisp form, return the separated sheets to the oven for 1–2 minutes per side, until golden and crisp; cool completely on a wire rack.
Panificio S'Ulaore also describes carasau as twice-baked and says its dry, light form helped people carry it while away from home. The bakery's account links the bread to Nuorese and Campidano; it does not date the bread's first use or establish that this home formula is a historic Sardinian recipe.
Sources for this section
Raw flour and storage
Flour can carry harmful bacteria. Do not taste the uncooked dough, and wash hands, bowls and utensils after mixing. Syanova recommends cooling the sheets completely before sealing them in an airtight container to preserve crispness. Neither the home recipe nor the inspected producer page gives a validated storage duration or water-activity limit, so this record adds none.
Sources for this section
History
Natasha Syanova's page records a contemporary home method for a Sardinian flatbread and uses the unreferenced description “ancient”; that adjective is not treated here as a dated historical claim. Sardinian bakery S'Ulaore describes carasau as a light, durable bread associated with shepherds who spent months away from home and identifies the bread with Nuorese and Campidano. This producer account explains a use and regional association but provides no first-attestation date.
Ingredients
Yield 8 large sheets · Scaling: source batch only
250 g
12 g
250 g
1 g
The source also gives 2 g fresh yeast or 100 g sourdough starter as alternatives; this method follows the instant-yeast branch.Method
Risks and precautions · Standard risk
Pathogens in raw flour
The dough contains raw semolina and wheat flour; flour can carry harmful bacteria and should not be tasted uncooked.
Hazard sourceBurns from hot oven and stone
The stone or inverted sheet is preheated to 260°C and the rounds bake for only 2–3 minutes before handling.
Hazard sourceCuts and burns while splitting inflated bread
The recipe calls for splitting each round with a serrated knife while it is still hot.
Hazard sourceDo not taste raw dough; wash hands, bowls and utensils after handling flour.
Control sourceUse suitable oven protection to remove the rounds from the hot stone or sheet. Keep fingers clear of the serrated knife while splitting; the bread is hot at this step.
Control sourceDo not eat or taste the raw dough; the recipe contains raw flour.
The source method uses a 260°C oven and calls for splitting the inflated bread while hot. Protect hands from the stone and dough, and use the serrated knife carefully.
Cool the sheets completely before sealing them. The source gives no validated storage duration or water-activity limit.
- Mix the semolina flour, all-purpose wheat flour and salt in a large bowl. Stir in the dry instant yeast, then gradually add the cold water until a rough dough forms.
- Knead the dough on a lightly floured surface for 10–15 minutes, until smooth and elastic. Transfer it to a lightly oiled bowl, cover with a damp cloth or plastic wrap, and let it rise in a warm, draft-free place for 1–2 hours, until doubled.
- Press down the risen dough and divide it into four equal pieces. Shape them into balls, cover and rest for 15 minutes.
- Heat a baking stone or an inverted baking sheet in the oven at 260°C (500°F). Roll each ball on a lightly floured surface into a very thin circle, about 2–3 mm thick. If the dough resists rolling, let it rest for a few minutes before continuing.
- Carefully transfer one circle at a time to the hot stone or baking sheet. Bake for 2–3 minutes, until the bread puffs up and is lightly browned; remove it promptly.
- While the inflated bread is still hot, carefully split it through the edge into two thin layers with a serrated knife. This yields eight large sheets from the batch.
- For crisp carasau, return the separated sheets to the oven and bake each side for 1–2 minutes, until crisp and golden brown. Cool completely on a wire rack before storing in an airtight container. The first-baked split sheets can instead be used as flexible wraps.
Conditions
Yield8 large sheets
Active time30 min
Fermentation1–2 h
Temperature260°C
Places
Sardinia
Documented preparation · Region evidenceNatasha Syanova names this as Sardinian flatbread. Sardinian bakery S'Ulaore describes carasau as typical of Nuorese and Campidano and lists its own address in Bitti. These sources support a Sardinian association, not a precise birthplace for the bread family or this home formula.
Bitti
Manufacture · Locality evidencePanificio S'Ulaore lists its bakery address in Bitti and describes its carasau product. This is a documented production location for that bakery, not the place where the home batch in this recipe must be made.
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Sources
Natasha's BakingInspiration · Method · Food use · Geography
Pane Carasau (Sardinian flatbread)The measured home formula uses 250 g semolina, 250 g all-purpose flour, 12 g salt, 250 g cold water and 1 g instant dry yeast; the author also lists 2 g fresh yeast or 100 g sourdough starter as alternatives.
The method kneads 10–15 minutes, rises 1–2 hours until doubled, divides four ways, rests 15 minutes and rolls 2–3 mm rounds. The first bake is 2–3 minutes at 260°C until puffed, after which each round is split while hot and baked 1–2 minutes per side until crisp.
The recipe-card yield is eight large sheets, with 30 minutes prep, 10 minutes cooking and 2 hours 40 minutes total. It recommends cooling completely before airtight storage and distinguishes flexible once-baked sheets from crisp double-baked ones.
Cited in: A measured home version; Rise, roll and puff; Split and dry; Raw flour and storage
Ricette di SardegnaMethod · History · Geography
Pane carasauThis separate Sardinian home recipe uses 500 g type 00 flour, 500 g semolina and 200 g su framentu; it leaves salt and added water unmeasured.
It describes a long first rise, thin sheets that inflate in a very hot oven, splitting the puffed bread and a second bake to dry and crisp it. Its missing water, salt and heat amounts mean it is not the measured formula used in this record.
Cited in: A measured home version
Panificio S'UlaoreHistory · Geography · Food use
CarasauThe bakery describes carasau as a typical Nuorese and Campidano bread, associates its portability and shelf keeping with shepherds away from home for long periods, and says it is made by baking thin sheets twice.
S'Ulaore identifies its classic packaged bread as durum wheat flour, water, brewer's yeast and salt; its address is Bitti, Sardinia. These product and place facts are distinct from the home formula's measured batch.
Cited in: Split and dry
U.S. Food and Drug AdministrationSafety
Handling Flour Safely: What You Need to KnowFlour is raw and may carry harmful bacteria; do not taste raw flour dough and wash hands and utensils after handling it.
Cited in: Raw flour and storage