Taboon bread

Taboon bread (also known as lafa or laffah) ( _ar. خبز طابون: "bread of the taboon", _he. לאפה : "la-fah") is a type of flatbread common in the Middle East. It is baked in a "taboon", an outdoor oven made of mud-brick and clay heated with wood and manure, whence the name Taboon bread. The fuel is ignited under a metal plate, on which are placed smooth river bed rocks which when heated cook the bread. it has a round form, with a diameter of about 30 cm.

The "lafa", similarly to the pita, serves as a wrapper to the different foods inserted into it, such as hummus, falafel or shawarma. Unlike the pita, the lafa is not formed with a pocket. The food is tossed on it and then the lafa is rolled up as its wrapper. A dish which is customary to wrap with the Lafa and not with the pita is labneh.

Several types of taboon bread are popular in Israel:
* Iraqi Pita is a 30-cm circle of medium thickness, slightly chewy, doesn't tear easily, and is mostly used to wrap shawarma in food stands.
* Druze Pita is made mostly by Druze women. About 25-cm diameter, very thin, almost transparent. There are several typical fillings for Druze pitas: Labneh, with or without zaatar, hummus, and especially popular with children is a chocolate spread filling, making it a regional variation of a crêpe.
* Buchari Pita, an oval, thin and crispy flatbread, spiked with cumin seeds. Usually eaten as a snack by Buchara Jews, along with savory food.

Lafa is also a staple of Middle Eastern cuisine world-wide, found in both Israeli and Arabic restaurants.