A Guide To The Many Types Of Bread

Page 5: Glossary Of Bread Types ~ G To L

This is page 5 of a 9-page glossary of the many different types of bread. Click on the links below to visit other pages. You can also return to the overview and the history of bread or select from more than fifty food glossaries.

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GRISSINI
A particular type of Italian breadstick that is very slender and about 12 inches in length.

HOECAKE
See cornbread.

INDIAN BREAD
India is a large country with many regions; each has its preferred breads (all flatbreads), and different grains and blends are used in different regions. The styles vary from moist to dry, and leavened to unleavened Some are discussed further here: see chapati, dosa, naan and paratha.

INJERA
A flatbread staple of Ethiopia, Eritrea, northern Kenya, Somalia and the Sudan, injera is a fermented sour bread. It is baked in large, round pancake-like pieces and used instead of both plates and utensils. Stews and salads are placed upon the bread; pieces are torn up for eating.

Classic Italian grissini (the singular form of the word is grissino). Photo by Martin Brink | IST.

ITALIAN BREAD
Italian bread is a generic term. In general, Italian bread is similar to French bread (also a generic term), but the loaves are shorter and plumper, while French loaves are longer and narrower.

IRISH SODA BREAD
A variety of white and brown soda breads are popular in Ireland, often containing raisins. See soda bread.

JEWISH RYE BREAD
Jewish rye is a light rye bread, a mix of wheat and rye flours. Often, caraway seeds are included for extra flavor.

JOHNNYCAKE or JONNYCAKE
See cornbread.

KHACHAPURI
A Russian variation of an Italian calzone. An oblong, individual portion of bread is filled with cheese and baked until the dough is cooked and the cheese inside is melted.

Sliced rye bread.

LAVASH or LAHVASH or LAHVOSH
Fresh Lahvash Lavash is an Armenian flatbread made with wheat flour, water and salt. In the U.S., it is topped with toasted sesame seeds, poppy seeds, garlic and other seasonings. When fresh, lavash is soft and thin like a tortilla, and is used as a sandwich wrap for kebabs and other foods. It hardens into a crunchy cracker consistency, which is how it is most often found in the U.S.
Fresh lavash like this can be found at
NemoonehBakery.com.

LEAVENING and LEAVENING AGENT
Leavening is the process of adding gas to a dough to produce a lighter, airier, more easily chewed bread. Most breads consumed in Europe and America are leavened; Middle Eastern and African breads tend to be unleavened flatbreads. There are two types of leavening agents: chemical agents and yeast. Chemical agents are used to produce quick breads and soda breads. Baking powder and baking soda are the chemical agent choices; baking soda requires an acidic ingredient such as buttermilk to create the chemical reaction that produces gas. Yeast is a natural leavening agent.

LOAF
Loaf Of Bread A bread or cake baked in a round or oblong pan with a rounded top. In the 12th century, “loaf” became the generic term for bread: the Teutonic word hlaf became our modern English word, loaf.
Photo by Vangelis Thomaidis | SXC.

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