A rustic round Moroccan bread made with a mix of semolina and flour, baked until the crust is deeply golden and the crumb stays soft.
Khobz is the everyday bread of Morocco, baked fresh daily in nearly every household and served alongside almost every meal, used both as an eating utensil for scooping tagines and as a snack on its own. The dough combines semolina flour with regular wheat flour, giving the finished loaf a slightly coarser, nuttier texture than a purely white-flour bread, along with good structure for tearing off pieces. Traditionally shaped into flat rounds and baked in a communal wood-fired oven (many neighborhoods still send their shaped dough to a local ferrane baker), khobz develops a substantial, deeply golden crust while staying soft and slightly chewy within.
Serves 6
Combine semolina, flour, yeast, salt and sugar, then stir in warm water and olive oil until a soft, slightly sticky dough forms.
Knead 10 minutes by hand or 6 minutes with a stand mixer until smooth and elastic.
Cover and let rise in a warm spot 1 hour until doubled.
Divide the dough into 2 rounds, shaping each into a flat disc about 8 inches across and 1 inch thick.
Place the rounds on a cornmeal-dusted tray, cover loosely, and let rise 30-40 minutes until puffy.
Poke a pattern of holes across the top with a fork, then bake at 220C/425F for 25-30 minutes until deeply golden and the bottom sounds hollow when tapped.
Docking the dough with a fork prevents large air pockets from forming as it bakes.
Let the loaves cool at least 15 minutes on a rack before slicing or tearing.
Use fine semolina flour, not coarse durum for pasta — the fine grind gives a proper soft crumb.
Dock the dough all over with a fork before baking to prevent uneven puffing and large hollow pockets.
Bake until the bottom sounds genuinely hollow when tapped; an underbaked khobz will be gummy in the center.
Batbout is a smaller, stovetop-cooked version of this same dough, puffing up like pita on a hot skillet.
Adding a spoonful of aniseed to the dough gives a fragrant variation common in some regions.
A whole wheat version substitutes half the flour with whole wheat for a heartier, nuttier loaf.
Best eaten the day it's baked; wrap leftovers in a cloth or paper bag at room temperature for a day, or freeze sliced and reheat directly from frozen in a warm oven.
Khobz has been the staple bread of Moroccan households for generations, historically shaped at home and carried to a neighborhood ferrane, a communal wood-fired oven, to be baked since most homes lacked their own large oven.
Yes, though the texture will be softer and less distinctly nutty than the traditional semolina blend.
A regular baking sheet works fine; just make sure your oven is fully preheated for the best crust.
The dough likely didn't rise long enough, or the yeast was old — make sure both rises look genuinely puffy before baking.
Per serving (130g / 4.6 oz) · 6 servings total
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