Skip to content
FriendsPantry

Sudanese

Gurasa

Vegetarian

قراصة · gurasa

A thick, soft yeasted wheat pancake cooked in a pan and torn into pieces under a stew, or eaten for breakfast with ghee and sugar.

Gurasa is a Sudanese bread, ready in about 1 hour 35 minutes and made with all-purpose flour, dried yeast and sugar. It serves 4 and is rated easy to cook.

Start cooking

No licensed photograph of this dish yet.

Prep
10 min
Cook
25 min
Rest
1 h
Total
1 h 35 min
Serves
4
Level
Easy
Calories
313

Ingredients

4 servings

Equipment

Method

  1. Step 1

    Whisk (opens in a new tab) the flour, yeast, sugar (opens in a new tab), salt and water into a thick, smooth batter. Cover and leave to rise until bubbly.

    Eggs being whisked in a bowl
    How it looks · Photo: Kampus Production on Pexels

  2. Step 2

    Heat a frying pan over medium-low heat, wipe with oil and pour in a quarter of the batter, spreading it to about 1 cm thick.

  3. Step 3

    Cook until the top is set and full of holes, then flip and cook briefly. Repeat with the remaining batter.

    • 24 min
    • medium-low heat

  4. Step 4

    Brush with ghee (opens in a new tab) and serve warm, torn into pieces.

      A finished dish being plated
      How it looks · Photo: Willians Huerta on Pexels

    About this dish

    Origin
    Sudan · Commonly attributedMost associated with northern Sudan.More food from Sudan
    Dish
    Breakfast · Lunch · Dinner · Breads & flatbreads
    Cooking method
    Pan-fried
    Taste
    mild, buttery
    Diet
    Vegetarian (lacto-ovo) · No nut ingredients
    All labelsVegetarian (lacto-ovo) · Eggetarian · Lacto-vegetarian · Pescatarian · Flexitarian-friendly · Egg-free · No nut ingredients · Alcohol-free · Pork-free · Beef-free · Low-fat · DASH-style
    Without the optional extras: Vegan, Plant-based, Ovo-vegetarian, Dairy-freeWorked out from the ingredients. How labels work
    Good for
    Budget-friendly · Everyday
    Cook more with
    All-purpose flour · Dried yeast · Sugar
    Techniques
    Pan-frying

    Allergens

    • Contains, can be adapted: Milkfrom ghee
    • Contains: Wheatfrom all-purpose flour
    • Contains: Glutenfrom all-purpose flour

    Based on typical versions of these ingredients and not verified allergen-free. Brands differ and cross-contact happens, so always check labels. For severe allergies, follow your clinician’s advice.

    Nutrition

    313 kcal per serving

    Calculated

    1 serving ≈ 182 g · recipe makes 4

    Where the energy comes from

    • Protein 11%
    • Carbohydrate 76%
    • Fat 13%
    Nutrition per serving and per 100 g
    NutrientPer servingPer 100 g*
    Energy313 kcal172 kcal
    Protein8.5 g4.6 g
    Carbohydrate59 g32.4 g
    Net carbohydrate56.5 g31 g
    Sugars1.2 g0.7 g
    Added sugars1 g0.6 g
    Fibre2.5 g1.4 g
    Fat4.3 g2.3 g
    Saturated fat0.4 g0.2 g
    Trans fat——
    Cholesterol0 mg0 mg
    Sodium441 mg242 mg
    Salt equivalent1.1 g0.6 g
    Vitamins & minerals per serving
    Potassium
    97 mg
    Calcium
    22 mg
    Iron
    3.5 mg
    Magnesium
    19 mg
    Vitamin A (RAE)
    0 µg
    Vitamin C
    0 mg
    Vitamin D
    0 µg
    Vitamin B12
    0 µg
    Folate (DFE)
    259 µg

    How these numbers were made

    • Calculated from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) per-100 g values and the listed quantities.
    • *Per 100 g of combined raw ingredients; the cooked dish may weigh more or less.
    • Optional ingredients are not included: ghee.
    • “—” means the value isn’t known for enough of the ingredients; it is never zero by default.
    • Values are estimates for guidance, not for medical dosing. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. fdc.nal.usda.gov.

    Good to know

    Tips

    • Cover the pan while the first side cooks so the thick pancake cooks through.

    Common mistakes

    • Cooking over high heat — the outside burns before the thick middle sets.

    Serve with

    • Tear into a bowl and pour over a meat and tomato stew, or eat with ghee and sugar for breakfast.

    Storage

    • Best the same day.

    Original editorial recipe · FriendsPantry editorial · Not yet independently reviewed · Added · Updated

    Recipe DNA

    How this dish is built

    Grouped by each ingredient’s role in the dish. Each band’s width is its share of the dish by weight. Choose a component to see what it does.

    What the dish is built around

    Main ingredient

    Used in step 1

    Baker’s notes

    Customise in Bread & Bakery

    Timeline and readiness cues

    1. Mix and knead · about 10 min

      Weigh everything. Knead until smooth and elastic: a small piece stretches thin enough to see light through (the windowpane test).

    2. First rise (bulk) · about 1 h

      About doubled, domed, jiggly, with bubbles on the sides. A floured finger poked in leaves a dent that fills slowly.

    3. Bake · about 25 min

      Deep golden; bread sounds hollow when tapped underneath, or reads 93–96 °C inside (enriched breads 88–90 °C).

    4. Start to finish: about 1 h 35 min. Times are a guide — warmth changes everything; follow the cues.

    If something goes wrong

    • Dense, heavy loaf

      Likely causes

      • Under-kneaded (weak gluten)
      • Under-proofed
      • Old or dead yeast/starter
      • Too much wholegrain flour without extra water

      What to do

      • Knead to the windowpane stage
      • Proof by the poke test, not the clock
      • Test yeast in warm water with sugar; feed the starter and use it at its peak
      • Add 5–10% more water for wholegrain flours and give them a rest
    • Pale crust

      Likely causes

      • Oven too cool
      • Too little sugar or no milk/egg for browning
      • Over-fermented (yeast ate the sugars)

      What to do

      • Check the oven with a thermometer
      • Brush with egg wash or milk
      • Shorten the fermentation
    • Burnt bottom

      Likely causes

      • Tray too close to the heat
      • Dark tray absorbs more heat
      • Too much sugar in the dough

      What to do

      • Bake on the middle shelf
      • Double up trays or use a light-coloured one
      • Lower the temperature 10–15 °C and bake a little longer
    • Dough didn't rise

      Likely causes

      • Dead yeast (expired or killed by hot liquid)
      • Kitchen too cold
      • Salt in direct contact with fresh yeast
      • Starter not active

      What to do

      • Liquid should be lukewarm (no hotter than 40 °C)
      • Proof somewhere warm (an oven with just the light on)
      • Mix the salt into the flour, not onto the yeast
      • Feed the starter until it doubles in 4–8 hours
    • Tough or chewy flatbread

      Likely causes

      • Dough too stiff
      • Not rested
      • Cooked too slowly on too cool a pan

      What to do

      • Add water until the dough is soft and slightly tacky
      • Rest 20–30 minutes covered so the gluten relaxes
      • Cook on a very hot tawa or pan — quickly

    Reviews & corrections

    Reviews come from signed-in cooks and appear after a moderator checks them. We never show made-up ratings.

    You might also like