Khobz (Moroccan round bread)

Name: Khobz (Moroccan round bread)
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 2 h 35 min
Ingredients: 350 g all-purpose flour; 100 g whole-wheat flour; 50 g semolina; 320 g water; 6 g instant yeast; 1 tsp sugar; 9 g salt; 1 tbsp olive oil; 1 tsp anise seed (optional)

Vegetarian

خبز · khobz

Flat, round, crusty-edged loaves with a soft, slightly grainy crumb from whole-wheat flour and semolina. Moroccans use them to scoop up tagines, salads and dips.

Khobz (Moroccan round bread) is a Moroccan bread from Morocco, ready in about 2 hours 35 minutes and made with all-purpose flour, whole-wheat flour and semolina. It serves 8 and is rated easy to cook.

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Prep: 25 min
Cook: 25 min
Rest: 1 h 45 min
Total: 2 h 35 min
Serves: 8
Level: Easy
Calories: 244

Ingredients

8 servings (2 loaves)

350 g All-purpose flour (opens in a new tab)Contains wheat, gluten
100 g Whole-wheat flour (opens in a new tab)Contains wheat, gluten
50 g Semolina (opens in a new tab)Plus a little extra for the tray.Contains wheat, gluten
320 g Water (opens in a new tab)Lukewarm; about 64% hydration.
6 g Instant yeast (opens in a new tab)
1 tsp (4 g) Sugar (opens in a new tab)
9 g Salt (opens in a new tab)
1 tbsp (13 g) Olive oil (opens in a new tab)
1 tsp (2 g) Anise seed (opens in a new tab) (optional)Or sesame seeds — both are common.

Equipment

Method

1
Step 1
Mix the flours, semolina (opens in a new tab), yeast, sugar (opens in a new tab), salt and anise. Add the water and oil and knead 10 minutes to a smooth, soft dough.
- 15 min
- Mixing bowl (opens in a new tab)
How it looks · Photo: Klaus Nielsen on Pexels
2
Step 2
Cover and rest 15 minutes, then divide in two, round each and flatten on a semolina (opens in a new tab)-dusted tray into a disc 2–3 cm thick and about 18 cm across.
- 20 min
3
Step 3
Cover with a cloth and proof until puffy and a gentle poke springs back slowly, 60–75 minutes. Heat the oven (opens in a new tab) to 220 °C.
- 70 min
- 220°C
4
Step 4
Prick each loaf several times with a fork and bake 20–25 minutes until golden and hollow-sounding underneath (internal 93–96 °C). Cool on a rack wrapped in a cloth for a softer crust.

About this dish

Origin: Morocco · Well documentedTraditionally shaped at home and baked in the neighbourhood oven (ferran).More food from Morocco
Dish: Breakfast · Lunch · Dinner · Breads & flatbreads
Cooking method: Oven-baked, Fermented
Taste: earthy, nutty, mild
Diet: Vegan · Dairy-free · No nut ingredients
All labels
Vegan · Plant-based · Vegetarian (lacto-ovo) · Eggetarian · Lacto-vegetarian · Ovo-vegetarian · Pescatarian · Flexitarian-friendly · Dairy-free · Egg-free · No nut ingredients · Alcohol-free · Pork-free · Beef-free · Low-fat · DASH-style
Worked out from the ingredients. How labels work
Good for: Everyday · Budget-friendly · Freezer-friendly
Cook more with: All-purpose flour · Whole-wheat flour · Semolina · Instant yeast · Sugar
Techniques: Baking · Kneading · Fermentation

Allergens

Contains: Wheatfrom all-purpose flour, whole-wheat flour, semolina
Contains: Glutenfrom all-purpose flour, whole-wheat flour, semolina

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

244 kcal per serving

Calculated

1 serving ≈ 100 g · recipe makes 8

Where the energy comes from

Protein 12%
Carbohydrate 79%
Fat 9%

Nutrition per serving and per 100 g
Nutrient	Per serving	Per 100 g
Energy	244 kcal	244 kcal
Protein	7.3 g	7.3 g
Carbohydrate	47.8 g	47.8 g
Net carbohydrate	44.8 g	44.8 g
Sugars	—	—
Added sugars	0.5 g	0.5 g
Fibre	3 g	3 g
Fat	2.5 g	2.5 g
Saturated fat	0.4 g	0.4 g
Trans fat	—	—
Cholesterol	0 mg	0 mg
Sodium	438 mg	438 mg
Salt equivalent	1.1 g	1.1 g

Vitamins & minerals per serving

Potassium: 111 mg
Calcium: 16 mg
Iron: 2.8 mg
Magnesium: 31 mg
Vitamin A (RAE): 0 µg
Vitamin C: 0 mg
Vitamin D: 0 µg
Vitamin B12: 0 µg
Folate (DFE): 167 µg

How these numbers were made

Calculated from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) per-100 g values and the listed quantities.
Optional ingredients are not included: anise seed.
“—” 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

Pricking the loaves keeps them flat and even, as Moroccan khobz should be.

Common mistakes

Shaping too thick gives a dome-shaped loaf with a bready centre.

Serve with

Tear and use instead of cutlery for tagines, zaalouk and Moroccan salads.

Storage

Wrapped, 2 days; freeze up to 1 month.

Reheating

Warm at 180 °C for 5–8 minutes.

Variations

Khobz with barley: Replace the whole-wheat flour with barley flour for a rustic country loaf.

Original editorial recipe · FriendsPantry editorial · Not yet independently reviewed · Added 29 Oct 2026 · Updated 8 Nov 2026

Recipe DNA

How this dish is built

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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

Mix and knead · about 25 min
Weigh everything. Knead until smooth and elastic: a small piece stretches thin enough to see light through (the windowpane test).
Rest · about 15 min
Covered so it doesn't dry out; relaxed dough rolls and shapes without springing back.
Final proof · about 1 h 10 min
Poke test: the dent springs back slowly and only partly. Springs back fast = needs longer; doesn't spring back = over-proofed, bake now.
Bake · about 25 min at 220 °C
Deep golden; bread sounds hollow when tapped underneath, or reads 93–96 °C inside (enriched breads 88–90 °C).
Start to finish: about 2 h 15 min. Times are a guide — warmth changes everything; follow the cues.

The dough

The dough in baker's percentages. Flour = 100%.
Ingredient	Role	Weight	Baker’s %
All-purpose flour	Flour	350 g	70%
Whole-wheat flour	Flour	100 g	20%
Semolina	Flour	50 g	10%
Water	Water	320 g	64%
Olive oil	Fat	14 g	2.7%
Salt	Salt	9 g	1.8%
Instant yeast	Yeast	6 g	1.2%
Sugar	Sugar	4 g	0.8%

Total flour: 500 g
Hydration: 64%
With milk, eggs…: 64%
Wholegrain: 20%

Hydration = water ÷ flour × 100. Milk is about 87% water and eggs about 75%, so they’re shown separately as “with milk, eggs…”.

Medium dough (55–65%) — soft and easy to knead; sandwich loaves and rolls.
Salt 1.8% — normal for bread.

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
Gummy or wet crumb
Likely causes
- Under-baked
- Sliced while hot
- Hydration too high for the flour
What to do
- Bake to 93–96 °C inside (cakes: clean skewer)
- Cool completely on a rack before slicing
- Reduce water by 3–5% or use a stronger flour
Spreads flat / no oven spring
Likely causes
- Over-proofed
- Weak shaping (no surface tension)
- Oven not hot enough
- Too much water for the flour
What to do
- Shorten the proof; bake when the poke springs back slowly
- Shape tightly so the skin is taut
- Preheat fully (30+ minutes; with a stone or Dutch oven, 45)
- Lower hydration or use bread flour
Collapsed or sunken middle
Likely causes
- Oven door opened too early
- Too much leavening or sugar
- Under-baked centre
- Over-proofed yeast dough
What to do
- Don't open the oven for the first two-thirds of baking
- Measure leaveners exactly with spoons, levelled
- Test the centre before removing
- Proof less
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
Crust too hard or thick
Likely causes
- Baked too long at too low a temperature
- No steam at the start
What to do
- Bake hotter for a shorter time
- Add steam for the first 15 minutes (tray of boiling water, or a covered Dutch oven)
- Cool under a tea towel for a softer crust
Big holes or tunnels
Likely causes
- Overmixed batter (cakes, muffins)
- Air trapped while shaping bread
- Uneven proof
What to do
- Mix quick breads only until no dry flour shows
- Degas gently and shape tightly
- Proof covered in an even, warm place
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
Over-proofed (sour smell, collapses when scored)
Likely causes
- Too warm
- Too much yeast
- Left too long
What to do
- Knock back, reshape and proof again briefly (yeast doughs)
- Use less yeast or a cooler proof
- Set a timer and check early with the poke test
Dry or crumbly
Likely causes
- Too much flour (scooped, not weighed)
- Over-baked
- Too little fat or sugar
What to do
- Weigh flour, or spoon it into the cup and level
- Check 5 minutes early
- Don't cut fat or sugar by more than a quarter without another moisture source

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