Moroccan cuisine · Dough, Pasta & Rice

Khobz bel Chaaria

Flatbread with toasted vermicelli worked into the dough — sesame-coated outside, soft with bite inside.

Ingredients · for 6 servings

• 500 g flour
• 100 g vermicelli
• 1 packet dry yeast (7 g)
• 1 tsp sugar
• 2 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp sesame seeds
• 4 tbsp olive oil
• 300 ml water
• 2 tbsp durum semolina for dusting

Instructions

1. Toast the vermicelli in a dry pan for 3–4 minutes, tossing, until golden brown, let cool, and crumble roughly.
2. Warm the water until lukewarm, stir in the yeast and sugar, and let foam for 10 minutes.
3. Mix the flour, salt, 1 tbsp sesame seeds, and the toasted vermicelli, add olive oil and the yeast water, and knead for 10 minutes into a soft, elastic dough; let rise covered for 45 minutes.
4. Divide the dough into two pieces and press them on a semolina-dusted baking sheet into round flatbreads about 20 cm across and 1.5 cm high.
5. Brush the flatbreads with water, sprinkle with the remaining sesame seeds, prick several times with a fork, and let rise covered for another 25 minutes.
6. Bake in a preheated oven at 220°C for 18–22 minutes until golden brown, cool on a rack, and serve cut into wedges with stew.