This simple Moroccan bread needs just one rise and goes from scratch to ready in about 90 minutes. Cut into wedges and serve with a delicious tagine or stew.
I had this Moroccan bread recipe on my blog for years before I took it down last year. I've been sharing recipes here since 2007 and I occasionally delete an old recipe that does not appear to be getting attention from readers - a simple decluttering, if you will.
Almost immediately, as has happened with a few other recipes I've taken down in the past, a reader messaged me to say she had been making the bread every week and missed it and could I repost it please?
For her, and for those of you who love Moroccan food and its vivid flavors, here again is this easy Moroccan bread recipe. I found it years ago in one of my favorite cookbooks, Madhur Jaffrey's World Vegetarian, and it is indeed a wonderful bread: light, with an airy crumb and a very slightly crusty golden crust.
This bread (also called "khubz" or "khobz") is baked fresh and eaten everyday in Moroccan homes, and you can see why. It's such a simple, homely recipe, quick, with just one rise needed, and you shape it into a simple round loaf using your fingers or a rolling pin. Sesame seeds and fennel seeds (or anise seeds) add mild but delicious flavor. You don't even need a special pan: just a baking sheet to place the loaf on.
Bonus: it's so cute - just look at it!
I'd like to add a quick reminder here that if you make this or any recipe from this blog, either just once or frequently, and like it, please let me know by leaving a comment on the post. That helps me greatly when I am trying to decide which recipes I need to preserve and, if necessary, update in future. Thank you!
Ingredients
- Active dry yeast. Instant yeast is fine too. If using instant yeast you don't need to bloom the yeast. Just add all ingredients to the bowl except the water, mix, and then trickle in the water to form the dough.
- Sugar. This helps activate the yeast.
- Unbleached all-purpose flour. This creates the lightest crumb. You can substitute a cup of the all-purpose flour with fine semolina flour.
- Fennel seeds and sesame seeds. These add a bit of crunch and flavor to the bread. You can substitute the fennel seeds with anise seeds, which have a similar flavor but are smaller.
How to make Moroccan bread
There are three simple steps to this process:
- Bloom the yeast. This is to ensure that the active dry yeast you are using is still alive. If you use instant yeast you can skip this step.
- Make the dough. This is as basic as it gets but be sure to knead the dough for eight minutes. It's important because this bread has just one rise and you want the gluten to develop fully.
- Shape and bake the loaf. Arguably the most fun part of bread-making and it's really easy if you use a rolling pin to roll the dough into an even disc.
Follow along with the pictures and tips below for the most success.
Place the yeast in a bowl along with the sugar and ¼ cup lukewarm water. Wait five minutes until it froths.
Add flour, fennel seeds, sesame seeds and salt to the bowl. Use your fingers or the dough hook attachment on a stand mixer to mix the ingredients together.
Slowly trickle in 1 cup water until a smooth, soft dough forms. You might need a little more water or a little less. Continue kneading the dough for eight more minutes.
Turn out the dough on a surface and form it into a smooth ball. Use a rolling pin or your fingers to shape it into a disc ½ inch thick and about nine inches in diameter.
Carefully transfer the disc to a baking sheet that has been lightly oiled and dusted with cornmeal.
Use a sharp knife to score a star or sunburst pattern on the loaf. Cover the loaf loosely with a kitchen towel and set it aside in a warm spot for an hour.
After an hour the dough should have doubled. Use a fork to pierce the loaf on both sides. This helps gases formed in the dough escape during baking.
Bake in a preheated 400 degrees Fahrenheit/205 degrees Celsius oven for 30 minutes or until the loaf sounds hollow when tapped with the knuckles. Cool on a rack and cut in wedges before serving.
Serve
Dip the bread into a spicy chickpea tagine or jackfruit tagine, or use it to scoop up a Moroccan soup like harira. You can also serve it with any of your favorite stews, like vegan beef stew or mushroom stew.
Recipe FAQs
You can substitute half the white flour with whole-wheat flour and knead for an additional two minutes. The bread will be more dense but delicious.
This bread has a very mildly sweet, nutty flavor from the fennel or anise and sesame seeds. It has a slightly chewy, golden-brown crust and a soft and airy crumb.
This bread is meant to be eaten fresh, but there's good news: leftovers store nicely in the fridge for up to a week and you can freshen them up by popping them in the oven or in the toaster. I love toasting a wedge of this bread and eating it with vegan butter.
For longer storage, freeze in a freezer-safe bag for up to two months.
More recipes you might like
- Love the idea of making bread quickly? Have you seen my recipe for a fantastic one-hour sourdough bread? Or try this Irish soda bread, which needs no yeast, just baking soda, and is ready in 45 minutes.
- I recently posted a recipe for sourdough naan, also a great every day bread. For an even quicker naan bread, check out grilled naan.
- If you love the food of Morocco, start out by making the two spice mixes so commonly used in the local cuisine: harissa paste and ras el hanout. Having them in the pantry will make cooking tagines and stews like this Moroccan chickpea stew a breeze.
Recipe card
Moroccan Bread Recipe
Ingredients
For "blooming" the yeast
- 2 teaspoon active dry yeast (or instant yeast)
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- ¼ cup lukewarm water
For the bread
- 3½ cups unbleached all purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon salt (use more if you want to)
- 1 teaspoon fennel seeds
- 1 tablespoon sesame seeds
- 1 cup lukewarm water (you might need a little more or a little less)
Instructions
Bloom yeast
- Place the yeast in a large bowl or in the bowl of a stand mixer. Add sugar and ¼ cup lukewarm water. Mix and let it stand five minutes or until the yeast is frothy and bubbly.
Make the dough
- To the bowl with yeast add all of the flour, salt, fennel seeds and sesame seeds. Mix.
- Trickle in the water slowly until a smooth and pliable dough forms. You might not need the whole cup of water, or you might need a little more. Once you have a dough, continue kneading it for eight more minutes, by hand or in the stand mixer set to medium-low speed.
Shape the bread
- Lightly grease a baking sheet and dust with cornmeal.
- Turn the dough out on a clean surface and form it into a smooth ball. Using your fingers or a rolling pin (I prefer a rolling pin), roll the dough into a disc about nine inches in diameter and ½ inch thick. The dough shouldn't stick to the surface, but if it does, lightly grease the surface.
- Transfer the disc of dough to the prepared baking sheet. Use a sharp knife or bread lame to score a star or sunburst pattern in the center of the loaf.
- Cover the bread loosely with a kitchen towel and set aside to rise in a warm spot, for an hour.
Bake the bread
- About 10 minutes before the bread is done rising, position a rack on the lowest rung in the oven and preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit/205 degrees Celsius.
- After an hour, the loaf should have doubled in height. Place the loaf in the preheated oven and bake 30 minutes or until the loaf sounds hollow when you rap it with your knuckles.
- Cool the bread on a rack, cut into wedges and serve.
Nutrition Information
To print recipe card without images, uncheck "instruction images" after clicking the "print recipe" button.
Lina Prema says
This is the second time I make it and it is always a success. I added more fennel seeds because I am intolerant to sesame. And then a half cup of semolina on the total flour. It is really easy and delicious. My sister loves it. As she loves all the recipes I take from your site. Best wishes from Milano/Italy. Where my home is a little drop of India (colors, smells, spices, clothes and incense). Big hugs
Vaishali says
So happy you love the bread. ❤️ I like the addition of semolina - it must give the bread more texture? Your home sounds gorgeous!! Hugs.
Susan says
This is absolutely gorgeous and so easy to make. WOW, thanks.
Vaishali says
Awesome! Happy you loved it. 💜
Kate says
Do you have a gluten free version?
Vaishali says
Hi Kate, I haven't tried a gf version of this but see my response to Keith's comment below on tips for making this bread gluten-free.
Keith Richmond says
Could one use a gluten-free flour, such as cornflour or chickpea flour, in this recipe?
Vaishali says
You can make this with an all purpose gluten-free flour blend. You might need more liquid. You don't need to knead for long because there's no gluten, and you can pour the dough, which should look more like a batter for a gf version, into a cake tin for the rise and bake.