Batbout
A Moroccan yeast-raised semolina pocket bread cooked on a dry pan or griddle; this measured batch makes about twenty 4-inch rounds.
Khobz
Moroccan khobz
A Moroccan round wheat bread with a firm crust and coarse interior; this home formula makes two 8-inch loaves for serving with meals.
A Moroccan round loaf
Christine Benlafquih describes khobz as the round bread served with many Moroccan meals. Pieces are used to scoop salads, tagines, sides and other dishes; wedges can also be split and filled. Her page notes that family and bakery loaves vary in size, thickness and flour.
This record follows one contemporary home formula for two white-flour loaves. It is not a universal khobz dough: the author notes that households use different flour blends and that breads with the same name elsewhere may have distinct forms. The cited source also names kesra and agroum in particular Amazigh language contexts; those terms are not added here as aliases because this record is scoped to the Moroccan home formula.
Sources for this section
Mixing and proofing
The dough combines white flour, salt, sugar, yeast, warm water and oil. The listed flour amount is four cups, with bread flour or high-gluten flour preferred. The recipe card says to use warm, not hot, water; it does not state a numeric temperature. If the dough feels too stiff or sticky during kneading, the page allows small flour or water adjustments to reach a soft, pliable dough that is not sticky.
After 5–10 minutes of kneading, divide the dough into two mounds and let them rest briefly. Flatten them to about 1/4 inch, then cover and proof for about an hour. The tactile cue is that the dough springs back after a light press. The page allows longer proofing in a cold room; its clock time is guidance for this formula, not a fixed endpoint for every kitchen.
Sources for this section
Baking and keeping
Bake at 435°F (225°C) for about 20 minutes, rotating the pan if needed. The recipe calls for golden-brown tops and a hollow sound when tapped as finish cues. These cues describe the author’s bread method, not a measured internal-temperature target. Cool on a rack or in a towel-lined basket.
The author says homemade khobz does not stay fresh at room temperature for more than a day and recommends freezing unused bread. That is a freshness note, not a validated safety limit. Flour is raw and may contain harmful bacteria: do not taste the dough, keep it away from ready-to-eat food, and wash hands and clean surfaces and tools after handling it.
Evidence limits
The cited page identifies this preparation as Moroccan white bread and gives a complete household method. It does not date when khobz first appeared, settle the origin of the wider name, or make the formula equivalent to every bakery or family loaf. The formula is kept at its documented two-loaf scale; no general scaling ratio or fermentation temperature is supplied.
Sources for this section
History
Christine Benlafquih describes round khobz as a common Moroccan bread and discusses its use to scoop food at meals. The sources do not date a first attestation or support a single birthplace for the broader khobz name.
Ingredients
Yield 2 8-inch loaves · Scaling: source batch only
946 mL4 cup as recorded
9.9 mL2 tsp as recorded
9.9 mL2 tsp as recorded
15 mL1 tbsp as recorded
The page discusses fresh yeast and dry yeast but does not specify a type in the card.30 mL2 tbsp as recorded
Choose olive oil or vegetable oil.296 mL1¼ cup as recorded
Warm, not hot.Method
Risks and precautions · Standard risk
Raw flour and dough
Uncooked flour may carry harmful bacteria.
Hazard sourceBake the bread before eating; keep raw flour and dough away from ready-to-eat foods, then wash hands and clean utensils and work surfaces.
Control sourceDo not taste raw dough. Use care with the hot oven and baking sheet.
- Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper, lightly oil it, or dust it with semolina or cornmeal.
- Combine flour, salt, and sugar in a large bowl. Make a well and add the yeast.
- Add some of the warm water to the well and stir gently to dissolve the yeast. Add the remaining water and oil, then mix until combined.
- Knead in the bowl or on a floured work surface for 5 to 10 minutes, until smooth and elastic. Add a little flour or water as needed to keep the dough soft and pliable but not sticky.
- Divide the dough into two smooth mounds and set them well apart on the prepared pan. Cover with a towel and rest for 10 to 15 minutes.
- Pat the mounds into round loaves about 1/4 inch thick. Cover again and let rise for about 1 hour, longer in a cold room, until a light press springs back.
- Heat the oven to 435°F (225°C). Lightly score the tops with a sharp knife or prick them in several places with a fork.
- Bake for about 20 minutes, rotating the pan if needed, until golden brown. The baked loaves should sound hollow when tapped. Cool on a rack or in a towel-lined basket.
Conditions
Yield2 8-inch loaves
Active time15 min
Fermentation1.25 h
Temperature225°C
Places
Morocco
Documented preparation · Country evidenceChristine Benlafquih identifies this home formula as Moroccan white bread and describes round khobz eaten with Moroccan meals. This does not establish a single origin or represent all breads called khobz.
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Sources
Taste of MarocInspiration · Method · Geography
Moroccan Khobz Recipe - Basic Moroccan Bread RecipeTwo 8-inch loaf formula and ingredient amounts; kneading, resting, shaping, proofing, oven setting, bake time and finish cues; Moroccan meal use and flour variation notes.
Cited in: A Moroccan round loaf; Mixing and proofing; Baking and keeping; Evidence limits
U.S. Food and Drug AdministrationSafety
Handling Flour Safely: What You Need to KnowFlour is raw and may carry harmful bacteria; do not taste raw flour or dough; cook and clean hands, utensils and surfaces after handling.
Cited in: Baking and keeping