Traditional Moroccan meloui pastries with a simplified kneading technique using an immersion blender to process semolina, making the process easier. The dough is rested, divided into portions, and each piece is stretched paper-thin with generous butter and oil between layers, then rolled tightly to create a flaky, thousand-layer pastry. Can be made plain or with cheese filling.
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Adapted from a video by Deli Cuisine
La recette des meloui pas à pas 👩🏻🍳 avec technique de pétrissage simplifiée pour débutants
warm wateradded in stages: 800ml first, then 250ml additional1050 ml
sunflower oilfor the dough, approximately 30g3 tbsp
sugar1 tbsp
salt7 g
butterfor shaping, melted and mixed with oil for brushing between layers
~200 gest.
mozzarella cheese (optional)grated, optional filling for some meloui~150 gest.
Steps
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1
Place 500g of semolina in a large bowl and add 800ml of warm water in two stages (400ml at a time), then use an immersion blender to mix for several minutes until completely smooth with no visible grains.
2
Add 1kg of flour, 3 tablespoons of sunflower oil (about 30g), 7g of salt, and 1 tablespoon of sugar, then mix well.
3
Gradually add approximately 250ml of warm water while mixing until the dough becomes soft and supple.
4
Transfer the dough to a work surface and knead, lightly wetting your hands with warm water as needed. Continue kneading until the dough becomes smooth and supple; the semolina prepared with the immersion blender will significantly reduce kneading time.
5
Generously coat the dough surface with oil, shape into a large ball, and place in the bowl. Coat the bowl bottom and top of the dough with oil, then cover with a clean cloth or plastic wrap and let rest for at least 1 hour. The longer the dough rests, the softer it becomes.
6
After resting, form the dough into a log and divide into two equal portions; one can be frozen for later use. Oil your hands and divide the dough into smaller portions.
7
Place the dough portions on a well-oiled work surface with some space between them, brush the surface with oil, cover with plastic wrap, and let rest for about 10 minutes.
8
Prepare a mixture of melted butter and sunflower oil. Begin shaping in the order the dough portions were prepared, generously coating your hands with the butter-oil mixture. Stretch each piece very thin until nearly transparent; small holes are normal.
9
Fold the stretched dough by bringing both top and bottom edges toward the center. For cheese meloui, sprinkle some grated mozzarella in the middle before folding again. Maintain generous butter and oil coating throughout—this creates the flaky layers.
10
Roll the dough tightly on itself. Stretch the final section from left to right to tuck in the side edges.
11
Flip the rolled meloui and gently flatten it, continuing to coat generously with butter and oil. Cover with plastic wrap and rest while shaping the remaining portions.
12
Optionally, sprinkle a small amount of semolina between folding layers. For plain meloui, roll tightly using the same technique.
13
For the final shaping, continue using the melted butter and oil mixture. Gently flatten each meloui, and they will naturally maintain a rounded shape.
14
Cook the meloui in a skillet over medium-low heat. Turn regularly for even browning on both sides. Once golden brown on both sides, remove to paper towels to drain. Do not stack; allow to cool completely.
15
To preserve freshness, freeze the cooled meloui. When ready to eat, remove a few pieces, let them thaw for a few minutes, and reheat briefly to restore the freshly-cooked flaky texture.
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