Zlabia de Boufarik: Semolina Loops, Fried Golden and Dipped in Honey
Use two grinds of semolina for a slightly thick, crisp shell. Pipe the batter back and forth into an elongated, roughly rectangular shape, not a round spiral. Dip each piece in honey only after it comes out of the oil.
During Ramadan in Boufarik, a market town near Blida, not far from Algiers, zlabia shops line the streets. Their honey-glossed fried sweets are stacked high, and buyers come from other parts of the country to get them. Press reports describe the town's zlabia as a local brand with its own reputation. At night, once the fast is broken, the pastry goes on the table with tea or coffee as family and friends gather.
Many sweets across a wide region are called zlabia, or zlebia. This article covers one of them: the Boufarik style, made from a published recipe that combines medium and fine semolina with a little flour and uses no food coloring. It doesn't try to represent every zlabia in Algeria, and it doesn't stand in for sweets with the same name elsewhere. For more dishes from the country, see the Algeria country page.
In Latin letters you'll see zlabia, zlebia and zelabya. The Arabic زلابية is also used for several different sweets in different regions, so the spelling alone doesn't tell you which pastry is meant or where it came from.
What Makes Zlabia de Boufarik Different
The recipe used here comes from the cook Djouza's "Zlabia de Boufarik." Her introduction sets this version apart from Tunisian zlabia in four ways: it is made with semolina, it uses no coloring, its shell is thicker, and it is shaped as an elongated rectangle. That is one cook's comparison. Treat it as a way to recognize the Boufarik type, not as the only difference between the two countries' sweets.
The flavor comes from three things: the toasty taste of semolina, a fried surface that snaps when you bite it, and the sweetness of honey. An Arab News feature describes zlabia as croquante et mielleuse, crunchy and honeyed. Shops and households differ, though, so don't expect every piece in Algeria to have exactly the same texture.
This is a recipe for one specific style. It is a different preparation from the semolina batter of Moroccan baghrir and from Tunisian makroud, even though all three come from the same broad region.
Ingredients: Two Grinds of Semolina, With the Water Left Open
Serves 6. Add the warm water gradually until the batter feels right, as described in the steps.
This recipe contains wheat (gluten) from the semolina and flour, and it uses honey. Whether the frying oil carries traces of other foods depends on the product and your kitchen.
Equipment
- A large mixing bowl, plus a cloth or lid to cover it
- A wooden spoon or spatula
- A piping bag or a funnel. The recipe's author used a nozzle that was too large and suggests an 8 mm tip might work better. That's a suggestion, not a requirement
- A deep frying pan
- Tongs or a slotted tool for turning and lifting the pastry
- A separate shallow bowl for the honey
- A plate for draining off excess honey
- Optional: a thermometer to watch the oil
Choosing Semolina, Yeast and Honey
Buy the two semolinas separately. Look for durum wheat semolina labeled medium and fine. Import grocers and online shops that sell North African ingredients are good places to search. How closely you match this recipe depends mostly on having both grinds. If you have to replace one of them with another product, note which one you changed. Expect the grain and texture to shift, and don't think of the result as the same recipe. Replacing all the semolina with ordinary flour would give you a different sweet.
Keep the yeast as written. Use 20 g of fresh compressed baker's yeast (1/2 cube). Don't use 20 g of dry yeast in its place.
Choose a honey you like. Use homemade honey (miel maison) if you have it. Any honey you can easily buy will also work, but its aroma and thickness will change the finish.
Method: From Batter to Honey
The steps below go by how the batter feels and how the pastry looks, rather than by set amounts of water, oil temperatures or times.
When the Batter or Shape Goes Wrong
| What you see | Likely reason | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| The batter runs and won't hold a line | Too much water went in at once | Next time add water in small amounts. Aim for the thick, sticky batter described in step 3 |
| The batter is too stiff to pipe after resting | It thickened while resting | Stir to degas and add a little water, as the source does just before piping |
| The pieces come out very large | The piping opening is too wide | The source's author ran into this and suggests an 8 mm tip might work better |
| The loops crowd together or the pan feels hard to manage | Too much batter or oil in the pan | Pipe fewer pieces at a time and don't fill the pan too deep with oil, as the source advises |
| You're not sure when to turn or remove the pastry | The source gives no time or temperature | Go by color: golden on the first side, then golden on the second |
The source doesn't give storage or reheating guidance, and this article doesn't add any.
Ways to Vary It
- Make the source recipe as written. Use the amounts above, which the recipe card lists for 6 people.
- Leave out the cardamom. It's an optional extra in the source. Without it, the honey and the fried semolina come forward.
- Change the honey. A different honey changes the aroma and how thickly it coats. Treat this as a matter of what you can buy, not of authenticity.
- Replace one of the semolinas. If you can't find one grind, note which one you replaced and expect a different grain. It is no longer the same recipe.
- About a half batch. It's tempting to halve everything for a first try. But a half recipe would need a yeast adjustment and a water amount the source doesn't give, so this article doesn't publish one.
Ramadan Nights and Boufarik's Zlabia Shops
Boufarik sits on the Mitidja plain. TSA Algérie reports that it has long been a market town where people and goods passed through. The same report describes zlabia shops lining the streets during Ramadan with their sweets stacked high. It also says that in some Boufarik families, the know-how is handed down from one generation to the next, and that some makers produce and sell zlabia only during Ramadan.
Arab News en français describes zlabia on the Ramadan night table, eaten with tea or coffee when family and friends get together. It also reports people traveling to Boufarik to buy it and quotes local families on passing the craft down. These are press reports. They show a strong link between zlabia and Ramadan in Boufarik, but they don't say what every household does, or whether zlabia is eaten all year round.
Origins and Other Sweets Called Zlabia
Nobody knows exactly where zlabia came from. TSA Algérie mentions two theories: that it arrived by way of Turkey, or that Andalusian people brought it after 1492. Both are only theories, and neither is settled history.
The name covers different sweets in different places, and one shared spelling doesn't mean one recipe. When you compare recipes online, check which style you're looking at. This article stays with the Boufarik type: two semolinas, no coloring, a thicker shell and an elongated, rectangular shape.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much water should I use?
The source doesn't say, so this article doesn't give a fixed amount. Add warm water little by little until you have a crêpe-like batter. After the first rest, add more a spoonful at a time until the batter is thick and sticky.
Can I use dry yeast?
The source calls for 20 g of baker's yeast (1/2 cube), which is fresh compressed yeast. This article keeps that. Don't use 20 g of dry yeast instead, and no dry-yeast equivalent is given here.
How long do I fry each piece?
The source gives no frying time and no oil temperature. Its test is color: turn the pastry when the first side is golden, then fry the other side until it's golden as well.
Is zlabia originally Turkish?
That isn't established. Reports mention a Turkish route and an Andalusian route, but the exact origin is unknown.
Is zlabia eaten outside Ramadan?
The sources show a strong link to Ramadan: shops in Boufarik fill up during that season, and the sweet is eaten on Ramadan nights. They don't say whether it is eaten all year, so this article doesn't make that claim.
Sources
- Djouza, "Zlabia de Boufarik," Cuisinez avec Djouza. The recipe used here: ingredients and amounts, method, the 15-minute rest, the note about resting up to 48 hours, piping back and forth, frying both sides golden, the 3-minute honey soak, the 8 mm tip suggestion, and the author's description of the Boufarik style compared with the Tunisian version. This is one cook's recipe, not the only correct formula. https://cuisinezavecdjouza.fr/zlabia-de-boufarik/
- Aicha Merabet, "Reportage. Boufarik, berceau de l'Orangina et de la zlabia," TSA Algérie. Zlabia shops in Boufarik during Ramadan, families passing on the craft and making it only in that season, Boufarik as a market town, and the uncertain origin (Turkish and Andalusian theories reported as theories). https://www.tsa-algerie.com/reportage-boufarik-berceau-de-lorangina-et-de-la-zlabia/
- Sarra Benali Cherif, "La zlabia, reine de la meïda algérienne," Arab News en français. Zlabia on the Ramadan night table with tea or coffee among family and friends, buyers traveling to Boufarik, and families passing the craft down. https://www.arabnews.fr/culture/la-zlabia-reine-de-la-meida-algerienne-226186
