🍞 Samoon (Iraqi bread)
Samoon is Iraq's everyday bread: a diamond-shaped yeasted loaf with pointed ends, a crisp golden crust and a light, fluffy crumb. Made from just flour, water, yeast, salt and a little sugar, it is baked in very hot ovens until puffed. It is eaten with every meal and split open for sandwiches of kebab, falafel, eggs or amba.
Diets
Allergens
Contains (in a typical recipe):
What it is made of
Recipe
Ingredients
- 500 g bread flour
- 320 ml warm water
- 7 g dried yeast
- 10 g sugar
- 8 g salt
- 1 tbsp oil for the bowl
Method
- Mix the yeast and sugar with the water, add the flour and salt and knead for 10 minutes into a smooth, soft dough.
- Cover and let rise in an oiled bowl for about 1 hour, until doubled.
- Divide into 8 pieces, shape each into an oval with pointed ends, slash the top and rest for 30 minutes.
- Bake at 240 °C for 10–12 minutes until puffed and golden.
How to make it lighter
- Make smaller loaves — 60 g instead of 80 g — to cut the portion.
- Fill a samoon with plenty of vegetables rather than eating it alongside a full meal.
- Swap part of the flour for whole-wheat flour for a more filling loaf.
History
Samoon has been baked in Iraqi bakeries for generations and is sold warm from neighbourhood ovens every morning. Its exact origin is not well documented, but today it is the signature bread of Iraq and is also found in Iraqi bakeries abroad.
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Values are estimates per 100 g for a typical recipe; home and restaurant versions vary. Diets and allergens are worked out from the ingredients of a typical recipe — always check with whoever cooked the dish. Not medical advice. Nutrition data: Me Nutrition dish database v13. How we count →