🍢 SNACK
Kaak Malih (Libyan Savoury Cookie Rings)
Light, crumbly savoury biscuits of flour, butter, oil and milk, shaped into little rings or braids, glazed with egg, scattered with sesame and baked pale gold to eat with tea or coffee.
Libyan · easy · serves 10
prep 35 min · cook 25 min · plus 1 h hands-off time
~326 cal · 5g protein · 25g carbs · 23g fat · 2g fiber · 1g sugars · 7g sat fat (estimated, per serving)
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Kaak malih, salty kaak, are the everyday savoury biscuits of Libya. They are the usual companion to a cup of thick Arabic coffee, and they sit on the tray with sweet biscuits and special breads whenever tea is poured for family and guests in the evening. Young and old reach for them alike.
The dough is quick and uses what every Libyan kitchen has: flour, fat, a liquid and a raising agent. Families differ on the details. Some make it with melted butter, oil and milk, others with oil alone and , and some add a little yeast alongside the baking powder. The dough rests before it is shaped, which makes it easier to roll.
The classic shape is a small ring: a thin rope of dough curled into a circle, sometimes nicked along the side with a knife, or braided. Brushed with egg or milk and scattered with sesame and sometimes nigella seeds, they bake light, crisp and very moreish.
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Make it yours
✓ Naturally vegetarian and nut- and pork-free. No swaps needed.
Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.
🥕 Vegetarian
🌱 Vegan
🌾 Gluten-Free
🥛 Dairy-Free
🥜 Nut-Free
🥚 Egg-Free
🐖 Pork-Free
Dietary labels are a cooking guide, not allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish; we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, read the label on every product you use, and note that a kitchen can cross-contaminate in ways a recipe cannot control.
Ingredients
US
Metric
Serves 10
- 300 g (about 2 1/2 cups) plain flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 heaped tsp salt
- 100 ml (scant 1/2 cup) milk
- 100 ml (about 90 g) butter, melted
- 100 ml (scant 1/2 cup) corn oil or other vegetable oil
- 1 egg, beaten, for glazing
- 1/2 cup (about 70 g) sesame seeds
- 1 tsp nigella seeds, optional
Instructions
- 1Pour the milk, melted butter and oil into a mixing bowl and stir together.
- 2Sift the flour, salt and baking powder into the bowl and mix into a soft dough. Knead just until smooth; do not overwork it.
- 3Wrap the dough and chill it in the fridge for 1 hour, which firms it up and makes it easier to shape.
- 4Heat the oven to 220C (425F) and line two baking trays with baking paper. Roll walnut-sized pieces of dough into thin ropes about 15 cm (6 inches) long. Curl each into a ring and pinch the ends together, or braid two thinner ropes, and set them on the trays.✎ Chef’s noteKeep the ropes thin, about the width of a pencil, so the kaak bake through crisp and light.
- 5Brush the tops with beaten egg and scatter generously with sesame seeds and a few nigella seeds.
- 6Bake one tray at a time in the middle of the oven for 10 to 12 minutes, until light gold.
- 7Cool on a rack. They keep for a week or more in an airtight tin.
Libyan home baking tradition.
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Good to know
You’ll need: Oven, Mould or tin.
Storing it: Keeps 3 to 4 days refrigerated and reheats covered in the oven. Most bakes can be assembled a day ahead and baked when needed.
Make it a Libya meal
Shahi bil Ful (Libyan Tea)Drink
GhraybahDessert
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Cuisine
Diet
Frequently asked questions
What is Kaak Malih (Libyan Savoury Cookie Rings)?
Light, crumbly savoury biscuits of flour, butter, oil and milk, shaped into little rings or braids, glazed with egg, scattered with sesame and baked pale gold to eat with tea or coffee.
Where does Kaak Malih (Libyan Savoury Cookie Rings) come from?
Kaak Malih (Libyan Savoury Cookie Rings) is a Libyan dish from Tripoli, Libya.
Can Kaak Malih (Libyan Savoury Cookie Rings) be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?
This Kaak Malih (Libyan Savoury Cookie Rings) recipe includes substitution suggestions for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, egg-free, and pork-free versions. Treat the substitutions as a starting guide rather than a guarantee, and see the allergen note below.
Is Kaak Malih (Libyan Savoury Cookie Rings) safe for people with food allergies?
Our dietary labels and substitutions are a cooking guide, not medical or allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we still count coconut as a tree nut to be cautious, although the FDA stopped listing it as one in 2025), fish, and shellfish, but we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, always read the label on every product you use, and remember a home or commercial kitchen can cross-contaminate ingredients in ways a recipe cannot control.
How long does Kaak Malih (Libyan Savoury Cookie Rings) take to make?
About 2 h in all: 35 minutes prep and 25 minutes cooking, plus 1 h of hands-off waiting the method needs, serving 10.
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