A thick dark syrup pressed from carob pods — sweet, faintly chocolatey, and without the bitterness cocoa carries. It sweetened this kitchen for centuries before refined sugar arrived, and its best-known use is the simplest: stirred into tahini and eaten with bread.
Also known as carob molasses · dibs kharoub · kharrub · carob syrup
- Arabicدبس الخروبdibs al-kharrub
- Arabic nameدبس الخروب — dibs al-kharrub
- What it isSyrup reduced from carob pods
- Looks likeVery dark brown, thick, glossy
- TastesSweet and faintly chocolatey, with no bitterness
- KeepsA year or more; no refrigeration needed
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Get Sofra — free download →What it tastes and smells like
Dark and malty with something close to chocolate behind it, but rounder and without cocoa's edge. It is sweet without being sharp, which is why it can be eaten in quantity in a way that honey or date syrup cannot.
Stirred into tahini in roughly equal parts it turns pale brown and thickens to a dip. That mixture — dibs bi tahini — is a breakfast across the Levant and the single best introduction to the ingredient.
What it is used in
- Faten's NaatifIdlib · Levantine
How to buy and store it
Lebanese and wider Middle Eastern grocers carry it, usually in a plain jar near the tahini and the pomegranate molasses. Read the label the same way you would for dibs rumman: carob should be the first ingredient, and a syrup that leads with glucose or sugar is a different and lesser product.
It keeps a year or more at room temperature and needs no refrigeration. It thickens as it sits and pours more slowly in a cold kitchen, which is normal.
If you cannot find it
- Date syrup — dibs tamr goodSweeter and without the chocolate note, but the same dark richness. It makes an excellent tahini dip.
- Maple syrup with cocoa — a teaspoon of unsweetened cocoa per three tablespoons goodWhisk together. The cocoa supplies the depth carob has, and both are in any supermarket.
- Blackstrap molasses acceptableMore bitter and mineral. Use half as much and add a pinch of sugar.
Frequently asked questions
What is dibs al-kharrub?
Dibs al-kharrub is carob molasses — a thick dark syrup reduced from carob pods. It is sweet with a faintly chocolatey note and no bitterness, and it is one of the oldest sweeteners in Levantine cooking.
What does carob molasses taste like?
Dark and malty, close to chocolate but rounder and without cocoa's bitter edge. It is sweet without being sharp.
How do you eat carob molasses?
Most often stirred into tahini in roughly equal parts and eaten with bread — the mixture is called dibs bi tahini. It is also drizzled over desserts and used as a sweetener in baking.
What can I use instead of carob molasses?
Date syrup is the closest single substitute. Maple syrup whisked with a little unsweetened cocoa is a genuinely good approximation and both are ordinary supermarket items.
Is carob molasses the same as pomegranate molasses?
No. Pomegranate molasses is sour and used in savoury cooking; carob molasses is sweet and used as a sweetener. They are not interchangeable.
Does carob molasses need refrigerating?
No. It keeps a year or more at room temperature. It thickens in a cold kitchen, which is normal and not a fault.