Giant Donut Holes (Puff-Puff)
These super-sized donut holes are a treat in several parts of the world. In West Africa, they are often served at parties as an appetizee or enjoyed as snacks. Popularly called “Puff-Puff” due to how puffy and soft this fried dough confectionery is, it can be enjoyed by people of all ages and can be tweaked to suit the taste of the maker or guests. Lets get puffing!!!
INGREDIENTS:
This will make 5 large donut holes. Feel free to double the recipe if needed.
(1) 1 Cup All Purpose Flour (130 grams)
(2) 1/2 Cup + 3 Tablespoons Warm Water
(3) 2 Tablespoons Granulated White Sugar
(4) 1/2 Teaspoon Active Dry Yeast
(5) 1/4 Teaspoon Grated Nutmeg (or Cinnamon)
(6) 1/8 Teaspoon Salt (A Pinch)
(7) Oil for frying.
PREPARATION:
(1) Activate yeast by mixing it with warm water and a teaspoon of sugar. The water should be warm and not hot or it will kill the yeast. Let mixture stand for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, you will notice some activity. The yeast will foam at the top of the water. You will also notice some growth. If this does not happen, discard mixture and start process all over again. If you still do not notice any activity, your yeast is most likely dead.
(2) In a mixing bowl, mix all the dry ingredients together. Grate the nutmeg into mixture.
(3) Pour the activated yeast mixture over the dry ingredients and mix thoroughly with a whisk or spatula. You do not want any lumps in the mixture. You might need more water. The resulting batter should be be thicker than pancake batter and have some resistance.
(4) Cover the mixture with plastic wrap and place in a warm place to rise for 1 hour. I place mine in the oven with the light turned on.
(5) After 1 hour, the dough would have risen, not quite doubled in size though. You will also notice a lot of air holes. Do not deflate.
(6) Heat oil till hot. The oil should be enough to cover a submerged egg. Fry dough in oil. You can make use of an ice cream scoop, 2 large cooking spoons or your hands to scoop and drop balls of dough into hot oil.
(7) Fry for about 1 minute 30 seconds, flip, fry for another 1 minute and scoop out of oil. The puffs should be golden brown.
(8) Rest on a plate lined with paper towel to absorb excess oil.
(9) Serve. You can sift some confectioners sugar over the donut holes. My favorite way of enjoying this snack is with a drizzle of honey. Enjoy!
Terry Adido is passionate about showing people how easy it is to recreate restaurant quality meals in the comfort of their kitchens. With a style of cooking he refers to as Afro-European Fusion, his meals are influenced greatly by French and Italian Cuisine with a West African twist. If you love good food, you are in for the ride of your life.
Sooo…simple am definitely trying dis out .thanks for d reciepe.u rock dad.
Terry good we can get hold of your recipe here, I’m more than excited.
Nice one terry
This is d place 2 be. Am loving it!
The whole water to proof the yeast or just a portion?
The whole
Thanks.
Just realising that question might sound stupid. I am actually making 8 cups of flour, and using over 1 ltr of water 🙂
No it does not. All the best.
Dis s gud am soo gona try dis,tnx Terry bin wantn 2 learn hw 2 do dis
All the best.
You did a great job, keep it up
Thanks Yetunde.
Thanks for sharing this with us. Just wanted to know if milk could be incorporated into this recipe. If yes, in what form and hw much would be enough
I have never made this with milk before. Milk would make the dough richer which might lead to it soaking up a lot of oil.
Love your recipes nice and simple, the way I like it. Good food doesn’t have to be complicated.
Thanks Sandra.