How to Prepare Cala (Rice Fritter)

The cala is a delicious rice fritter, originally from Ghana. It is now a staple of New Orleans. If yu ever hear a woman announce, “Calas, belles, calas tout chauds!“ It means, "Beautiful calas, very hot!"

Things You'll Need

• 1/2 cup of rice
• 3 cups of water
• 3 eggs
• 1/2 cup of sugar
• 3 tablespoons of flour
• 1/2 cake of compressed yeast
• 1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg, grated
• White sugar, powdered
• Lard

Instructions

How to Prepare Cala (Rice Fritter)

1. Let yeast dissolve in half a cup of hot water.

2. Boil three cups of water in a saucepan. Wash half a cup of rice thoroughly, let it drain, and place it in boiling water. Let the rice boil until it is soft and mushy. Take it out and let it cool. When cold, mash up the rice well, and mix it with the yeast. Set the rice aside, to rise overnight.

3. The next morning, beat three eggs thoroughly and add them to the rice, mixing and beating well. Add half a cup of sugar and three tablespoons of flour (this makes the rice stick together).

4. Mix well and beat thoroughly until it becomes a thick batter. Set aside to rise for fifteen minutes. Add half a teaspoon of grated nutmeg and mix well.

5. Fill a frying pan with boiling lard - enough for the rice cakes to swim in it. Drop a small piece of bread into the pan: if it becomes a golden brown, the lard is ready. If it burns or browns instantly, the lard is too hot.

6. Take a large, deep spoon and drop one spoonful of the batter at a time into the boiling lard (but try to keep the cake from touching the bottom of the pan). Let it fry to a nice brown.

7. Take the calas out of the frying pan. Drain off the lard in a colander or onto heated pieces of brown paper. Place in a hot dish and sprinkle with powdered white sugar. Eat hot.