How to Make Panamanian Fry Bread (Hojaldras) -- Recipe
Panamanian fried bread or doughnuts, called hojaldras, are one of the hallmarks of a Panamanian breakfast. Their two primary ingredients include milk and white flour, but unlike many traditional North American doughnuts, hojaldras contain no yeast and cook until they become crunchy. Home cooks usually dust them with a sprinkling of granulated sugar and serve them for breakfast with fried eggs and a side of breakfast meat. Vendors sell fresh hojaldras on the streets of Panama, sometimes frying them in batches on the spot for customers. Does this Spark an idea?
Other People Are Reading
Things You'll Need
- 3 c. white flour
- 1 tsp. baking powder
- 1 tsp. salt
- Whisk or fork
- Large mixing bowl
- 3/4 c. milk
- 1/2 c. neutral vegetable oil such as canola or grapeseed, plus more for frying
- Small bowl
- Wooden stirring spoon
- Rolling pin
- Large saucepan
- Stainless steal slotted spoon
- Heatproof plate
- 3 paper towels, plus more for blotting
- 1 1/2 tbsp. granulated sugar
Instructions
-
-
1
Add 3 c. white flour, 1 tsp. baking powder and 1 tsp. salt to the large mixing bowl. Mix them together quickly using a fork or whisk. Form a well in the center and set aside.
-
2
Mix 3/4 c. milk and 1/2 c. neutral vegetable oil such as canola or grapeseed together in the small bowl using a whisk or fork.
-
-
3
Pour the liquid ingredients into the well in the large bowl, and stir with the wooden stirring spoon until the ingredients are thoroughly mixed together.
-
4
Turn the dough out onto a clean surface not dusted with flour. The dough should not stick.
-
5
Knead the dough with your hands for 5 to 6 minutes until it begins to feel like elastic.
-
6
Place the dough in the large bowl and cover. Place the bowl in your refrigerator to chill the dough for about 2 hours. If you like, you can leave the dough in the refrigerator for up to 8 hours or overnight.
-
7
Remove the dough from the refrigerator, turning it out again on the clean surface.
-
8
Roll the dough until it is about 1/3-inch thick with a rolling pin, and cut it into strips that have a surface area of about 2 inches by 4 inches. Roll each strip, and set it on a plate.
-
9
Fill a large saucepan with 5 or 6 inches of neutral vegetable oil such as canola or grapeseed. Place over a burner, and turn to medium heat.
-
10
Wait about 5 minutes, and toss a pinch of your hojaldras dough into the oil. If it sizzles, the oil is hot enough to start frying. If not, wait another minute, and try again.
-
11
Drop the rolled hojaldras into the frying oil, and leave them until they begin to brown and rise to the surface, about 3 to 5 minutes.
-
12
Remove individual hojaldras from the oil with the slotted spoon as they are ready. Some may take a bit longer than others to finish cooking. Place them on a heatproof plate lined with 3 paper towels.
-
13
Blot extra oil off the hojaldras with paper towels, and dust with 1 1/2 tbsp. granulated sugar. Serve immediately.
-
1
Tips & Warnings
Serve your hojaldras for breakfast as an accompaniment to eggs and chorizo sausage for an authentic Panamanian breakfast. Substitute chorizo with bacon or country sausage if you prefer.
Serve hojaldras with fresh fruit and yogurt for a lighter breakfast.
Use 1 1/2 tbsp. powdered sugar for dusting if you prefer it to granulated sugar. Panamanian hojalras have granulated sugar, but cooks in some other countries, such as Colombia, use powdered sugar.
Never walk away from a pot of oil in the process of heating or frying. If it becomes too hot, it could burn, begin to smoke and even start a fire. Watch it carefully as you work.
References
- Extending the Table: A World Community Cookbook: Joetta Handrich Schlabach
- "Smithsonian Magazine"; Bilingual by Breakfast; Leigh Ann Henion; February 2006
- Earth Trends Environmental Information; Agriculture and Food: Panama; 2003
- Valores de la Familia Hispana: Panama
- Everything-panama.com: Food in Panama
- "Expat Focus": Panama Food and Drink
Resources
- Photo Credit Jupiterimages/liquidlibrary/Getty Images
More Like This
Comments
View all 6 Comments-
Sintay Ruserious Jones i didnt even notice that. so it was 3 errors lol i know some people that use milk but its diluted with water. 1/3 milk to 2/3 water they come out good like that too but i like em the good old fashioned way. im going to panama for xmas and new years so im gonna be stuffing my face with plenty of hojaldras y carimaniiolas
-
so very true n my mother also said we use water instead of milk some times
-
a friend of mine wanted to try to make hojaldras and told me to look at this recipe. its pretty close but I did notice 2 errors. 1.)real panamanians don't use eggs for hojaldras. 2.)we make the dough the night before and cook it in the morning. figured id share that with anyone planning on tryin to make them.
-
Tonja Delaine Debert Cook Roxanna Thomas I want you girls to make this for me on the 28th in ohio for breakfast and cofee and dont forget the cofee!!!
-
I hope you can make this yum!
