Just when you thought fried dough couldn’t get any better, I give you this Ginger Thyme Puff Puff recipe. Nigerian puff puff batter with ginger and nutmeg, coated in a ginger and thyme infused sugar. This recipe is honestly amazing! Plus it’s vegan!
Happy Sunday!
Ok, I have a confession. I love fried dough. If I were to list my favorite foods of all time, it would probably go something like this:
1. Oxtail
2. Plantain
3. Fried Dough.
…As in an entire category of fried doughy foods. This category includes Jamaican patties, fried dumpling, roti, buss up shirt, churros, chin chin, and now this puff puff recipe. I don’t discriminate. As long as it’s fried bread of some kind, I probably love it!
But even if you don’t share my fried dough addiction, I guarantee you will love this puff puff recipe!
What is puff puff?
Puff puff is a snack made by frying yeasted dough into round balls. Puff puff is common across both East and West Africa, though it is often associated with Nigeria. The term puff puff refers to the way the dough floats to the top of the oil during cooking.
I first tried puff puff in college (I know, I was such a late comer to the puff puff game!) I was instantly hooked and have loved it ever since. There’s just something about warm fried dough that screams comfort food.
Ginger and thyme puff puff
Traditional puff puff is very simple, and very delicious. But I recently came across Yewande Komolafe’s Cardamom Puff Puff recipe, which takes puff puff up a notch by coating the fried balls of deliciousness in spiced sugar. My first thought was: WHAT?!! Then my second thought was “I need to make this recipe now.” Which I proceeded to do. Multiple times.
This Ginger Thyme puff puff recipe is loosely adapted from Yewande’s recipe. I changed the flavor profile to create a more Caribbean-inspired puff puff recipe. Ginger and thyme are like the lemon and parsley/oregano of Jamaican cooking. I use a mixture of ground and freshly grated ginger in both the puff puff batter and the sugar. The ground ginger has lots of concentrated flavor while the fresh ginger has a nice zesty taste. I also use fresh thyme in this recipe, but only in the sugar. The thyme has hints of citrus, which help cut the sweetness of the sugar.
I’ve tested this recipe many times and perfected it to ensure you get full proof puff puff every time. Below I’ve included some tips, along with step by step instructions and photos.
The recipe…
Before we jump into the recipe, here are a few tricks to making great puff puff:
- Use instant rise yeast! Active dry yeast is great, but if your water is too hot or too cold, you can kill the yeast, or end up with partially activated yeast. Puff Puff doesn’t have many ingredients so it’s all about getting the right spongy texture, and instant yeast helps achieve that, meaning you get consistently amazing results every time.
- Patience! Let the yeast do its work. For nice airy puff puff, allow the dough to sit covered on the counter until it doubles in size. For me, this took about 1 hour, but I live in a more humid climate. If you’re unsure if your dough is ready, I’d air on the side of giving it more time to rest.
- Use an ice cream scoop to portion out the dough. If you’re a pro at forming puff puff by hand, by all means go ahead! I, however, am not. Puff puff dough is very sticky and elastic, so I’ve found the best way to get the right shape is to use a greased ice cream scoop. I like the 3 tbsp scoop, and I fill it about 2/3rd of the way. I also like to use chopsticks to help flip the dough, but a wooden slotted spoon also works well.
- Sprinkle the sugar while the puff puff is warm. This allows the sugar to stick to the puff puff. Which means more amazing flavor!
If you follow these tips, your puff puff will turn out great!
Step 1: Make the dough and let it rise to double in size.
Step 2: Fry the dough. The puff puff is ready when it floats to the top of the oil.
Step 3: Allow puff puff to rest on a paper towel.
Step 4: Coat warm puff puff in ginger thyme sugar.
NOTE: This recipe is for a fairly small batch of puff puff (about 10-12). Feel free to double or triple depending on your desired amount.
Substitutions
Unfortunately, there’s really no way to make puff puff gluten free, since the yeast gives the puff puff it’s distinct texture and flavor.
You can however change the flavor profile. You can try adding the following to the batter:
orange zest
lemon
cayenne pepper
Let me know if you come up with any fun flavors.
Looking for more snacks? Try these:
Meatless Dominican “Beef” Empandas
Share this recipe…
If you make this recipe, be sure to let me know by rating it and leaving a comment below. I would love to hear from you. And don’t forget to tag #sweetandsorrel on Instagram!
Ginger and Thyme Puff Puff
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cup AP flour
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp fresh ginger, grated
- 1/4 tsp ground ginger
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg, grated
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 2 tsp rapid rise yeast
- 3/4 cup room temperature water
- 4 cups canola oil, for frying
Ginger Thyme Sugar
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tbsp fresh thyme, stems removed and finely chopped
- 1/2 tsp fresh ginger, grated
- 1/2 tsp ground ginger
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, salt, ginger, nutmeg, and sugar. Add rapid rise yeast and whisk until incorporated. Make a well in the dough, then add water. Use a wooden spatula to combine the dough into a batter, but do not overwork the dough. The batter should be wet and sticky. Cover with a clean kitchen towel and allow batter to rest on the counter until dough doubles in size, about 1 hour.
- Prepare the ginger thyme sugar. While the batter rests, combine the ingredients for the sugar on a large plate. Toss to combine. Set aside.
- Heat oil in a large frying pan over medium-low heat. The oil should rise to about 1-1/2 inches.NOTE: It is important to use medium-low heat to ensure the oil heats evenly and to prevent the puff puff from burning. Test the oil by dropping a small amount of batter into the oil. The oil is ready if it starts to sizzle and the batter rises to the top.
- Once the batter has doubled in size, use an ice cream scoop sprayed with cooking oil to spoon batter into the hot oil. Use about 2tbsp of batter per puff puff. Working in batches of about 4-5 puff puff at a time, fry puff puff for about 2 minutes per side, making sure not to overcrowd the pot. Use a slotted spoon to transfer cooked puff puff to a plate lined with paper towels to remove any excess oil.
- Transfer puff puff to sugar while they are still warm and toss to coat. Serve warm.
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