Loukoumades

Ingredients

Batter

• 300 gplain flour
• 7 ginstant yeast
• 1 tbspsugar
• ½ tspsalt
• 300 mlwarm water
• 1 tbspolive oil

To fry

• oil, for deep frying

To finish

• 300 gGreek honey, warmed
• ground cinnamon
• 100 gchopped walnuts
• sesame seeds, optional

Directions

1. Whisk the flour, yeast, sugar and salt with the warm water and oil into a thick, sticky batter.
2. It is a batter and never a dough. Thick enough to hold on a spoon, too loose to handle, and any attempt to knead it is working against the recipe.
3. Beat it hard for 5 minutes to develop it and work air in.
4. Cover and leave 1 hour 30 minutes until doubled and full of bubbles.
5. Stir it down very gently, just enough to even it out.
6. Heat the oil to 170°C (340°F).
7. Wet two spoons, or your hand, and drop small balls of batter into the oil.
8. The traditional method is to squeeze the batter up through your fist and cut it off with a wet spoon, which is why they are never quite round.
9. Fry in batches for 3 to 4 minutes, turning constantly, until deep golden and hollow-sounding.
10. Turn them the whole time or the floating upper half stays pale.
11. Lift them out and drain them very briefly on a rack.
12. Now the honey, and this is where loukoumades part company with lokma.
13. Warm the honey until runny but not hot, and pour it over the hot loukoumades in a bowl, turning them to coat.
14. Honey rather than sugar syrup, poured over rather than soaked in. They stay crisp on the outside and the honey sits on the surface as a glaze.
15. The Turkish lokma is dropped into cold sugar syrup and comes out wetter and shinier; the Greek version is drier and tastes distinctly of honey.
16. Scatter cinnamon and chopped walnuts over generously and serve immediately.
17. They must be eaten within minutes, while the outside still crackles.
18. They are among the oldest recorded sweets in Europe: honey tokens called enkrides were awarded to victors at the ancient Games, and loukoumades are their direct descendant.

Technique

• Good thyme honey is worth using, because there is nothing to hide behind.
• Sesame seeds are common in some regions and walnuts in others.
• They are sold from dedicated shops, loukoumatzidika, and made to order.

Substitutions

• Any runny honey.
• A sugar syrup, which makes them closer to lokma.

Variations

• Lokma, the Turkish version in sugar syrup.
• With chocolate sauce, which is a modern shop variation.
• Kaimati and luqaimat, the cardamom-scented Gulf and Swahili versions.

History

Small, deep-fried dough balls, soaked in honey syrup and typically topped with cinnamon and crushed walnut, documented in Greece since ancient times, with some historians tracing the dish back to the ancient Olympic Games, where a similar honey-soaked fried dough is said to have been awarded to victorious athletes, making loukoumades one of the oldest documented sweets still commonly eaten in Greece today. Its light, airy interior, achieved through a specific yeasted batter fried until puffed and golden, distinguishes loukoumades from denser fried dough treats found elsewhere, and the dish’s honey coating reflects honey’s deep, ancient importance across Greek cuisine and culture more broadly. Loukoumades remain one of Greece’s most beloved traditional desserts.

Frequently asked questions

What is Loukoumades?

Loukoumades is a dessert from Greece: honey-soaked doughnut balls with cinnamon, walnuts. Small, deep-fried dough balls, soaked in honey syrup and typically topped with cinnamon and crushed walnut, documented in Greece since ancient times, with some historians tracing the dish back to the ancient Olympic Games, where a similar honey-soaked fried dough is said to have been awarded to victorious athletes, making loukoumades one of the oldest documented sweets still commonly eaten in Greece today. Its light, airy interior, achieved through a specific yeasted batter fried until puffed and golden, distinguishes loukoumades from denser fried dough treats found elsewhere, and the dish’s honey coating reflects honey’s deep, ancient importance across Greek cuisine and culture more broadly. Loukoumades remain one of Greece’s most beloved traditional desserts.

How long does Loukoumades take to make?

Loukoumades takes 20 min plus 1 hr 30 min rising of preparation and 25 min of cooking. The recipe makes about 40. It is rated medium to make.

What can I substitute in Loukoumades?

Yes, within limits. Any runny honey. A sugar syrup, which makes them closer to lokma.

What is the most important thing to get right in Loukoumades?

It is a batter and never a dough. Thick enough to hold on a spoon, too loose to handle, and any attempt to knead it is working against the recipe.