Ingredients
Dough
- 500 gplain flour
- 7 gfast-action dried yeast
- 1 tspsugar
- 1.5 tspfine salt
- 350 mlwarm water, or 200 ml water and 150 ml kos yoghurt
- 2 tbspsunflower oil
To fry
- 1 litresunflower oil, for deep frying
To serve
- runny honey
- 200 gfeta or crumbled gjizë
- fruit jam, usually fig or plum
- thick kos yoghurt
- icing sugar, optional
Directions
- Whisk the yeast and sugar into the warm water and leave 10 minutes until frothy on top.
- Mix into the flour and salt with the oil to a very soft, sticky dough, wetter than a bread dough and just too loose to knead on a surface.
- Beat it in the bowl with a wet hand for 3 minutes, slapping and folding, until it becomes stretchy and starts pulling away from the sides.
- Cover and prove 1 hour in a warm place, until doubled and full of bubbles. Petulla rely entirely on that gas for their hollow middles.
- Heat the oil to 175°C (350°F). Wet your hands, pull off a piece the size of an egg, flatten it roughly between your palms and drop it straight into the oil without shaping it neatly; the irregular edges are correct.
- Fry four or five at a time for 2 to 3 minutes, turning once as soon as the underside is golden, until they puff, brown evenly and float high.
- Lift onto a rack and salt very lightly. Keep the oil at 175°C (350°F) between batches; below 165°C (325°F) they soak fat and go leaden.
- Serve immediately, piled on a plate, with honey poured over, crumbled feta or gjizë alongside and jam and kos on the table.
Technique
- The dough should be sticky enough that you can only handle it with wet hands. A stiff dough gives dense, bready petulla instead of light hollow ones.
- Petulla is a breakfast and a snack for guests, and the classic Albanian plate is a savoury and a sweet dip side by side, feta and honey.
- They collapse and toughen within 20 minutes of coming out of the oil. Fry them to order rather than in advance.
Substitutions
- Yoghurt in place of some of the water gives a slightly tangy, more tender petulla, common in the north.
- A no-yeast emergency version uses 500 g flour, 400 ml kos and 2 tsp baking powder, mixed and fried at once, but the texture is closer to a fritter.
Variations
- Kosovar mekicë are the same dough rolled thinner and served with white cheese.
- Some households press a cube of feta into the centre of each piece before frying so it melts inside.
History
Fried dough served with honey, jam or cheese, a breakfast and celebration food in Albanian homes.
Frequently asked questions
What is Petulla?
Petulla is a breakfast from Albania: fried dough served with honey, feta or jam. Fried dough served with honey, jam or cheese, a breakfast and celebration food in Albanian homes.
How long does Petulla take to make?
Petulla takes 20 min of preparation and 1 hr 30 min including proving of cooking. The recipe makes about 20 pieces, serves 5. It is rated easy to make.
What can I substitute in Petulla?
Yes, within limits. Yoghurt in place of some of the water gives a slightly tangy, more tender petulla, common in the north. A no-yeast emergency version uses 500 g flour, 400 ml kos and 2 tsp baking powder, mixed and fried at once, but the texture is closer to a fritter.
What is the most important thing to get right in Petulla?
The dough should be sticky enough that you can only handle it with wet hands. A stiff dough gives dense, bready petulla instead of light hollow ones.
