Magwinya recipe is a set of instructions used in preparing regular Southern Africa fried dough balls prepared using flour, yeast, water, and other ingredients. It has a similar taste to the Caribbean Johnny Cake, the Mexican Sopaipillas, and the Dutch Oliebol.
The fried dough ball has different names in different South African countries and other parts of Africa. The Botswanians call it magwinya, South Africans refer to it as vetkoek and the Zimbabweans call it fetcook. They called it fat cake or puff puff.
Though the recipe may vary from country to country, they all involve frying in oil. There are various ways to prepare the famous South African fried dough balls. Before that, you’d need the following ingredients:
Magwinya Recipe: Ingredients
- flour
- sugar
- oil
- water
- salt
- yeast (optional)
- milk (optional)
Here below are some of the simpler ways to do so.
Magwinya Recipe: 5 Simple Ways To Make Delicious Fried Dough Balls
Step 1: Adding Ingredients Together
Pour 4 cups of cake or bread flour into an empty bowl. Add a tablespoon of instant yeast or whatever raising agent you intend to use. Add 5 tablespoons of cane sugar, similarly, it is preferable to use white sugar.
After that, pour one and a half (1 1/2) teaspoon of salt. And combine all the dry ingredients together with a mixing spoon. Once that is done, pour one and a half (1 1/2) cups of warm water into the bowl of dry ingredients and mix again using the mixing spoon.
Note that the amount of ingredients depends on the number of fried dough balls you want to make.
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Step 2: Mixing The Dough
After combining the dry ingredients with water, drop the mixing spoon aside and use your hand to knead the dough. Using the hand to knead would allow the mixture to form a wet and sticky dough. However, for proper hygiene, you can use a wooden spoon to mix.
Ensure you knead the dough for 5 good minutes or more.
Step 3: Cover The Dough
After kneading the dough for 5 minutes or more, cover it with a damp cloth. Keep it under the sun or in a warm place. Then allow it to rise for 45 minutes or an hour at least.
Step 4: Frying The Dough
After raising for 45 or 60 minutes, it is time to fry. But before frying, ensure the oil you are going to use for frying the Magwinya is not boiling. It should be on medium heat.
Before frying, test the intensity of the hotness of the oil by frying a single dough. If the heat level is okay, the fat cake would turn golden brown. Once you see this, it means that it is time to fry the rest of the dough.
In order to make a perfect shape for the dough, always dip your hands in water. The water would make the dough not stick to your hands when dropping them into the oil.
Step 5: Turning The Dough Balls
Once you drop the dough balls into the frying oil, it is time to pay attention. Watch them closely and turn them frequently. You do this to avoid having burnt or very brown dough balls. Sometimes, the dough balls turn by themselves once the other part is done.
It is time to take the dough balls out of the frying oil once you see a fine golden brown color. After taking them out, use a fork to check the doneness. Once the fork comes out clean, it means that the dough is done.
If it doesn’t, then it means the dough didn’t fry deeply. You can toss it back into the oil and fry for a little time again.
Once done, place them in an open plate or bowl with tissue paper beneath. The tissue paper would help in absorbing excess oil from the fried dough balls.
Now, it is time to enjoy your crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside dough balls.
Magwinya Recipe: How Best To Enjoy It
There are various ways to enjoy the delicious fried dough balls. You can enjoy it best with toppings of whatever kind, either sweet or salty.
To savor the salty taste, slice it into two and stuff it with mince, polong, or any meat (chicken or beef). Or you add a spicy mango salad or chakalaka to it.
And to enjoy its sweetness, dust with a bit of powdered sugar, syrup, or jam.
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