This Nigerian Puff Puff with Pepper recipe will change your life! Puff puffs are a popular Nigerian snack that’s similar to doughnuts. Made with yeast, nutmeg, flour, and pepper, they’re fun to make and eat!
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What are Nigerian Puff Puff with Pepper?
This scrumptious snack recipe is just what everyone craves. It’s a peppery fried batter with a sweet center. We hope that these homemade puff puffs satisfy your craving as much as they satisfy ours!
Puff puff are fried balls of dough that are a popular snack in Nigeria. They’re a soft finger food with a golden crust and a sweet interior. Like any fried snack, they’re not exactly the picture of health. However, these are a delicious treat to make every once in a while.
My family certainly doesn’t eat puff puff every day. But, when we do get to treat ourselves, that just makes them more satisfying!
How to Make Nigerian Puff Puff with Pepper
Making this tender fried snack is easier than you think. And the end result is as puffy, soft and sweet as you can imagine. Here are the simple steps to making Nigerian puff puff with pepper at home:
Start with The Puff Puff Batter
First, you’ll start with warm (but not hot!) water in a mixing bowl. If the water is too hot, it can kill the yeast. And we want that yeast to be as active as possible to make these really puff! Next, add salt, sugar, and active dry yeast to the water in the bowl.
Then whisk these ingredients together so the yeast is dissolved. Let everything sit for 5 minutes. This allows the yeast to activate. You should see some bubbles forming on the surface of the water. That’s a good sign--your east is alive and hungry!
After you have activated the yeast, it’s time to make the batter. First, add flour, a bit of nutmeg, and the pepper to the mixing bowl. Stir everything together until just combined. Be careful not to overmix the dough here, as it can result in tough puff puff, and no one wants that!
At this point, your puff puff batter should look a lot like pancake batter. Put the mixture aside to rest with a clean cloth over the top of the bowl. The batter should rise for 1-2 hours. Keep it in a warm place for the most active rise.
Frying Nigerian Puff Puff at Home
When the batter is nearly finished rising, it’s time to prepare to fry the puff puff. Start by creating a landing pad for the finished snacks. Lay some paper towels in a bowl and keep it nearby.
Meanwhile, heat up some vegetable oil in a deep pot. You should have enough oil that it will cover all of the puff puffs that you add to it.
When it’s time to start cooking, use one hand to scoop a ½ handful of the puff puff batter mixture and squeeze it gently into the heated oil. You don’t want to drop the dough ball from too far away, as it can cause the oil to splatter. Add only as many as will comfortably fit in the pot without sticking together or bumping into each other.
Fry the puff puff with pepper until brown all sides, using a spoon to roll the balls around for even cooking. Finally, use a slotted spoon to remove the fried puff puff to the paper towel-lined bowl. Repeat with the remaining puff puff batter.
And last but not least, enjoy your beautiful bowl of freshly fried puff puff with pepper.
Making Fried Foods Healthy
Just because this recipe fries dough in order to achieve that crispy, flaky texture doesn’t mean it’s bad for you! In fact, at Sims Home Kitchen, we like to come up with the healthiest ways to fry foods. That way, you can enjoy your favourite crunchy meal without worrying about betraying your diet.
One thing you can do to make the frying process a bit healthier is to use olive oil, which has less fat than corn oil. However, olive oil does have a strong flavor and will change the taste of the puff puff.
The next best thing is to replace your wheat flour with a gluten-free option. Many people have an intolerance to gluten as it is, so this replacement would probably serve more than a few benefits. You can still follow the recipe below in the same easy and fun way, and you’ll enjoy delicious puff puffs within minutes!
Wait! My Puff Puff is Too Dense! Troubleshooting Homemade Puff Puff
If your puff puffs come out too hard or chewy, don’t worry. There are easy ways to troubleshoot a dense puff puff. First, add a couple of tablespoons of water to the batter.
Secondly, you might just be frying the dough for too long. Try taking the balls out a minute or so earlier. Finally, try cutting back on the salt to keep your puff puffs moist and flaky.
What to Serve with Puff Puff with Pepper
I love to serve these sweet and savory Nigerian snacks with other favorite west African dishes. Here are some tasty pairings for puff puff:
More Delicious Nigerian Recipes
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Nigerian Puff Puff with Pepper
Ingredients
- 650 ml of warm
- ½ Tbsp of salt
- 200 g of sugar
- 1 pack or 2 ¼ tsp of active dry yeast
- 700 g of plain flour
- ½ tbsp of nutmeg
- 1/4-1/2 tbsp of pepper
- vegetable oil or sunflower oil
Instructions
- Add 650ml of warm (but not hot!) water to a mixing bowl. Add ½ Tbsp of salt, 200g of sugar, and 1 pack or 2 ¼ tsp of active dry yeast to the bowl. Whisk these ingredients together and let them sit for 5 minutes while the yeast activates.
- Add 700g of plain flour and ½ tbsp of nutmeg and 1/4-1/2 tbsp of pepper to the mixture and mix it all together. At this point, your puff puff batter should look a lot like pancake batter. Put the mixture aside again, this time with a clean cloth over the top of the bowl, and let it rise for 1-2 hours. Keep it in a warm place while it rises.
- In a second bowl, add some paper towels. Set it aside for later.
- Once 1-2 hours have passed and your batter has risen, heat up some vegetable oil (or sunflower oil) in a saucepan. You should have enough oil that it will cover all of the puff puffs that you add to it.
- In one hand, scoop a ½ handful of the mixture and squeeze it into the heated oil. Fry until brown. With a slotted spoon, remove the puff puff and let it dry. Repeat until you have used all of the batter.
- Enjoy!
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Notes
https://answersafrica.com/10-popular-nigerian-dishes-you-must-try.html
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