AI-generated image
Fijuelas
Fijuelas (פיחואלס): Moroccan-Jewish fried dough spirals soaked in honey syrup
Fijuelas are the Hanukkah sweet of Moroccan Jews, also made for weddings and bar mitzvahs, and grandmothers in Netanya and Ashkelon still roll them by the hundred on a fork. Paper-thin strips of egg dough are wound into spirals as they hit the hot oil, puffing into crisp, lacy roses, then dipped in warm honey syrup with orange blossom. They should shatter when bitten and taste of honey rather than grease. The mistake that ruins them is rolling the dough too thick, which makes them chewy and oily; you should almost see the counter through it. Chef's tip: keep the syrup warm and the fried spirals cool, so they absorb a thin glaze and stay crisp for days.
- Total time
- 60 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 8
Ingredients
For the dough
- 9 oz plain flour
- 3 eggs
- 1 tbsp sunflower oil
- ½ tsp baking powder
- 1 pinch salt
For the syrup
- 7 oz honey
- ¼ cup water
- 1 ¾ oz sugar
- 1 tsp orange blossom water
For frying and to finish
- 4 ¼ cups sunflower oilfor frying
- 1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds (optional)
Shop this recipe on Amazon
Fresh ingredients (2)
Links open Amazon in a new tab. As an Amazon Associate, WhatToEat.Today earns from qualifying purchases.
Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Mix 9 oz plain flour, ½ tsp baking powder and 1 pinch salt, then add 3 eggs and 1 tbsp sunflower oil and knead for 5 minutes into a firm, smooth dough. Wrap and rest for 20 minutes.
25 minStep 2: Simmer 7 oz honey, ¼ cup water and 1 ¾ oz sugar for 5 minutes until slightly syrupy, then stir in 1 tsp orange blossom water and keep warm on the lowest heat.
5 minStep 3: Divide the dough into four and roll each piece as thin as you can, about 1 mm, on a lightly floured counter. Cut into strips 3 cm wide and 30 cm long.
10 minStep 4: Heat 4 ¼ cups sunflower oil in a deep pan to 350°F; a scrap of dough should rise and bubble at once.
Step 5: Pierce the end of a strip with a fork, lower it into the oil and turn the fork so the strip winds round it into a loose spiral. Slide it off after a few seconds and fry until pale golden, about 1 minute in all. Fry 2–3 at a time.
15 minStep 6: Drain on kitchen paper for a minute, then dip each spiral briefly in the warm syrup and lift onto a rack. Sprinkle with 1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 330 kcal
- Protein
- 5 g
- Carbs
- 48 g
- Fat
- 14 g
- Fibre
- 1 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does fijuelas take?
- About 60 minutes in total: 35 minutes to prepare and 25 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 8 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- Can I make it ahead?
- Yes. It keeps well, so you can cook it earlier in the day or the day before and reheat it.
- What can I use instead of plain flour?
- Self-raising flour, same amount (then leave out the baking powder).
- What can I use instead of eggs?
- 1 tbsp ground flaxseed + 3 tbsp water per egg, left for 5 minutes (baking only; vegan).
Reviews
No reviews yet. Be the first to cook it.
Rate this recipe
Sign in to rate and review this recipe.
You might also like
Baklava
The famous layered pastry: crisp sheets of buttered fillo sandwich a filling of almonds, pistachios and cashews spiced with cinnamon, cardamom and saffron. After baking, the hot baklava is soaked in a syrup of sugar, honey, lemon, rose and cardamom and decorated with almond and pistachio flakes. Cut into 40 diamonds; serve with fresh cream or ice cream.
Undu walalu
Walalu means bangles, and these dark, sticky rings of fried urad dal soaked in kithul treacle are a sweet that Sinhala families bring out for Avurudu and for special almsgivings, often made in large batches by an aunt known for her steady hand. A thick, fluffy paste of ground black gram is piped into loops and fried until crisp, then plunged straight into warm treacle, so the rings stay crunchy on the outside while drinking up the syrup. They taste a little like a darker, smokier jalebi, with a toffee finish from the palm treacle. Watery batter is what ruins them; it spreads into flat blobs, so grind the soaked dal with as little water as possible and beat it until light. This recipe uses no asafoetida, so it is naturally gluten free. Chef's tip: pipe the rings onto small squares of baking paper and lower them into the oil paper and all; the paper peels away in seconds.
Sri Lankan
Marquesitas
Evening in Mérida's Plaza Grande means the smell of marquesitas: thin batter pressed in hot hinged irons until crisp, then rolled like a cigar around grated Edam cheese and a sweet filling such as cajeta, chocolate-hazelnut spread or jam. Edam came to the Yucatán through the port trade with the Netherlands and became part of the local cooking, and the salty-sweet combination is the whole point. At home you can cook them in a thin, wide frying pan. Edam is usually made with animal rennet, so check the label or use a vegetarian Gouda-style cheese. Chef's tip: roll while the crêpe is still in the pan and hot; within seconds it hardens and will crack.
Mexican