I am so not eating youtiao (fried dough fritters or Chinese crullers) for a long, long time. Getting so sick of it because I had made too much youtiao in the last couple of days as I was trying to perfect my youtiao recipe. Serious youtiao overload, haha.
Nonetheless, it had been a really gratifying experience. Though it’s really convenient and cheap to buy youtiao from most hawker centres at just less than S$1 a piece, I’m still very glad to have attempted to make my own youtiao, which is something I have always wanted to do but have been putting it off for a long time.
I tried different variations of youtiao by using yeast, baking powder and adjusting the amount of water to get different textures of dough. Finally decided that this is the best recipe because there is no need to wait for the dough to rise. The youtiao that I made with yeast tasted quite bready – not really my cup of tea. I like dough fritters that are crispy and crunchy on the outside but airy and somewhat chewy on the inside. To achieve this, you’ll have to be really concise with the amount of water used to make the dough. Too much, you’ll get an overly soft dough that will end up tasting hard when fried.
Practice Makes Perfect
You don’t really need complicated tools to make the youtiao. Simply roll out the dough, cut into rectangular strips and attach two strips together by pressing down with a chopstick. By the time I was making my third batch of youtiao, I was already getting the hang of it.
Length Doesn’t Matter
And off into the oil they go. Fry them up till they turn puffy and golden brown.
Due to space constraints, I made the youtiao in 6″ long sections. You can adjust the length according to the size of your cookware. Whether the youtiao is long or short, it doesn’t really affect its quality or taste.
Drain the fried dough fritters in a mesh strainer. Do not put them on paper towels as that will cause condensation and will make the fritters turn soft or soggy fast.
Wait for them to cool slightly and dig in. I took a shot of the cross-section to show how the inside looked with the air pockets. Not bready or doughy at all. Exactly what I want! 😀
You can pair these youtiao with black coffee, congee, soy beancurd or soy milk. I will also be sharing two upcoming recipes that will require the use of these delicious youtiao. Stay tuned. 😉
In the meantime, enjoy your youtiao!
- 300g all purpose plain flour + extra for dusting surface
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 180ml cold water
- sunflower oil for frying