Whether you spell it donut or doughnut, fried dough by any name is just as sweet.
Friday, June 4 is National Doughnut Day and at Baking Business we don’t need a better excuse to celebrate all things baked, fried, filled and glazed, so we’ve compiled a list of the Amawat (Lebanese doughnut) to Zabeh (Syrian doughnut) of doughnut types.
From a classic fried jam doughnut at the markets to a gluten-free gourmet creation at one of the many boutique specialty bakeries around the country, here are a few varieties of doughnuts you know and love, and maybe a few you haven’t tried for inspiration.
Awamat
Awamat are Lebanese doughnut balls made from a yeast dough which is fried until crispy on the outside, and then drizzled with a sticky, citrus syrup. A bit like Baklava in doughnut form!
Berliner
Berliners, would you believe, originated in Germany? I’ll bet you can’t guess which city! Jokes aside, this is one of the most popular doughnut varieties, appropriated by countries across the world. Fried, filled with jam and coated in sugar, we know it best as a jam doughnut.
Croustillons
Croustillons are Belgian, but again, many nations have a version—in Serbia they are Krofne, and in the Netherlands, oliebol (literally ‘oil ball’). Typically, they are a street/fair food, consisting of fried balls of dough similar to a dumpling, with fillings of raisins, currants or apple.
Donat kentang
Donat kentang is an Indonesian style fried mashed potato doughnut; it is a ring-shaped doughnut made from a combination of flour and mashed potatoes, coated in powdered sugar or icing sugar.
Egyptian Doughnut
Egyptian doughnuts, also known as Zalabya is like the ancient ancestor of the modern doughnut hole. However, it differs from many other varieties in that the dough contains yoghurt or curd. Flavoured after frying with a simple syrup.
Fánk
Hailing from Hungary, a Fánk uses a light doughnut-like pastry which is fried in oil. Fánk is traditionally served with powdered sugar and apricot jam.
Gulab jamun
One of India’s most popular sweets, Gulab jamun is a milk-based doughnut flavoured with rose water and cardamom syrup, topped with slivered almonds.
Holes
Many common doughnuts are ring-shaped with a hole in the centre. One of the best marketing ploys of big-doughnut in the 21st Century is the doughnut hole—small round fried balls, presumably made with the leftover dough and coated in sugar.
İzmir lokması
A Turkish fried ring-shaped doughnut, İzmir lokması is flavoured with a sherbet syrup.
Jersey Wonder
Jersey wonders are a traditional pudding from the island of Jersey made of twisted dough browned in lard.
Kitchener bun
An Aussie classic! Similar to Berliner, but with an open face and the use of more cream than jam. Besides traditional ring doughnuts, jam doughnuts are common in most bakeries, often sold warm.
Long Johns
Popular in the US and Canada, Long Johns are an elongated yeast doughnut, similar to an éclair, which is coated in glaze or icing and sometimes filled with custard or cream.
Malasada
They were brought to the Hawaiian Islands by Portuguese labourers from Madeira and the Azores who went to Hawaii to work in the plantations. They are small balls of yeast dough, deep fried, and coated in sugar.
Ngàuhleisōu
Ngàuhleisōu is a Cantonese oval-shaped pastry which translates to ‘ox tongue’ and is named for its shape.
Old-fashioned doughnut
An old-fashioned is a variety of cake-based doughnut, prepared in a ring-shape with ridges and baked. Originating from the US, they date back to 1829.
Pelona
A pelona, alike Berliner, is a pastry with no central hole made from sweet yeast dough (Danish dough) deep fried usually in oil, filled with vanilla dulce de leche, raisins and topped with sugar.
Quesitos
A Puerto Rican sweet cream-cheese filled pastry, quesitos batter can contain eggs and sour cream similar to cheesecake, as well as red bean paste, piña colada, almond paste, dulce de leche, dulce de lechosa (spiced papaya jam), and other nuts and fruits. The mixture is stuffed into a puff pastry, coated in a sugary caramelised syrup, and baked.
Roscas
Rosca (ring or bagel) is a Spanish and Portuguese bread dish made with flour, salt, sugar, butter, yeast, water, and seasonings. Raisins, milk, anise, cinnamon, vanilla, and colourful candy fruit are used depending on the recipe.
Sata–andagi
Sata–andagi, also known as an-doughnut, is a Japanese sweet flavoured with a sweet red bean paste.
Twisted doughnuts
Twisted doughnuts are yeast donuts or sticks of pastry made from wheat flour or glutinous rice flour, deep-fried in oil. In China, they are known as mahua while in Korea, they are kkwabaegi, and in the Philippines, shakoy and pilipit.
Ukrainian doughnuts
Also called Pampushky, these deep fried balls of dough can be either sweet or savoury, with garlic flavoured filling a popular choice to serve alongside borscht.
Vadai
Vadai are actually savoury doughnuts made from lentils, and are popular in South Indian cuisine.
Wine Roscos
Roscos de vino are a typical sweet ring-shaped doughnut, popular in Madrid. Enjoyed at Christmastime, they are made with flour, wine, sugar, olive oil, lemon zest, sesame and brandy.
X is for doughnut hybrids
Okay, X is a difficult letter to fill, but we can look at doughnut hybrids. Croissant X doughnut is a cronut, and has become very popular in recent years for its versatile pastry/doughnut form.
Youtiao
Translating literally to oil strips, youtiao is a long golden-brown deep-fried strip of dough, similar to a churro, commonly eaten in China and other parts of East and Southeast Asia.
Zooloobiya
Zooloobiya (also known as zoolbia) is a doughnut originating in Iran that comes in various shapes and sizes and coated in a sticky-sweet syrup.
COMMENTS