Fatcooks recipe

A couple of weeks ago, one of the readers of this blog requested that I make fatcooks. Fatcooks or voetcooks or amagwinya are a pastry that are made by deep frying dough. They are eaten widely for breakfast in Zimbabwe and South Africa.

I love fatcooks but I don’t make them often. As the name suggests they are not exactly celery but they are oh so good!

I used a different recipe to what my mother usually does. After mixing my dough I let it sit the fridge for two hours before rolling it out into balls and deep frying.

They turned a beautiful golden brown.

3 from 1 vote

Print

Fatcooks recipe

Prep Time 3 hours 30 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Total Time 4 hours

Servings 16

Author Princess Tafadzwa

Ingredients

• 4 cups all-purpose flour plus
• more for rolling
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 cup sour milk
• ¾ cup sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 6 to 8 cups vegetable/canola oil for deep frying

Instructions

1. In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
2. In another large bowl, whisk the sour milk and sugar, until smooth and combined.
3. Beat in the eggs until just combined.
4. Add the flour mixture to the wet mixture, stir with a wooden spoon until just combined. The dough will be sticky.
5. Refrigerate it for about 2 hours, or until completely chilled.
6. Turn the dough onto a floured surface. Knead for 2 minutes, or until the dough is smooth and elastic. Return the dough to the fridge for another hour.
7. Turn the dough onto a floured surface. Divide the dough into 16 rolls.
8. Put the rolls in the refrigerator while you heat the oil.
9. In a heavy medium pot or a deep-fat fryer, put enough oil to achieve a depth of about 4 inches; heat it to 375° F.
10. Gently transfer 4-5 fatcooks into the pot.
11. Fry until golden brown on each side.
12. Remove with a slotted spoon and place on paper towels to blot excess oil.