MANDAZI
ZANZIBAR
Mandazi is a delicious sweet-savory doughnut with a heady flavor of cardamom. It reminds me of Tunisian fricassee (a fried bread used to make sandwiches). Mandazi is eaten on its own for breakfast or as a street snack. The classic shape is a triangle, but you can make mandazi square or even round. If you opt for the round shape, use a pastry cutter, otherwise a sharp knife or dough scraper is all you need to shape the triangles or squares. I have had them in Zanzibar, both very fluffy with a strong cardamom flavor and rather dense with hardly any flavor at all. The quality depends on the vendor’s skill at spicing and at making the dough with just the right amount of hydration for the texture of the doughnuts to be light.
MAKES 12 MANDAZI
2 cups (240 g) unbleached all-purpose flour, plus more for shaping
½ teaspoon fine sea salt
1 packet (7g/2¼ teaspoons) instant (fast-acting) yeast
5 tablespoons (65 g) raw cane sugar
Seeds from a few green cardamom pods, cracked open, the seeds extracted and ground to yield 1 teaspoon
¾ cup (190 ml) coconut cream
Olive oil, for deep-frying
1. Put the flour, salt, yeast, sugar, and cardamom in a bowl and mix well. Make a well in the center and add the coconut cream. Gradually bring in the flour until you have a rough dough.
2. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface and knead for 3 minutes. Shape into a ball, invert the bowl over the dough, and let rest for 15 minutes. Knead the dough for 3 more minutes. Divide into 3 equal portions and shape each portion into a ball. Cover with a damp kitchen towel and let sit for 30 minutes.
3. Sprinkle your work surface with a little flour and place one ball of dough on it. Roll out the dough to a circle about ¼ inch (0.5 cm) thick and cut with a sharp knife into 4 quarters. To shape these into squares instead, roll out the dough into a rectangle. Place on a lightly floured board and cover with a damp towel. Roll out and cut the other 2 balls of dough and let rise for about 1 hour, or until doubled in size.
4. About 10 minutes before the dough is ready, pour 2 inches (5 cm) olive oil into a large deep skillet. Heat the oil over medium heat to 350°F (180°C). If you don’t have a thermometer, drop a piece of bread in the oil—if the oil immediately bubbles around it, it is ready for frying. Place a wire rack over a rimmed baking sheet and have it at the ready.
5. Working in batches, slip in as many triangles (or squares) of dough into the oil as can fit comfortably in the pan and spoon a little hot oil over the surface of each—this will help the dough puff up. When the dough has puffed but not colored, turn it over and fry on one side until golden brown. Turn again and fry until golden brown on the other side. Remove the mandazi with a slotted spoon and place on the rack on the baking sheet to drain any excess oil. Serve warm or at room temperature. These are best served soon after they have been fried or reheat for a few minutes in a hot oven.