You won’t try another Recipe after this one! This has been my go-to recipe for far too many years to remember and does extremely well on fetes and fairs sold as Curry Bunnies wrapped in plastic food wrap or cling wrap and reheated in a microwave – I know plastic is bad but this is how it goes... In South Africa, they sell like Hot Cakes and are a well-loved family favorite! – Enjoy them or take them to work or school with you for a delicious treat!
Curry Bunnies with a sweet, mild curry mince, perfect for vetkoek !
Makes 8 bun -sized Vetkoek (fried bread) or Doughnuts
NOTES:
To make a loaf of white bread or raisin loaf: Use a formula of 70 % percent water to your weight in flour. If making raisin loaf do not forget to soak your raisins beforehand to plump them up and then kneading them in at the last-minute. In this case, you may also then use half water to milk and may replace your oil or fat with butter melted into your water – milk mixture in which you soak your raisins.
Remember your 1st rise is always your best! So knead extremely well! I always give just 1 rise, but remember – knead VERRY well! I always find that my first rise is always my best!
I always find that my first
One 10 g sachet instant yeast = 1 tbsp or 15 ml
When adding your donuts to the pan: Temperature must be ready or they will sink and suck up oil. Test your fat by dropping in a crumb of bread – If it floats and sizzles gently around its edges your fat is ready. Add donuts one at a time and do NOT overcrowd the pan or the temperature will drop causing them to suck up oil. Do NOT fry at too high a temperature or donuts burn and oil will darken – They must bake, remain afloat, sizzle and bubble gently around their edges (not furiously) in the oil. Cover with a lid after adding each one and allow the temperature to come back up again before adding the next one and so on. Keeping the pan covered with a lid helps them to bake. If you have a deep fat fryer or an oil or sugar thermometer you may use it. If using a wok, you will only get one doughnut or vetkoek done per time because of its sloping sides.
I love the texture that chicken schmaltz gives to the outside of these vetkoeks or doughnuts.
Using chicken schmaltz gives the most delicious texture to the outside of these donuts and is what I have used.
If making Doughnuts: You may glaze them or roll them in castor or cinnamon sugar – OR – after draining them, using an icing gun, you may inject them with Dulce de leche caramel, which is also known as caramel treat in South Africa (using an icing gun or a pastry bag with nozzle tip or a plastic bag with the bottom corner snipped off) or you may even inject them with apricot jam instead and decorate with freshly whipped cream.
In South Africa, the yellow 20 g sachet of NCP High Foam Superbrew yeast works very well and is what I always use if I’m lucky enough to find it. Otherwise, you may just use the other instant yeasts available. On a good few occasions, I’ve found the purple packages of instant yeast to be underweight. So it is best to open the packages and weigh them directly into your ingredients.
Warning! These are Addictive!
Ingredients:
22 g Homemade Chicken Schmaltz or 20 ml sunflower oil
8 g (7.5 ml) salt
40 g (20 ml) sugar
300 g (300 ml) lukewarm body temperature water – no hotter or you will kill your yeast!
484 g (968 ml) bread flour – measure unsifted, loosely and uncompressed!
17 g (25 ml) instant yeast
Method (Bread Machine):
Place bread machine pan on the scale.
Weigh in the oil or chicken fat, salt, sugar, warm water – When water comes into contact with yeast it must be body temperature or you will kill off your yeast activation! On top of this place the unsifted flour. Make a well in the center with your finger and weigh the yeast into it. Close the bread pan and place it back into the machine. Set machine on dough cycle and stick around. As soon as the machine has completed kneading, switch the machine off for a moment and then switch it back on again, reset it again on a dough cycle – allowing the machine to do a second kneading.
As soon as the machine stops kneading. Remove dough and knead into a smooth ball. Place dough on the scale. Note its weight and then divide it into 8 balls, each of equal weight. Roll them into smooth round balls and place them in a flour-dusted baking sheet, covered, but untouched with enough room for expansion. I place mine on a large microwave turntable covered with my large inverted glass halogen oven bowl. Allow rising until doubled.
Hand Method:
Heat up half the water together with fat, oil, and salt in a micro-safe bowl. Remove. Stir in the sugar until dissolved. Add the balance of the cooled, water. Allow to come to body temperature and then sprinkle over your yeast. Once the yeast has dissolved, you may add your unsifted flour. Stir it in with a fork or using your hand until the dough comes together into a smooth non-sticky ball. Divide dough into 8 equally smooth round balls and place them on a flour-dusted surface, covered with enough room for expansion until doubled in size.
Time to Fry Vetkoek:
To deep-fry them in a saucepan - heat up enough oil to 160 C (320 F) or fat to come halfway or almost halfway up sides of vetkoek .
These are soo delish for breakfast, simply served with apricot jam or marmalade!
Test fat that it is ready by.. dropping a crumb of bread into it. If it sinks the fat is not hot enough. If it stays afloat and gently bubbles and sizzles around the edges the fat is ready.
Gently with all 5 fingers placed around bottom edges of vetkoek nudging it upward to heighten the dough slightly and without causing much damage carefully lower it into your hot fat. Wait until the temperature rises back up again before adding the next one and so on. Do NOT overcrowd the pan or the temperature will drop. After adding each donut quickly place the lid back on the pan. Lift lid now and then to check for doneness, on the undersides of donuts, and when golden brown, flip over and repeat the same procedure until all donuts are done. Remove to drain in a large wire mesh sieve or on metal wire racks or placed with paper toweling. Once cooled, cut a pocket in vetkoek (fat cake) and fill with your best ever curry mince for curry bunnies or serve as a breakfast treat together with apricot jam or marmalade – Enjoy!
You now have what is called a curry bunny which is very popular in South Africa. ;)