South-African Koeksisters
South-African Koeksisters are Syrup drenched, deep fried, decadent sweet treats !
South-African Koeksisters are syrup drenched, deep-fried dough sweet treats and loved by young and old. If you live in South-Africa you will know exactly what these little gems are and if you have ever visited the country and have not had a Koeksister, you missed out big time !
I have to admit that I have never made my own traditional Koeksisters (see NOTE below), let’s just call it pure laziness.
That is now when I still cooked and baked without any help from the hubby. Whom as you might know is the main cook/chef/baker in the house since my shoulders started acting up.
BUT, a couple of weeks ago my daughter’s fiance’s granny baked a batch and they brought us a packet – what a treat ! Not store-bought as I usually just grab a packet or three at the supermarket, but real homemade, freshly baked Koeksisters.
Photo Credit : Vincent Viljoen
There is quite a bit of work into making these South-African Koeksisters. Therefore I will suggest you make the full recipe which yields around 4 – 6 dozen of these decadent treats.
You can twist/roll them into any size you wish but the sizes given in the directions are the most popular.
When I was little, I used to watch my own granny make these and even then I knew the most important part is — HOT fried dough, dumped quickly into the ICE-COLD syrup is key to the success of a perfect Koeksister.
Over the years I have seen Koeksisters being called Koesisters as well (with the 2nd K dropped) but it is the same thing. Although some people calls Cape Malay Koeksisters, Koesisters and not Koeksisters with the 2nd K.
Please just never call them Cake Sisters ! It is pronounced the same as you would say COOKSISTER.
NOTE: I have made two varieties of Koeksisters and you can find the recipes by clicking on the names below :
- CAPE MALAY KOEKSISTERS (easier, spicier, not as syrupey)
- SYRUP DRENCHED BREADSISTERS (easy, quick, but far from the real thing!).
South-African Koeksisters
South-African Koeksisters
Ingredients
- 4 cups Sugar
- 1 ½ cups Boiling Water
- ½ t Cream of Tartar
- ½ t Ground Ginger
- 2 sticks Cinnamon
- 1 t Edible Glycerin (optional)
DOUGH:
- 4 cups Flour
- ½ t Salt
- 2 TB Baking Powder
- 2 TB Butter cubed
- 1 Egg
- 1 cup Milk
- Oil for deep-fry
Instructions
- Syrup: Dissolve the Sugar in the Water in a large saucepan – add the Cream of Tartar, Ginger and Cinnamon and let boil over high heat for 5 minutes – remove from heat and stir in the Glycerin, if using (Glycerin adds a little more shine to the Koeksisters) – leave syrup to cool completely then refrigerate for at least 6 hours or overnight (the syrup must be ice-cold)
DOUGH:
- Sift together the Flour, Salt and Baking Powder in a large mixing bowl – rub Butter into the dry mixture until crumbly
- Whisk together the Egg and Milk – add to the Flour mixture and knead until a dough forms (at least 5 minutes) – the dough must be soft but still firm enough to roll out – cover and let stand 2 hours
- Roll out the dough on a floured board – 1 cm (1/4 – 1/2 inch) thick – cut into same size strips (you can do long or short strips – 20 cm (8 inch) strips are usually preferable – plaid or simply rolled (see picture below)
- Deep-fry in small batches at 190 deg C (375 deg F) 1 – 2 minutes or until light brown – remove using a slotted spoon and quickly drain on paper towel
- Place the bowl of chilled syrup over a bowl with ice – this will prevent the syrup from warming too quickly once the dipping starts
- Dip each fried hot Koeksister quickly in the ice-cold syrup – remove using a slotted spoon, shake excess syrup off gently and place on a wire rack over a baking sheet to dry a little
Notes
Serve cold – keep leftovers in a sealed container in the refrigerator.
i wonder how similar these are to gulab jamun, which are indian syrup soaked doughnuts. i haven't had either, but they both sound delicious!
Looks scrumptious!
I'd pick up a package or 2 at the store too! But the recipe is intriguing. Ice cold syrup on hot fried bread must be delicious. My mouth is watering. I'll probably never make these because I should never eat them with diabetes. But the process is so interesting. Thank you for sharing.
Wishes for tasty dishes,
Linda