So jubilant that after a lot of trial and error I think I mastered sopapillas. They are crunch, light and sweet fried bread dessert. I wanted to share what I’ve learn, but from reading other online recipe blogs it seems I need to share my life story first. So I grew up in… just kidding.
250g (2 cups) all-purpose flour (Can swap some ~75g with bread flower)`
2 teaspoons baking powder
1.25 teaspoons fine sea salt
2 tablespoons coconut oil, room temperature
4.5oz water microwaved for 60 seconds to ~100°
Setup your processing station with tongs, a pan and paper towel to collect oil, any coatings and a place to store the finished sopapillas that will keep them warm. The larger the pot you use for frying the longer it will take to heat but it will allow you to fry more at a time. You should wear an apron to protect yourself and clothes.
Mix ingredients and need until a supple dough forms. Let rest for 20 mins or so while you heat the oil.
Pour enough oil into pot such that the sopapillas will be able to sink a bit without hitting the bottom. About 2.5″. Heat vegetable oil in a pot with a candy thermometer until about 190 Fahrenheit.
For mid sized sopapillas make 40g portioned balls. Then roll out into flat circles. The more circular the more uniform the final puffing will be. Roll thin enough that you can’t see through but under about .15″. It needs to be be pretty thin to puff correctly. After rolling let them rest a few moments.
Once oil is at 190 set your stove top to medium. You want to keep the oil near 190 and it will cool as you fry the dough. So you’ll need to experiment with what temperature setting will keep it heated but not overheat. If it goes above 200 let cool back down.
To fry take the flattened dough portion and carefully insert into oil vertically and move forward while slowly lowering. Do quickly but don’t drop in as the oil can bubble if slow or splash if dropped. You can also use tongs with the same technique.
When in oil the dough will sink for a few moments then rise up. When it rises to the surface you need to use your tongs to dip the surface back in in short bursts. The heat differential with the air in the dough and the heat of the oil will cause the dough to expand. You’ll need to practice the best dipping technique to encourage puffing. Once it has expanded then let bottom half cook. It will be fully cooked when the bubbling stops but you can flip it earlier to get a softer result. Let bottom get golden brown then flip. If it puffed a lot you might have to lightly hold down the sopapilla to cook all of the top to a golden brown.
When cooked to satisfaction use tongs to lift sopapilla and let some drips fall. Move to prepared surface and immediately coat. Let cool for a few moments and then store in prepared container.
Let oil reach correct temperature before putting in the next.