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Zalabya– You can think of Zalabya as a small, round donut or… the round part that’s missing from a donut!
They are super crunchy on the outside, and soft and fluffy on the inside. Traditionally soaked in simple syrup, but equally loved drowned in Nutella or dusted with cinnamon sugar!
What is Zalabya?
Loukoumades, Lokma, or Zalabya is a traditional street food dessert in many countries in the Mediterranean region.
Zalabya is also called loqmet al qadi (“The Judge’s Bite”), no matter what you call them, these sweet golden nuggets are undeniably scrumptious and a staple at every Middle Eastern house.
In Egypt, they are wildly popular street food and are sold at little kiosks all over the country for a very modest price.
At home, they tend to make a regular appearance throughout the year, but as with all Middle Eastern desserts, they are more celebrated during Ramadan.
Zalabya Recipe
Zalabya is essentially a yeasted dough that is fried and then most classically sweetened with simple syrup.
So when you bite into them, you get this little burst of syrup perfectly balanced by the light and airy doughy interior and boldly crispy exterior.
However, a lot of households prefer to coat them in powdered sugar instead of the classic dunk of syrup. A dusting of cinnamon never hurts too!
Traditional they are sweet pastry balls deep-fried to golden crispy perfection.
Sweet zalabya is made out of flour, cornstarch, yeast, sugar, and more, to eventually be dipped in honey, sugar syrup, melted chocolate, Nutella, or any sweet dip you can think of.
Recipe Tips
- You can make the batter ahead and refrigerate for up to 24 hours. When you are ready to fry, take the bowl out and let it come to room temperature. This might take from 30 minutes to 1 hour. You can also make the sugar syrup ahead of time, and let it cool down as it needs to be room temperature as well.
- If you can’t get rounded loukoumades balls you can add about 3 Tablespoons of oil to the batter, this should take care of this problem.
Ways to Serve Zalabya
- Traditional and most common way is doused in simple sugar syrup. Syrup can be cinnamon, cardamom, orange blossom, rose water, or vanilla flavored. Honey is also common.
- Roll fried dough balls into cinnamon sugar.
- Dust with powdered sugar, not my favorite but very common.
- Chocolate covered. This has been very popular recently in Egypt. Make your chocolate syrup or just use Nutella.
Be Sure to Try These Other Dessert Recipes
Be sure to recreate this incredible dessert. Enjoy!
Zalabya
Ingredients
Batter
- 2 tsp active dry yeast
- 1 tsp sugar
- 3 1/2 cups flour
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- Oil for frying
Sugar Syrup
- 2 cups sugar
- 2 cups water
- 1/2 lemon Juice
- 1 tsp orange blossom water
- 1 tsp cinnamon powder
Instructions
- Make the syrup first, mix all the syrup ingredients in a saucepan on a low to medium heat and simmer and stir for 10-15 minutes then allow to cool.
- Make the batter next, dissolve the yeast and sugar in half a cup of luke warm water and set aside for 10 to 15 minutes.
- Place the flour in a large bowl, mix in the yeast water and salt then gradually stir in 2 1/2 cups of luke warm water and beat until smooth and elastic.
- Cover with a towel and leave to rise in a warm place for about 1 hour.
- Heat oil in a frying pan till very hot.
- Drop small balls of batter with a tablespoon into the oil turning them over until crisp, golden and puffed.
- Dip the Zalabia balls into the syrup for a few seconds then serve either hot or cold.
