Table of Contents
Nigerian Buns is one of the popular snacks in Nigeria. They are fried dough balls with crunchy outer crusts.
What’s there not to love about these Nigerian buns? They are super easy to make and good. They come together in only a few minutes and with two batches of frying, you are done.
What Are Nigerian Buns?
Nigerian buns are a sweet, fried delicacy popular in West Africa. Flour, baking powder, milk, and sugar are used to make the batter, which can be flavored with nutmeg, cinnamon, vanilla, or any other flavoring.
Buns are the closest sibling to the Nigerian Puff Puff which is basically a fried yeast dough.
Difference Between Puff-Puff and Buns
Puff-puff for the most part is made with yeast and has a somewhat chewy interior with very few ingredients.
On the other hand, Nigerian buns are richer in flavor with the addition of eggs, butter and milk -crunchy on the outside very soft on the inside.
I love both puff puff and buns but in terms of oil consumption, I prefer buns as it doesn’t soak up so much oil when frying.
How To Prepare Nigerian Buns
Nigerian Buns can be tricky, If it’s not properly mixed or when the measurements are not accurate.
Also, keep in mind that there are about as many ways to make buns as there are people. This version is slightly crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside. My recipe is not overly sweet either. So you can add a bit more sugar if you want it sweeter.
In addition, I used nutmeg as a flavoring in this recipe. You can use vanilla, cinnamon, or any other flavoring you want in place of that.
Slight variations like these are common. However, you are free to use this recipe as a blueprint, making it once and adjusting according to your taste.
Nigerian Bun Frying Technique
So many people have complained about uncooked buns. Sometimes they complained of their buns getting soaked in the oil, thereby messing up the whole thing.
The best way to fry the buns is by making sure your frying oil is on medium heat. It’s not too hot, and it’s not too cold. Attempt to keep the heat temperature under control; if it becomes too hot, turn it down.
Immediately you realize the temperature is going down, you can increase it again.
In this way, you’ll be sure you are doing it right. Allow for a minimum of 8 minutes of frying time for the buns. It takes a little longer to fry than a Nigerian puff puff.
Why Are My Buns Hard?
Can I Bake Nigerian Buns?
Absolutely no! The only way is to fry it. You can’t have crispy and crunchy buns by baking it. You can only fry.
Why Does My Buns Soak Oil?
How To Serve Buns
The Nigerian Buns are eaten mainly as a snack but they can also be eaten as breakfast served with tea. It is also best enjoyed with a very chilled drink
These are so delicious when served hot or at room temperature. These snacks would be great for a party, picnic, a side dish for a meal, and it is also loved by the kids too
Storage and Reheating
They are best eaten the day you make them. However, you can keep them for up to 1-2 days. They will still be okay but not as fresh as the first day you make them.
You can preserve it in the refrigerator in a tight container for 5-6 days without getting bad.
You can reheat in the microwave by using the lowest temperature for 1 minute.
Tips For Best Buns Results
- Don’t make big balls else the buns will not cook through on the inside
- The oil that is too cool will make the buns soak up way too much oil and oil that is too hot will just crisp your buns too quickly without cooking it through on the inside. So if you are in doubt about the temperature of the oil, it’s okay to test the temperature of the oil with a quick read thermometer to ensure it isn’t too cool or too hot.
- If you don’t have a cooking thermometer, you can test fry one scoop of the batter before adding the remaining. That will help determine if your oil is the perfect temperature for frying.
- Reduce the heat each time you are frying a new batch then turn the heat back up for even cooking. This way the buns doesn’t turn brown quickly without cooking through.
Other Nigerian Snacks You May Enjoy:
- The Nigerian Chin chin
- The Nigerian puff puff
- Nigerian Egg roll
Let’s get on to making the best Nigerian buns ever.
Some suggestions for Amazon links to”Happy Belly Soybean Vegetable Oil”.
Nigerian Buns
Ingredients
- flour
- eggs optional
- milk or water
- nutmeg optional
- baking powder
- vegetable oil
- warm water
- butter or margarine optional
- sugar
- salt
Instructions
- Add flour, baking powder, salt and nutmeg in a small bowl and mix.
- Whisk the egg (that’s if u will be making use of any) and pour into the melted butter and mix until it looks lumpy.
- Put the sugar and milk in a cup of water and mix, making sure the sugar granules dissolve completely. Pour it into the flour and mix continuously, mix till you get stretchy sticky dough.
- Put the fry pan on the cooker and heat the oil on medium heat.
- When the oil is hot, scoop the dough into the hot oil and leave to fry till golden brown on both sides for about 5 minutes.
- When done, put the fried buns onto a paper towel to remove excess oil.
- Serve with chilled soft drink.
