Romania · Dessert · Medium
Papanași
Romanian fried cheese doughnuts with smântână and sour-cherry jam
Doughnuts of fresh cow's-milk cheese, fried golden and served hot, each topped with a small dough ball, thick smântână and sour-cherry jam. Pressing the cheese dry and keeping the dough soft gives a light, tender crumb instead of a dense one.
- Energy
- 825 kcalper serving
- Prep
- 25 min
- Cook
- 25 min
- Rest
- 10 min
- Protein
- 26 g
How was it?
Equipment
- Fine sieve or potato ricer
- Clean tea towel or cheesecloth
- Mixing bowl and wooden spoon
- Deep heavy pan or pot (at least 5 cm of oil)
- Deep-fry or instant-read thermometer
- Slotted spoon or spider
- Tray lined with paper towels
Before you start
- Take the eggs out of the fridge 30 minutes ahead.
- Zest the lemon finely, avoiding the white pith.
- Line a tray with a double layer of paper towels and set it next to the stove.
- Put the jam in a small bowl and loosen it with a spoon so it pours.
Method
-
Dry the cheese
500 g fresh cow's-milk cheesePress the cheese through the fine sieve into the bowl. If it is wet, first wrap it in the tea towel and squeeze out the whey.
Done when The cheese is fine and crumbly, like damp sand, and no whey drips out when you squeeze a handful.
Tip Wet cheese needs much more flour to hold together, and that is what makes papanași heavy.
-
Mix the base
500 g fresh cow's-milk cheese2 eggs50 g caster sugar1 unwaxed lemon1 tsp vanilla extract1 pinch fine saltAdd the eggs, sugar, lemon zest, vanilla and salt to the cheese. Beat with the wooden spoon for 1 minute.
Done when A smooth, thick paste with no lumps of cheese, and no grittiness of sugar when you rub a little between your fingers.
-
Add the flour
200 g plain flour½ tsp bicarbonate of sodaWhisk the bicarbonate of soda into the flour, then fold it into the cheese mixture just until no dry flour remains.
Done when A soft, slightly sticky dough that holds its shape in a mound on the spoon.
Tip Do not add more flour to make it easier to handle; flour your hands instead. Overmixing also toughens it.
-
Rest the dough
Cover the bowl and leave the dough to rest for 10 minutes at room temperature.
Done when The dough is a little firmer and less sticky when touched with a floured finger.
-
Heat the oil
1 l sunflower oilPour the oil into the deep pan to a depth of at least 5 cm and heat over medium heat to 170 °C.
Done when The thermometer reads 170 °C; a wooden chopstick dipped in the oil is surrounded by small, steady bubbles.
170 °C · 338 °F -
Shape the doughnuts
200 g plain flourWith floured hands, divide the dough into 8 pieces and pinch a quarter off each one. Flatten each large piece into a disc 2 cm thick and push a floured finger through the centre, widening the hole to about 2 cm. Roll the small pieces into balls.
Done when The rings have smooth edges with no cracks and the hole is clearly open.
Tip The hole closes as the dough puffs in the oil, so make it wider than looks necessary.
-
Fry the rings
Fry the rings two or three at a time for 3–4 minutes per side, keeping the oil between 165 and 175 °C over medium heat.
Done when They are deep golden brown on both sides and a skewer pushed into the thickest part comes out without wet dough.
Tip If they brown in under 2 minutes, the oil is too hot and the centres will stay raw; lower the heat.
170 °C · 338 °F -
Fry the balls
Fry the small balls for 2–3 minutes, turning them with the slotted spoon.
Done when They are evenly golden all over and float high in the oil.
170 °C · 338 °F -
Drain
Lift everything onto the paper towels and leave for 1 minute.
Done when The surface no longer glistens with oil, but the doughnuts are still too hot to hold comfortably.
-
Assemble
200 g smântână200 g sour-cherry jamPut a ring on each plate, spoon smântână into and over the hole, then add jam. Set a ball on top and finish with more smântână and jam.
Done when The cold smântână starts to slide down the warm sides and the jam runs into it in red streaks.
Common mistakes
The papanași are dense and heavy.
Fix The cheese was wet or too much flour went in. Squeeze the cheese dry and stop adding flour as soon as the dough holds its shape.
Golden outside, raw inside.
Fix The oil was too hot. Keep it at 165–175 °C and give each side the full 3–4 minutes.
They are greasy.
Fix The oil was too cold or the pan overcrowded. Fry only two or three at a time and let the oil come back to 170 °C between batches.
The hole closes during frying.
Fix Make the hole about 2 cm wide and keep the rings no thicker than 2 cm.
Serving
Serve immediately, two rings and two balls per person, with plenty of cold smântână and sour-cherry jam. They are a dessert in themselves and need nothing else.
Storage and reheating
Best eaten fresh. Leftover undressed doughnuts keep 1 day in the fridge, covered; reheat them on a tray in the oven at 180 °C for 6–8 minutes and dress just before serving.
Make ahead
Drain and sieve the cheese up to 1 day ahead and keep it covered in the fridge. Make the dough no more than 1 hour before frying, because the bicarbonate starts working as soon as it is mixed in.
Variations
With quark or ricotta
Use well-drained quark or ricotta. Both are wetter than brânză de vaci, so squeeze them in a cloth and allow up to 20 g more flour.
Baked
Shape as above, brush with oil and bake on a lined tray at 180 °C for 20–25 minutes, turning once. They are paler and less crisp, but use far less oil.
Boiled (papanași fierți)
Shape the dough into small dumplings, simmer them in salted water for 5–6 minutes until they float, then roll in breadcrumbs toasted in butter with sugar. Serve with smântână and jam.
With blueberry jam
Replace the sour-cherry jam with a tart blueberry or forest-fruit jam; keep it tart to balance the smântână.
