The traditional large Provençal doughnut from L'Estaque: a soft yeast dough scented with orange blossom, fried into thick logs, and generously rolled in sugar.
Ingredients
- 250 g T55 all-purpose flour
- 10 g fresh baker's yeast
- 150 ml water
- 50 ml orange blossom water
- 25 g granulated sugar
- 30 ml grapeseed oil
- 1 pinch fine salt
- 1 l frying oil
- 50 g coarse sugar
Method
- Carefully dissolve the fresh yeast in a small amount of slightly warmed water. The water should be barely warm to the touch so as not to weaken the yeast.
- Pour the flour into a large bowl. Add the granulated sugar and salt to one side, then the dissolved yeast to the opposite side so it does not directly touch the salt.
- Gradually add the remaining water, orange blossom water, and grapeseed oil. Mix vigorously with a wooden spoon, then by hand, until you have a very soft, sticky, and perfectly smooth dough. Do not add flour to firm it up.
- Beat and lift the dough for several minutes to incorporate air. It should become elastic and form long strands when lifted.
- Cover the bowl tightly with a damp cloth or lid. Let rise in a warm place for about two hours, until the dough is very puffed, aerated, and at least doubled in volume.
- Heat the oil bath in a deep pot or deep fryer. It should reach about one hundred and seventy degrees: a small piece of dough should rise quickly, sizzling without browning immediately.
- Gently transfer the dough to a sturdy piping bag fitted with a very wide tip. Do not punch it down or rework it, to preserve the bubbles formed during fermentation.
- Pipe directly over the oil bath, forming large, long, thick logs. Cut the dough at the opening with lightly oiled scissors. Fry only a few pieces at a time to prevent the oil temperature from dropping.
- Let the chichis puff up and brown slowly, turning them regularly with a slotted spoon. They should be evenly golden, crispy on the outside, and fully cooked through to the center, without turning brown.
- Carefully drain the chichis, then place them briefly on paper towels. Immediately roll them, while still very hot, in the coarse sugar.
- Serve immediately, whole or shared, while the crust is crispy and the crumb remains warm, thick, soft, and highly aerated.
Nutrition
Per serving
- Energy
- 537.6 kcal
- Protein
- 6.73 g
- Carbohydrate
- 64.04 g
- Fat
- 28.13 g
- Fibre
- 1.94 g
- Calcium
- 15.32 mg
- Iron
- 0.72 mg
- Magnesium
- 17.88 mg
