Pettole Pugliesi

Name: Pettole Pugliesi
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 45 min
Yield: 6 servings
Cuisine: Pugliese
Ingredients: 500 g tipo 0 flour or strong white bread flour; 15 g Fresh yeast; 400 ml lukewarm water; 10 g Fine sea salt; 1 l groundnut oil; 60 ml vincotto (cooked grape must)

Pettole are light, crisp fried dough balls made from a very wet yeast batter, traditionally served steaming hot during the Apulian festive season.

🇮🇹Italy· Apulia

Prep: 20 min
Cook: 25 min
Total: 45 min
Servings: 6
Difficulty: Easy
Calories: 340 kcal

Ingredients

0 of 6 gathered

Servings

500 g tipo 0 flour or strong white bread flour — sifted
15 g Fresh yeast — crumbled
400 ml lukewarm water — around 35 degrees C
10 g Fine sea salt — for the dough
1 l groundnut oil — for deep-frying
60 ml vincotto (cooked grape must) — optional sweet topping

Equipment

•Large mixing bowl
•Deep frying pot
•Slotted spoon
•Cooking thermometer
•Kitchen paper

Nutrition

Per serving, approximate

Calories: 340 kcal
fat: 6 g
carbs: 64 g
fibre: 3 g
protein: 8 g
calories: 340 kcal

Instructions

1
Dissolve the crumbled yeast in 100 ml of lukewarm water in a small cup.
2
Place the flour and fine sea salt into a large mixing bowl.
3
Pour in the dissolved yeast and the remaining lukewarm water.
4
Beat the batter vigorously with your hand for five minutes until glossy, elastic, and very sticky.
5
Cover the bowl with a clean tea towel and rest in a warm spot for two hours until bubbly.
6
Heat the groundnut oil in a deep heavy pot to 175 degrees C.
7
Wet your hands or two tablespoons with cold water to prevent sticking.
8
Scoop a walnut-sized ball of wet dough and drop it carefully into the hot oil.
9
Fry in small batches, turning gently for three to four minutes until puffed and pale gold.
10
Lift out with a slotted spoon and drain briefly on kitchen paper.
11
Sprinkle with sea salt immediately for savoury pettole, or drizzle with warm vincotto for sweet.

Chef's tips

The dough must be far wetter than bread dough, resembling a thick, elastic batter rather than a kneadable mass. Keep a small bowl of cold water nearby to dip your spoons between drops so the wet batter slides off cleanly. Do not overheat the oil or the outsides will brown before the centres cook through.

Ingredient substitutions

fresh yeast → 5 g active dried yeast, bloomed in the warm water with a pinch of sugar
vincotto → warm runny honey or granulated sugar mixed with a pinch of ground cinnamon

Storage

Pettole are best eaten fresh within thirty minutes of frying, but leftover plain ones can be stored in an airtight container for up to one day.

Reheating

Reheat savoury pettole in an oven preheated to 180 degrees C for five minutes to restore crispness; avoid using a microwave.

Common mistakes to avoid

•Making the dough too stiff, which results in heavy and dense fried balls rather than light, hollow puffs.
•Frying in oil that is below 170 degrees C, which causes the dough to absorb excess grease and become heavy.
•Overcrowding the frying pot, which drops the oil temperature and leads to soggy, pale pettole.

Serving suggestions

Serve immediately while piping hot as an aperitivo snack with olives.Drizzle with warm vincotto or honey as a traditional festive sweet treat.Pair with a glass of crisp Apulian white wine such as Locorotondo.