African Drop Doughnuts are pillow-soft on the inside, super crunchy on the outside, insanely savoury, and a unique treat with an interesting history. They are ready in just 30 minutes, with no resting time required.
Originating in Africa, these doughnuts have been enjoyed by generations of people around the world. They are made from a simple batter mixture fried in oil and served plain or with various toppings such as sugar or cinnamon.
African Drop Doughnuts are popular for their light, fluffy texture and sweet flavour. Like Nigerian buns and carrot buns, they are ready in just 30 minutes. This Cameroonian Gateau is another you will love. You'll often see these served with African scotch eggs at parties.
Growing up, my mom always made dropped donuts at home with chin chin, and we started eating them as soon as they came out of the pot because the flavour was heavenly. These are so easy to make, require less time, and you don't need to let it proof. This particular Drop Doughnuts recipe has many positive feedbacks and reviews on YouTube and trust me when I say it's a NO FAIL RECIPE.
In the US, it's mostly spelled as Donuts or Doughnuts meanwhile in Africa, it's called Doughnuts. To be specific, "drop doughnut" or "African drop doughnuts". You will mostly find this in parties, bakeries, and sometimes roadside vendors. African scotch eggs are another popular roadside snack.
You might also enjoy the perfectly crunchy easy puff puff, or try the fun-to-make twisted doughnuts for a creative take on classic doughnuts. For a lighter treat, the banana crepes make for a great dessert or breakfast option.
Drop Doughnuts Ingredients
- All purpose flour
- Baking powder
- Sugar
- Eggs
- Evaporated milk or any liquid milk
- Salt
- Nutmeg
- Melted butter
- Batter Should be Wet and sticky. Watch this video to show you 4 ways how to scoop doughnuts for perfect round shapes.
- Oil should be hot enough if not, balls will soak up oil and you will not love that.
- Test the oil by dropping a tiny batter inside, if it browns immediately, the oil is too hot. If it takes time to have a brown color, oil is ideal for frying. If it soaks up oil immediately and takes a long time time to brown, the oil isn't hot enough.
African Drop Doughnuts
Ingredients
- 3 cups All-purpose flour
- ½ cup Butter or margarine, melted
- 2 tsp. Baking powder
- 4 large Eggs at room temperature
- ½ cup Sugar
- 1 cup Evaporated milk or any Liquid milk
- ½ tsp. Nutmeg lemon zest or vanilla extract
- 1 tsp. Salt
- Oil for deep frying
Instructions
- In a bowl, add the dry ingredients, flour, baking powder, salt, and nutmeg and mix thoroughly.
- Add butter, sugar, milk and eggs in another bowl, and whisk until everything is well incorporated.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the flour mixture and fold gently using a wooden spatula or hand until pasty texture is formed.
- Pour oil into a large pot over medium heat. When oil is hot, drop a little batter, and if it takes a little time to turn dark brown, it means your oil is ready for fry.
- Drop golf-ball size portions of the batter in the oil and fry for a few minutes until they turn golden brown, ensure to stir while frying, so they are thoroughly cooked. I usually use a spoon to cut out the squeeze batter from my palms.
- When the doughnuts are ready, remove them from the oil and place them on a plate lined with absorbent paper. Then serve and enjoy!
Video
Notes
- If your batter is too hard, add like 3 tablespoon water or milk.
- Oil should be 3 inches deep inside pot, so it cooks evenly and to avoid soaking up oil.
- Reduce or turn off heat each time you are frying new batch and turn back on when new batch comes in so it cooks evenly.
Jubemi
I'd like to make this. But mine is a small household. Can the measurements be split in half?
Yes you can
Bilikis
This recipe looks so delicious
Bilikis
This recipe is the best.
Maman des garcons
These are the BEST sis, it's the only recipe I only do at home for my family, all my boys are hooked on this.
From another Cameroonian sis, mum of three boys in the UK
Merciiii beaucoup
I love that. Thanks so much for the feedback sis. I really appreciate it.