Persian Zoolbia Fried Pastry
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup pastry flour
- 1/2 cup wheat starch or corn starch (coarse kind)
- 1/2 cup lukewarm water
- 4 tablespoons full-fat yogurt (or 3 tablespoons if low-fat)
- 1 teaspoon solid oil or butter
- 1 tablespoon rosewater
- 1 teaspoon concentrated saffron
- 1 teaspoon yeast
- 1 teaspoon sugar
Preparation
Dissolve sugar in lukewarm water and stir until dissolved, then sprinkle yeast on top and gently stir once or twice, cover, and wait 10 minutes for the yeast to activate and foam.
In a bowl, mix starch and yogurt until smooth and if it is too thick, add a little more yogurt.
After the yeast has activated, add oil and flour and mix until smooth, then add rosewater and concentrated saffron.
If the mixture is too runny, add a little flour; if too thick, add a little rosewater or yogurt.
Cover the container and refrigerate for 8 hours to rest.
After resting, stir the mixture to make it uniform and transfer to a piping container.
In a small pan, pour oil to a depth of about two finger joints and heat until very hot.
Fry the zoolbia in the hot oil, piping the mixture from the outside towards the center.
Once one side is fried, flip to fry the other side.
Immediately after frying, dip into warm syrup for one minute.
Remove from syrup and place on a strainer to drain excess syrup.
Tips
You can fry the zoolbia after one hour of resting, but the 8-hour rest makes it crispier and better quality, so follow the rest time.
If the oil is not hot, the zoolbia will not puff up and become hollow.
Ensure the syrup is warm, not hot, as very hot syrup will make the zoolbia soft.
