The Fried Dough Ho

I have to admit that I know nothing about Malaysian food and going to a restaurant for only one aspect of a particular ethnic cuisine, is probably not the best representational situation for learning. But I was on a whirlwind tour of discovering and experimenting with multiple fried dough offerings. And as far as I have able to determine thus far, most historical and ethnic cuisines have some form of fried dough within their pantheon of culinary offerings. And thanks to my incredibly knowledgeable and resourceful friend, we stopped at Belacan Grill on the off-hand chance that this unknown cuisine which could include Malay, Indian, Eurasian, Chinese and Nyonya foods.

I was anticipating heavenly aromatic dishes — obviously well-spiced — and by and large, I was not disappointed.  We asked specifically which items were fried as we didn’t want to fill up on unnecessary courses and were directed towards two offerings from their appetizer menu; Roti Canai, a flat bread, and Curry Puffs. Technically, the flat bread was grilled and not deep-fried, but therein lies my slippery slope for it was obviously pan-fried and in so much butter as to be riding that fine line of griddled versus fried. Very flaky and rich from the butter, the warm roti canai was served with a side of thin, chicken broth-based spicy sauce – more like a red curry soup. The texture was soft and fluffy, happily consumed on its own although enhanced with the spicy condiment.

Three-inch long curry puffs were shaped in the half-round, empanada-like moon shapes we had been consuming all evening long. The pastry for the casing was so flaky as to begin to split apart under the influence of the hot frying oil. Not too thick to overwhelm the flavor of the stuffing which was considerably more spicy than the flat bread sauce. Here, savory potatoes dominated the contents but with bits of chicken meat coupled with redolent heat of a spice that kept going. This was just a little beyond my normal spice threshold, but I quickly adapted. Our biggest complaint was the fact that the oil in which these puffs were fried was obviously a bit on the old, burnt side of acceptable. The puffs themselves were not burned, but a detectable rankness prevailed. I have no doubt that someone just going to the restaurant for a single meal and ordering multiple other dishes would probably not notice, but considering this was the fifth different experience that evening, we were becoming that much more aware of oil qualities in the preparation of these dishes. It is a minor complaint, but a distraction nonetheless.

2701 190th St., Ste 100
Redondo Beach, CA 90278
(310) 370-1831

The Los Angeles adventure of discovering fried dough continued after sampling both a baked Argentine version and a Colombian empanada with a fried corn exterior. We arrived at Merlos and like our previous visits to other small, ethnic restaurants in the neighborhood, was surprised at the lack of customers considering it was a Friday night. During our brief visit, we did witness several customers come in a pick-up large to-go orders so I assume — and hope — the restaurant thrives on its local community for take-out.

Along with a savory, beef-stuffed empanada, we spied on the menu an empanada con leche a seemingly sweet version which we found worthy of the experiment. While the Colombian empanada was encased in the crispy, corn-based masa here the offering from El Salvador is a wheat-based pocket of fried goodness with the hearty filling meatier and more robust. Along with beef, we could detect carrots, potatoes, onions and was advised that additional seasonings include bell pepper and achiote. The exterior crust was delightfully crispy with no hint of greasiness. Served alongside was a light slaw intensely reminiscent of Japanese tsukemono; finely chopped cabbage simply dressed with slightly sweetened white vinegar. It is hard to not compare the Colombian empanada with the Salvadorean one. While the Colombian empanada’s filling was finely puréed and more subtle in its seasonings, the empanada from El Salvador had more coarsely chopped filling ingredients which made the flavors more defined and interesting.

The sweet empanada con leche — which technically could be defined as a stuffed bread or pastry — proved to be a bit of a misnomer as a fried dough, although we didn’t know it until it arrived. Not an actual dough, this was a hollowed-out plantain which had been filled with a vanilla pudding and fried. The moisture from the banana made this fried offering not as crunchy as one might like, but both my friend and I were pleasantly surprised at the simplicity of the ingredients being not too overtly sweet and quite engaging. It would have been very easy to make this teeth-achingly sweet but the simple vanilla pudding did not overpower the sweetness of the banana. Nor did the richness of the banana overwhelm the sugars in the pudding. The combination reminded me of a classic banana cream pie without the crust or meringue.

2401 Marine Ave
Gardena, CA 90247
(310) 516-7800

Immediately after tasting the thick, heavy, baked Argentine emapana, my friend took me the real fried version at a local Colombian restaurant, Mi Ama. Like El Gaucho only a few blocks away, Mi Ama was also located in a little strip mall, tucked back in a corner in between a taqueria and a hair salon. Easy to miss, if you don’t know exactly where it is.

Brightly decorated and engaging, but sadly empty for a Friday evening, we had the run of the place as well as the complete attention of the waitress, Loli, who was more than gracious in helping me learn about Colombian empanadas. We ordered some juices; guanabana with milk and maracuyá – passion fruit – which were a bit more filling than I wanted but incredibly tasty. The white board menu was calling to me with too many additional items, both Comida Colombian and Comida Peruvian, but we were on a mission and that mission was fried dough.

Made with an imported corn masa, these empanadas were approximately 2 1/2 inches long and stuffed with a combination of mashed potato, beef, and onion, mashed into a purée. Made with a cornmeal crust and seasoned with cumin and annatto, the resulting fried empanada proved to be rich and flavorful although I found the fine grind of the interior to mute the meat flavors, instead of emphasize them.

While the Argentine empanadas are served with a finely-cut vinegary chimichurri sauce of vinegar, parsley and red pepper, the Colombian accompaniment was a chunkier salsa offering that included scallions and more cilantro than I care for. Here sliced limes were also provided to give the acidic component to cut through the grease of the frying, but I didn’t necessarily find it necessary. Loli was very sweet to bring out a container of the filling so we could see how it was prepared as well as the Bijol powder they use for the seasoning and for the anchiote component.

This was sort of a bait-and-switch. Coming down to Los Angeles, I asked the friend with whom I was staying to come up with some fried dough offerings for dinner. We had a grand night of it (six stops in all!), but one of the immediate suggestions which came to mind were empanadas. And fortunately, the South Bay has a wide variety of Central and South American offerings against which we were going to compare.

To start the evening, my friend brought me to El Gaucho Meat Market, a perfectly delightful Argentine market in Redondo Beach. It really is an exceptionally well-stocked store and it seems, a well-stocked meat market. That was rather impressive and if you walk all the way to the back of the crowded space, it opens up to display a fairly large seating area and a small food service counter. Shame on me for not being cognizant of what other foods were being offered, because I knew we were here for empanadas.

For $1.65 each, we tried two of their three flavors; spinach and beef (chicken is also available). The bait-and-switch is that Argentine empanadas are baked and not fried. I am slightly upset with myself for wasting the calories on it, but I can appreciate the comparison check next to what was to come that evening; Colombian and Salvadorean empanadas which were fried.

When I lived in SoCal, I really loved Empanadas Place but those that are offered here at El Gaucho are not nearly as good, although for the price they were not that bad. Too wishy-washy? Well, I used to live in Redondo Beach and a decade ago, Empanadas Place had a branch there on Artesia Boulevard, so it was close by, inexpensive, and incredibly tasty. And fried. El Gaucho’s were gummy and heavy. The spinach filling was decent enough and tasted so much like spanikopita I wondered if they included cheese. The beef was spiced nicely but I found the binding ingredient to be a tad pasty. This all makes it sound like I wasn’t enjoying myself which is not the case. Again, for the price they were perfectly acceptable. But unfortunately, it mostly made me long for those which I knew to be better.

2715 Manhattan Beach Blvd
Redondo Beach, CA 90278
(310) 297-2617

Bugia is an Italian cookie, also known as Liar’s Cookies.Why? Because when your Italian grandmother made a batch and hid them away in a cookie jar, if you stole one she would know because the ample powdered sugar which coated the cookies would leave a tell-tail trail. Grandma would know when the kids were lying about stealing cookies.

Classically, it is a pasta dough that has the addition of orange juice added to the dough. That is what makes Bugia different than Zeppole – that addition of orange.  Rolled and deep fried, the subsequent thin, light cookie is dusted with powdered sugar. A company known as Dolce Italia Cookies in North Beach are producing these for sale. For a mass-produced, deep-fried cookie, they aren’t that bad. Not exceptional, but unless you are at the store on Folsom when they are being packaged and sold and one knows what they taste like fresh, you are bound to experience a slightly stale, wimpy offering. Also, there is not enough orange flavor in Dolce’s version to entice me. But they certainly are popular and I can understand why they sell out early every day.

Instead, I offer Michael Chiarello’s recipe for a much more satisfying and authentic Bugia.

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting work surface
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled briefly
• 1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
• 1 1/2 tablespoons brandy
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 3/4 teaspoon ground anise seeds
• 4 to 6 cups peanut or vegetable oil, for deep-frying
• About 2 cups powdered sugar

Directions