The Fried Dough Ho

The Seattle people are pretty fortunate. Not only do they have Top Pot Doughnuts, but another hand-crafted gourmet offering, Mighty-O Donuts. First off, the biggest difference is that while Top Pot is “hand-forged” and all that, they are a chain so their delicious is available all around the city. Mighty-O, on the other hand, is a singularity in this large metropolis and required a bit of a trek (thank goodness for GPS systems!) to get to during my brief visit. I was pretty excited when I arrived. It was relatively early and mid-week so the selection was ample and varied, although mostly of the cake variety.

I liked that the conveyor belt fryer is out for the public to see and also, they have a pretty fun website where the doughnuts twirl around. What I didn’t realize until I started penning this review is that they only use “organic ingredients. [Their] donuts [sic] contain no chemical preservatives, no hydrogenated oils, no colorings or artificial flavors, and no animal derived ingredients.” Does that make them vegan? I’m not exactly sure, to be truthful.

As usual, I ordered more than I could possibly eat, but I did get a good taste of each one. The Lots O Chocolate stole my heart early on; thick and opulent and overtly chocolate with a good quality, moist crumb. This was not a wimpy doughnut by any means. Made with the same base doughnut and a change of frosting was the Chocolate Raspberry and Don King (a chocolate doughnut topped with coconut). I really enjoyed the fresh, bright raspberry flavor which was demonstrated in the frosting that complemented the rich chocolate cake. The Don King — hilariously named — was equally well-prepared, fresh, and moist.

Of the more exotic flavors, I tried a Lemon Poppyseed and French Toast as well as a raised Cinnamon Sugar Twist. Oddly, that twist does not appear on the website but I imagine it is not much different than their Classic Raised Doughnut. While the raised was good, it was not quite as transcendent as their cake doughnuts which I found truly exceptional. The Lemon Poppyseed acquired a nice balance between a bright citrus note and the dusky poppy seeds. The French Toast is what confuses me. What makes French Toast flavorful is the fact that it is an egg batter on bread and I’m not sure how the folks at Mighty-O create a rich eggy flavor without the use an egg, but it was rich and did taste like French Toast!

My biggest regret during my Seattle visit was not being able to conduct a side-by-side taste test between Mighty-O and Top Pot. It would have been a tough call to pick between the two and I am quite thrilled to have experienced both within a few days of one another.

My last doughnut stop in Austin was truly a special one. It was recommended to us by the lady selling us macarons at La Boite and is called Mrs. Johnson’s Bakery. What makes it special is a variety of things, mostly that fresh, warm doughnuts are available after 9:00 p.m. in the evening. And so we waited until after the sun had set for my epic journey towards Fried Dough Ho’dom.

Driving through the streets of Austin, there was a PBS radio station on the car radio playing tunes of the 1950s and I felt as though I were in the George Lucas movie, American Graffiti; this was as much about the journey as the destination. When we arrived, I could already smell the aroma of hot sugar in the air and I spied the sign which indicated that Mrs. Johnson’s had been around since 1948 and the building helped confirm that sense of nostalgia. In the front window was a long machine which rolled out the dough and cut the slab into its octagonal shapes. I watched the worker deftly pulling out the holes from the freshly-hewn rounds. All this joy and wonderment and I was not even inside yet.

What I was faced with surprised me; the full production of doughnut manufacturing going at full steam. It was so oddly gratifying and heartfelt. I was giddy and my enthusiasm was contagious. Enraptured at the scene, I watched closely as one worker organized the holes while another was laying out trays of freshly-cut rounds to be risen. And then another grabbed a giant bowl of dough and it dawned on me that my camera had the video record function. So I am pleased to share my first personal recording of doughnut preparation on Fried Dough Ho:

They knew I was a die-hard enthusiast. Ordering a small selection to take home and taste, the guy behind the counter put an extra doughnut in my box as well as one in my hand before I left. A freshly fried and glazed raised octagon of deliciousness, the warm doughnut in my hand was light and tender. Oh — and did I tell you it was WARM? Other than full-on restaurant offerings, I can’t think of when I have ever had a warm doughnut. I know that was the big selling point for Krispy Kreme for all those years, but in California, I never tried one fresh, only old and cold and mediocre.

What came home to try besides the warm glazed raised was a jelly-filled, chocolate cake, plain cake, and apple fritter. Someone else recommended the apple fritter and sadly, it just did not stand up to my benchmark fritter, Randy’s doughnuts in Los Angeles. Here the apples were indeed canned and fake and it was over spiced with too much cinnamon. The two cake doughnuts however, were exceptional. With a tight, moist crumb, the chocolate was slightly oily but not in a way that I found derogatory whatsoever. Instead, it made it richer and headier. The same dough used in the raised glazed was also that in the jelly doughnut and again, I was perfectly thrilled with this smaller-than-usual sized doughnut. Intensely light and fluffy, the raspberry filling was undoubtedly canned and mass-produced, but not overly sweet and perfectly acceptable.

I have had many mass-produced doughnuts, but these were a cut above. Fresh and warm aside, there was an inherent quality in the knowledge of the fact that these doughnuts were hand-made and not entirely machine-manufactured. And that hand-made quality is discernible, providing a level of excellence and satisfaction. There is much to be said for the vintage atmosphere of the building, the equipment, and the surroundings. Perhaps it was the music I was listening to or hearkening back to an era of simplified goodness, but Mrs Johnson’s certainly helps give the consumer that passionate level of contentment with its doughnuts.

While in a completely different league than the doughnut offerings at Gourdoughs, Ken’s Donuts lies in the heart of the University district of Austin and runs is your more traditional doughnut shop. When asking around for fried dough suggestions in Austin, many recommended Ken’s for a variety of reasons; this is your basic, good and honest doughnut shop. Open 24 hours, here at Ken’s you find the classic rounds of glazed and raised, cake and sprinkled. And they also have samosas.

Walking up to Ken’s, I was immediately thrilled when I spied a comforting figure as part of their signage — a Ganesha head painted as part of the masthead, with the divine elephant’s trunk joyously clutching a sprinkled doughnut. I took this as a good omen as the Hindu elephant god is known as the Remover of Obstacles and Bestower of Boons. Walking inside the shop, there is the immediate aroma of hot oil, warm sugar, and freshly made dough. The man behind the counter — Ken? — was amenable and pleasant and in my slightly befuddled state of what to try, immediately suggested the Sour Cream Cake as a consistent favorite.

But wait – there were also samosas. In San Francisco, I often bemoan the fact that Donut Shops should not mix their sweet offerings with seemingly disparate savory ones. But this was not a fast-food establishment, selling mediocre Chinese food alongside sweet doughnuts. Here, there was a single tray of precision samosas and it was one of the reasons that Ken’s was so well known. Still mostly full from the Gourdoughs experience the night before, I ordered light; a single samosas, a chocolate doughnut hole, and which ever doughnut was the most popular as recommended by the guy behind the counter, the Sour Cream Cake.

I must admit that the samosa shocked me in its simplicity and goodness. Filled with potatoes and peas, this was one of the best prepared samosas I had experienced. Thin, flaky dough was folded over the spicy filling giving layer upon layer of encasement to the center. I have had so many samosas that were made with a thicker, heavier dough which when fried bubbles and becomes chewy. Here, it is though they are use brik dough or a won-ton wrapper to create multiple thin layers to encase the spicy interior. My hostess, Jane, said they reminded her of the best Cornish pasties and I got that immediately — wholesome and rich without being greasy or chewy, these crisp and tender triangles were a steal at $1.00 each.

Very much to my surprise, the Sour Cream Cake doughnut was equally up the challenge. When it comes to these corner doughnut stores, I have become blasé in my expectations that a decent doughnut is the same almost everywhere and that a poorly-prepared doughnut is a travesty. While this was quite a decent doughnut, it was a bit more than that; very fresh and with a tight crumb, the richness of the sour cream balanced well the perfect amount of glaze which provided that correct amount of “tooth” to the piece. It is that discernible amount of crunch which the glazing has to provide countered against the moist and tender cake. Too much glaze and one is left with shards of sugar, falling off the doughnut. A dry cake and all one tastes is glaze. Here, it was all brought together in a flawless combination. All-in-all, an extremely satisfying fried dough experience.

I was in Vancouver just before the Winter Olympics. I was very fortunate to have gorgeous walking weather and almost an entire day was spent exploring Granville Island, a must-visit destination spot for visitors. I walked for hours, exploring its art studios, boutique shops, waterfront restaurants, and a pretty fabulous fresh food market. And among all the fabulous gourmet goodies, there loomed above me a bright yellow sign which brought a huge smile to me face; Lee’s Donuts.

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The sub-title of this blog is “doughnuts and more” and while I have briefly bantered about beignets, I have not yet ventured into the myriad of other ethnic fried dough offerings until now. And that my first savory offering is one of my favorite Japanese tastes, is not surprising that it is, in fact, a fried dough.

Takoyaki (たこ焼き or 蛸焼) means “pan-fried octopus” and while occasionally baked, they are most assuredly usually fried. It was a grand adventure with two darling friends to one of the only two restaurants in San Francisco that offer takoyaki, Tampopo — a restaurant more known for its affordable and bountiful bowls of noodles.

This coming weekend is the Cherry Blossom Festival in San Francisco and there will be long lines of people waiting for this classic street food which originated in Osaka. Perhaps I will be able to sneak out of my booth to snap a picture, as it is easily the one food booth that consistently has the longest line.

About the size of a golf ball, takoyaki are made from a simple egg-based batter with flour where the liquid component is dashi a clear broth traditionally made from sea kelp. Dashi is the broth which forms the base for miso soup. The combination of the three ingredients produces a smooth, luxurious batter into which is added chopped boiled baby octopus and sometimes diced ginger, shrimp, and a little green onion.

Once mixed together, the dough is poured into a special cast-iron pan which is akin to the Dutch æbleskive pan with half-round indentations. The chef deftly spins the frying batter into the golden orbs which are then served with very distinctive toppings; mayonnaise, okonomiyaki sauce*, shaved bonito flakes, and a very fine sprinkling of aonori. The okonomiyaki sauce is thick, dark and rich and is part soy, ketchup, Worcestershire, and a few other tasty ingredients. Aonori, or green laver, is yet another type of seaweed which is pungent and a bit tangy.

If you have the preconceived notion of most fried doughs having a firm or crunchy exterior to them, here it is not the case; takoyaki are tender and soft. The interior can often still be a bit gooey but finding that special tendril or rich octopus bite inside is the real treat. While I know of Japanese school children being given takoyaki in their bento lunch boxes, they are best eaten warm. This way you can see the paper-thin bonito flakes dancing back and forth due to the heat from the seafood balls. A treat, if you can find them — and worth seeking out.

*Okonomiyaki is a type of savory pancake — another favorite of mine — a grilled batter stuffed with ingredients like shrimp, pork, cabbage, and also topped with the same ingredients that go on takoyaki.

1740 Buchanan St
(between Post St & Sutter St)
San Francisco, CA 94115
Neighborhoods: Pacific Heights, Lower Pac Heights, Japantown
(415) 346-7132