PINKASO (A GHANAIAN FRIED DUMPLING)

'Pinkaso' is a light crunchy, spiced, fried flour dumpling that's synonymous with the Hausa's from Ghana. It's enjoyed with Hausa Koko for breakfast and also as a savoury snack. 
 Onions and chillies are blended into a smooth paste and added to the flour to make the thick batter.

 
'Pinkaso' shares a similar taste to Pakoras and it's delicious. In this recipe, I've added finely chopped Onions for that extra crunch and sweetness; and the inclusion of the green parts of Spring Onions gives the Pinkaso a colourful look. 

The Spring Onions can be omitted and finely chopped green Chillies used instead.

Let's start cooking...

 

Ingredients

225g of self raising flour

185 ml of lukewarm water

7g of dry yeast

1 medium finely diced Onions

1 quartered large Onion 

2 finely diced Green chillies

Half a teaspoon of salt

500 ml of Sunflower oil for frying

200 ml of water for dipping in your fingers.

Method

In a bowl add the Salt, Flour and Yeast. Mix everything together till well combined.

Blend half the Chillies , the Water and quartered Onion into a smooth paste

Using a wooden spatula or clean hands, gently add the spiced warm water and mix till you have a sticky glossy thick paste. This should take about 8 - 10 minutes. 

Tip

Mixing the sticky dough till you have that glossy shine, activated the gluten in the flour. This ensures for a soft and airy Pinkaso . 

Add the finely chopped Onions and remaining Chillies and mix till well combined. 

Cover the bowl with a cling film and place it in a warm place to proof. This should take 45 minutes to an hour. Your mixture is ready when it's doubled up in size. 

Fill a wok or saucepan with the Sunflower oil and place on a medium heat till hot but not smoking hot. 

Test

It's imperative you fry the Pinkaso in hot oil , to prevent an oil filled Pinkaso. Test the oil is hot by dropping a tiny bit of the wet dough. If it sizzles, your oil is ready. 

Frying

Please take all necessary precautions when dealing with hot oil

Place a bowl of water next you, as its needed for shaping the Pinkaso into a ring format. 

Dip your fingers in the bowl of water and scoop a handful of the dough. Create a hole in the middle using your thumb. Carefully drop the mixture into the oil and repeat the process till the Wok is full. 

Tip

(Please don't be tempted to overfill the Wok/ Saucepan, as this will reduce the oils temperature, which in turn fills up the Pinkaso). 

Fry the Pinkaso for 3 minutes on each side and place on a blotted Kitchen paper to get rid of any excess oil. 

 

Serve immediately with Hausa Koko, Guacamole or Raita. 

Watch the full recipe below, on my YouTube channel, 'Ndudu by Fafa' and don't forget to subscribe. 

Hausa Koko Recipe

All photos and recipes are by the owner of this blog.