Oh. My. Word. I think I scared my husband when I first had a bite of these in my kitchen. I screeched so loud, he must have thought I’d chopped a bit of my finger off (again!) Fortunately for him, it was a shriek of sheer exhilaration and delight! I’m been obsessed with all things Colombian since I met my husband back in college in 2006. He’s half Colombian and half Puerto Rican, but his family here in the states is mostly from the Colombian side, so naturally, that’s the culture he has more close ties to. It’s also the food he’s most familiar with. I’d never tried Colombian food before I met him, other than the empanadas that many are familiar with. When I first tried Colombian buñuelos, it was truly a religious experience. There’s really no way to describe them, they’re so multi-dimensional. Crunchy on the outside, with a soft, pillowy angel food cake consistency, and the tiniest hint of sweetness. But they’re made of cheese! These are really one of those things you just HAVE to try at some point in your life. Put that on your bucket list. You won’t regret it. P.S. These are gluten free, if you’re into that sort of thing.
Ingredients
2 cups (8 oz) finely grated Colombian quesito or Mexican queso fresco
1/3 cup cassava (yuca) flour
1/4 cup cornstarch
2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 large egg
2 tablespoons milk
Vegetable oil for frying
Directions
First thing’s first! There are a few ingredients you may have trouble finding, depending on where you live. The first is cassava flour. This stuff has more aliases than most foods I know. It can be called cassava flour, cassava starch, yucca flour, yucca starch, manioc starch, or even tapioca starch. Any of those are what you’re looking for.
The second is Colombian quesito. It’s Colombia’s version of queso fresco, and is usually available in Latin supermarkets, depending on the population demographics in the area. If you can’t find it, you can try making it, using this awesome recipe from one of my favorite blogs, or you can substitute with queso fresco.
Now that that’s out of the way, this is a SUPER important technique note! You need a programmable deep fryer or a heavy-bottomed pot equipped with a candy thermometer. Buñuelos have a reputation of being one of those really finicky bakery items that only the most skilled bakers can make. That’s only because they require a little extra TLC than most fried items. If the oil is too hot, the outside will burn too quickly, and the inside will stay raw. Also, the buñuelos will burst open, oozing their contents in the oil. Not a good combo. You need to fry these at 300 degrees Fahrenheit for best results. This will allow them to cook thoroughly and will give them a beautiful toasty color.
Ok, now to make buñuelos!
I bought a huge 24oz block of cheese, so I cut off a third of it and grated it with a microplane.
Place the grated cheese (2 cups) into a bowl.
Add in the cornstarch, cassava flour, sugar, salt and baking powder.
Whisk the dry ingredients together to combine.
Create a well in the center of the dry ingredients and crack in 1 large egg.
Using your hands, mix in the egg until it’s thoroughly combined. The mixture will be lumpy.
Add in the milk, 1 tablespoon at a time, and mix it in, until you get a smooth dough. You may only need 1 tablespoon of milk, depending on the moisture content of the cheese and the size of the egg you use. So start with 1, and if the dough doesn’t come together smoothly, add the other.
Form the dough into 1 tablespoon sized balls. You should be able to make about 12 buñuelos with this recipe.
Using a slotted spoon or spider, gently place each buñuelo into the heated oil (300 degrees F). They will float to the surface within 30 seconds, and then you’ll notice something very peculiar, they start rotating themselves! It’s quite magical. I stare at them like a kid staring at a load of clothes getting washed in a front loading washing machine. Don’t judge me, I’m easily entertained!
After a while, they’ll stop rotating, so gently coax them to flip over once in a while, to promote even cooking.
These will take about 15-20 minutes to cook.
Once they’re a deep golden brown, they’re ready to drain.
Place them on a plate lined with paper towels and allow them to cool for 10 minutes before diving in! They’re super, molten hot lava hot right now. So be patient.
If the stars are lined in your favor, your first bite into your homemade buñuelo should look something like this. This is what the gates of heaven look like, I think. Enjoy, amigos!
Colombian Bunuelos
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Serves 12
Prep time 15 minutes
Cook time 20 minutes
Total time 35 minutes
Dietary Gluten Free
Meal type Appetizer, Snack
Region South American
Ingredients
- 2 cups Colombian quesito or Mexican queso fresco (finely grated)
- 1/3 cup cassava flour
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 large egg
- 1-2 tablespoon milk
- vegetable oil (for frying)
Directions
1. Using a microplane, grated the cheese and place into a bowl.
2. Add in the cornstarch, cassava flour, sugar, salt and baking powder. Stir to combine
3. Work the egg into the dry ingredients with your hands.
4. Add in the milk, 1 tablespoon at a time, and mix it in, until you get a smooth dough. You may only need 1 tablespoon of milk, depending on the moisture content of the cheese and the size of the egg you use. So start with 1, and if the dough doesn’t come together smoothly, add the other.
5. Form the dough into 1 tablespoon sized balls. You should be able to make about 12 buñuelos with this recipe.
6. Using a slotted spoon or spider, gently place each buñuelo into the heated oil (300 degrees F). They will float to the surface within 30 seconds, and then you’ll notice something very peculiar, they start rotating themselves!
7. After a while, they’ll stop rotating, so gently coax them to flip over once in a while, to promote even cooking. These will take about 15-20 minutes to cook.
8. Once they’re a deep golden brown, they’re ready to drain. Place them on a plate lined with paper towels and allow them to cool for 10 minutes before diving in! They’re super, molten hot lava hot right now. So be patient.
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