Learn how to make Oliebollen, Dutch Fried dough, typically eaten at New Year’s Eve. We make three different varieties, oliebollen without any filling,ones filled with raisins, and ones filled with apple and cinnamon. These deep-fried dough balls have a thin crispy outer layer, and are fluffy and pillowy inside! Dress them with a generous dusting of powdered sugar, and you’re ready to go!!
Every New Year’s Eve, we would have these delicious fried dough balls dusted with powdered sugar, while we were watching TV, specifically the “oudejaarsconference.”
Oliebollen are very popular in The Netherlands, and Dutchies take them very seriously. Every year, professional publications pick the best oliebollen vendors. Every family has its own “secret” version of these recipes. Today, I’ll show you my version made with ingredients readily available in the US.
Oliebollen: Dutch New Year's Eve Treat: Fried Dough
Learn how to make Oliebollen, Dutch Fried dough, typically eaten at New Year’s Eve. We make three different varieties, oliebollen without any filling, ones filled with raisins, and ones filled with apple and cinnamon. These deep-fried dough balls have a thin crispy outer layer, and are fluffy and pillowy inside! Dress them with a generous dusting of powdered sugar, and you’re ready to go!!
Soak your raisins in water for at least an hour. Then, pat them dry, and let them air dry for at least another hour.
Prepare the milk & yeast
Make sure your milk is no warmer than 43ºC (110F).
Add the brown sugar to the milk, and mix to combine.
Add the yeast to the milk, and stir it through.
Let the milk rest until bubbles appear on the surface of the milk. You're good to go when you see some bubbles appear every second or so.
Making the batter
Put the flour in a mixing bowl, and create a well in the middle.
Sprinkle the salt on the outer edge of the flour.
Add the egg yolks and butter to the well.
Pour the milk, sugar, and yeast mixture into the well.
With a wooden spoon, mix everything together until there are no more lumps.
Adding the filling
Note
In the recipe video, I divided the batter into three portions: ½ for plain oliebollen, ¼ for raisin-filled, and ¼ for apple cinnamon-filled.
The ingredients and instructions in this recipe are for making those same quantities.
If you want to use different ratios, please adjust the amount of filling ingredients according
Divide the dough into half, and divide one half in half again, so you have three portions.
Mix the raisins into the bowl with ¼ of the batter. Make sure it's mixed thoroughly.
Mix the apple with cinnamon and sugar.
Mix the apple/cinnamon/sugar mixture into the bowl with ¼ of the batter. Make sure it's mixed thoroughly.
Cover the three bowls, and let them stand in a warm spot for 1 hour
Frying the oliebollen
I'm using a deep-fryer because it's easier to keep the oil at a temperature. If you don't have one, fill a large pot with oil to the ½ way mark.
Preheat the oil to 180ºC (350F)
Stir the batter to deflate it.
You should be using a small scoop (22ml / ¾oz).
To make it so the batter doesn't stick, carefully dip the scoop in the hot oil, and shake it off.
Scoop out one dose of batter, and gently drop it in the oil. You can fry multiple oliebollen at once, just make sure to not overcrowd your oil, as it will cause the temperature of the oil to drop too much, and you'll end up with greasy oliebollen.
In my deep-fryer, 6 oliebollen of this size are the max.
You'll want to fry these for approximately 6-7 minutes. Typically these oliebollen will flip themselves in the oil, but I always check halfway through to make sure they have all flipped over.
If you see that one of the oliebollen has a light-colored "ring" in the center, use a pair of tongs, or a spider, to hold it down. These are very airy, so it'll kinda be like trying to push a soccer ball under water!
Repeat for the rest of the batter.
Serving
Generously dust the oliebollen with powdered sugar, and serve while still warm!
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Can you make recipe printable without ads.?
There is a printer button in the top, next to my name. That will let you print without ads.
Can Oliebollen be made with an air fryer?
Sorry, no you cannot. Because it’s a batter, they won’t hold their shape.
Love your recipes
When looking for a recipe, I always look for yours first.
invariably I use yours and am never disappointed.
Thank you