South African 'koeksisters' recipe

Kerstin Rodgers
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Food blogger and photographer Kerstin Rodgers (aka MsMarmiteLover) fell in love with syrupy ‘koeksisters’ while travelling in their native South Africa. Here she shows us how to make the seriously sweet treat.

Koeksister or koesister?

Koeksisters, which are syrup-soaked elongated doughnuts braided into a plait-like shape, are hugely popular in South Africa. Indeed, it’s not uncommon to see koeksisters sold at road intersections, and South African department stores such as Woolworths often stock them too.

There are two versions of the koeksister: the Afrikaner koeksister, meaning ‘cake sister’, is syrupy and crisp (pictured left here); while the Cape Malay ‘koesister’ (without the ‘k’) is a more traditional cake-like doughnut, with spices incorporated into the soft dough and coconut on the outside. You’re more likely to find the former on sale in South Africa, although Cape Malay households sell the koesister by the half-dozen or dozen on Sunday mornings.

A farmer's treat

On a recent visit to South Africa I was lucky enough to have Afrikaner koeksisters for breakfast. But for the enormous Afrikaner fruit farmers, often wearing khaki shorts and knee socks, koeksisters are more often gobbled up as a snack during a well-earned break.

I’m going to show you how to make the Afrikaner version. Here are a few tips to get the recipe right: make the syrup a day ahead then chill it as the koeksister won’t work if the syrup isn’t very cold. Secondly, fry the koeksister until properly crisp. Then it won’t go soggy in the syrup.

Make your own

This is a far from low-calorie recipe. But, frankly, you couldn’t eat more than two if you tried. They are super sweet, in the style of baklava or Indian desserts like Gulab Jamun. But they are nonetheless terribly moreish.

Ingredients

For the syrup

500 ml water
500 g sugar
5 cm fresh ginger
1 cinnamon stick
1 lime, juice only

For the dough

600 g flour
15 g baking powder
1 tsp salt
60 g butter
1 egg
300 ml full cream milk

1 large amount of vegetable oil for frying

Details

Cuisine: South African
Recipe Type: Dessert
Difficulty: Medium
Preparation Time: 30 mins
Cooking Time: 20 mins
Serves: 6

Step-by-step

Make the syrup by putting all the ingredients in a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan and heating on a low heat until the sugar is dissolved. Remove from the heat and let it cool. Once cool, put the syrup in the fridge and leave overnight.
The next day, make the dough. Mix the flour with the baking powder and salt, then rub the butter into the flour.
Add the egg and the milk. Check the texture of the dough. If it’s too crumbly add a little water; if it's too dry, add a little flour. It should be easy to knead but not sticky.
Knead the dough for a few minutes until it is completely combined. Cover and leave to rest for at least an hour. Prepare a deep frying pan with enough oil to deep fry the koeksisters. Remove the syrup from the fridge and put it into a wide shallow dish.
On a floured surface, roll the dough into a square about 5mm thick. Cut the dough into rectangles about 5cm wide by 10-15cm. The koeksisters will expand as they cook.
Do not cut all the way to the top but cut each rectangle into strips of three to be plaited. Each strip should be about a finger wide, but you want the top bit to remain attached for easier braiding.
Once your doughnuts are plaited then heat up the oil to 180°C. If the oil is too hot the doughnuts will fry too quickly on the outside without getting properly cooked inside. You want the koeksisters to be a deep golden colour.
As each koeksister is fried, drop it into the cold syrup so it is completely submerged. The temperature differential is essential in order to achieve a good syrupy koeksister. Then place it on another plate to be stored in the fridge. This again will help it achieve crispiness.
Continue until you have fried and soaked all of the koeksisters.
Eat straightaway or later, very cold.