Omani recipe
How to make Luqaimat
لقيمات
All of Oman and the Gulf; above all in Ramadan
Small balls of yeast dough flavoured with cardamom and saffron, deep-fried until golden and crisp outside and soft inside, then drizzled with date syrup and sometimes sesame seeds.
Ingredients
- 250 g plain flour and 2 tablespoons cornflour
- 1 teaspoon dried yeast and 1 tablespoon sugar
- ½ teaspoon ground cardamom and a pinch of saffron
- A pinch of salt
- About 300 ml warm water
- Vegetable oil for deep-frying
- To serve: date syrup (dibs) or honey, and toasted sesame seeds
Method
- Mix the flour, cornflour, yeast, sugar, cardamom, saffron and salt. Beat in the warm water to make a thick, sticky batter, like very thick cream.
- Cover and leave in a warm place for about 1 hour, until bubbly and doubled.
- Heat the oil to about 170 °C in a deep pan. Never leave hot oil unattended.
- Squeeze small balls of batter out between your thumb and first finger, or drop them from a wet teaspoon, into the oil. Fry for 4 to 5 minutes, turning, until golden all over.
- Drain on kitchen paper, drizzle with date syrup and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Eat warm. Sesame allergy: leave out the seeds.
Made it at home? Tick it off and it goes into your kitchen passport.
The name means 'little bites'. In Ramadan, plates of luqaimat are shared with neighbours at sunset, when the fast is broken.
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