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Crumpets on the water

Fried Water Dough Puffs (Pyshki)

Appetizing, pretty, and puffy, made from simple ingredients! These water-based puffs are a great stand-in for bread. Serve them with soups, main dishes, with tea, or just on their own — they're perfect for a meatless table. Even the next day they stay fresh.

wella

Recipe author

Composition / ingredients

Servings:

Flour

400

Water

Dry yeast

Vegetable oil

Sugar

Salt

Vegetable oil

Translation table of volumetric measures

Nutrients and energy value of the composition of the recipe

By weight of the composition:

Proteins 13 % 8 g

Fats 22 % 14 g

Carbohydrates 65 % 41 g

319 kcal

GI: 2 / 0 / 98

Cooking method

Cooking time: 55 min

Step 1:

Ready to make water dough puffs? Gather your ingredients. Be sure to sift the flour — it removes any debris and makes the puffs much lighter. I sift mine twice.
Step 2:

Add the dry ingredients to the flour — sugar, salt, and yeast. If you want to serve the puffs in place of bread, make them saltier; for tea, sweeter.
Step 3:

Mix everything together, then pour in the wet ingredients (water and oil). Use refined, odorless oil, and warm the water slightly until it's lukewarm. Knead a soft dough, adding flour as needed. You may need more or less flour than the recipe states, depending on the dough — if it's still too sticky, add a little more; if it's too stiff, add water.
Step 4:

You should end up with a soft, smooth, even dough. Gather it into a ball, cover with a towel, and let it rest in a warm spot.
Step 5:

Mine doubled in 15 minutes; yours may take longer. Divide the dough into equal pieces and shape the puffs however you like.
Step 6:

I first rolled the pieces out about 1/4 inch (5 mm) thick, then cut them with cookie cutters so they came out neat and even.
Step 7:

Heat the oil in a skillet over high heat. Here's an easy way to check that it's hot enough: dip in the tip of a wooden spatula, and if bubbles gather around it, you're ready to fry. Add the puffs and fry them quickly on both sides over medium-high heat until golden.
Step 8:

Serve the puffs hot, straight from the pan.
Step 9:

Dress them up with chocolate, honey, jam, powdered sugar, nuts — whatever your heart desires!
Step 10:

And here's what a puff looks like when rolled out thicker.

You can make the dough with eggs, but then the puffs turn out tougher and stale faster. You can also make them without yeast, with the barest minimum of ingredients: knead a simple dough of salted water and flour, roll out rounds, and fry. Water puffs can be baked in the oven instead of fried, though it takes longer. The smaller the puffs, the faster they cook. Feel free to add more than just salt and spices to the dough — dried fruit and thin strips of vegetables work beautifully in it.
Important: with dry yeast, keep in mind there are two kinds — active and instant (read the package directions carefully!). Active dry yeast looks like little beads or balls and needs to be "woken up" first: dissolve it in warm sweet water, milk, or whey until bubbles or a foamy cap form, which means it's ready. Make sure the active yeast fully dissolves, or undissolved grains can keep the dough from rising and ruin the bake. Instant dry yeast is easier — no activation needed; just add it to the dough with the other ingredients, which shortens the prep time. Note too that both types can vary in strength from brand to brand.
For cooking, use filtered or bottled water with a neutral taste. Tap water can give the dish an off flavor.
Fry with an oil that has a high smoke point. Every oil is only good up to a certain temperature — its smoke point — beyond which it starts to burn and form harmful compounds. Unrefined oils generally have a low smoke point because they're full of unfiltered particles that scorch quickly, while refined oils handle heat much better. Whenever you fry, bake, or grill, reach for a high-smoke-point oil — refined sunflower, olive, or grapeseed oil are all good choices.