By Kevin Noble Maillard
- Total Time
- 1½ hours, plus 4 hours’ cooling and rising
- Rating
- 4(76)
- Notes
- Read community notes
Ingenuity is behind Indigenous fry bread. When the United States government forcibly relocated Navajos (Diné) from ancestral lands in the 19th century, Native American women invented fry bread from government-issued commodities: flour, salt, yeast and water. Today, Native Americans have reclaimed this survival food as a tasty symbol of resilience. Cooks improvise on the basic formula using ingredients based on preference and geography: Styles, sizes and shapes differ by region, tribe and family. Fry bread is comfort food, and variations are shaped by memory and connection, leading to playful jests about the “right” kind. This particular recipe has Afro-Indigenous origins with its use of sugar and cornmeal, which add sweetness and density. But raw sugar replaces white sugar, and coconut oil steps in for lard. When used for frying, the oil’s aroma announces the arrival of something special.
Featured in: Fry Bread Is Beloved, but Also Divisive
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Ingredients
Yield:About 38
- 1cup finely ground cornmeal
- 2(¼-ounce) envelopes instant dry yeast
- 1cup raw sugar
- 1teaspoon fine sea salt
- 3½cups all-purpose flour
- Unrefined coconut oil, for frying (about 32 ounces)
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (38 servings)
100 calories; 3 grams fat; 3 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 0 grams monounsaturated fat; 0 grams polyunsaturated fat; 16 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram dietary fiber; 4 grams sugars; 2 grams protein; 53 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
Step
1
In a large pot, bring 2 cups water to a boil over medium-high. While whisking, add cornmeal to boiling water. Continue whisking slowly until smooth. Reduce heat to medium, add 1½ cups cold water and cook, stirring continuously to prevent lumps, until thick, about 6 minutes. It should be the consistency of oatmeal. Remove from heat and let cool in pot.
Step
2
Add yeast, sugar and salt to the cooled cornmeal, along with 1 to 2 tablespoons of water to moisten the mixture. Gradually add flour, stirring with a metal whisk or potato masher to get rid of as many lumps as you can. Sprinkle with water as needed to keep dough moist but thick. Cover with a damp cloth and let rise for 3 hours.
Step
3
Once dough has risen, it should be springy and sticky. Heat 1 inch of coconut oil in a cast-iron skillet to about 350 degrees. Test the heat by dropping a small portion of dough into the oil. It should gently sizzle but not splatter. Use two large, oiled spoons to make golf-ball-size portions: Scoop the dough with one spoon and push the dough off into the hot oil with the other. Re-oil the spoons using the oil in the skillet as needed to make new balls of dough. Work in batches, leaving room in the skillet, as the balls will expand in the hot oil.
Step
4
Fry until bottoms are cooked to your desired color (light gold, golden or dark brown), about 3 minutes for golden. Using tongs, flip balls over to cook the other side to the same color, 1 to 3 minutes. Gently lift out of the oil, shaking off excess oil, and transfer to paper towel-lined plates to drain. Eat while hot.
Ratings
4
out of 5
76
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Cooking Notes
Dorothy Redhorse
As a middle age Dine (Navajo) woman, my family never adds sugar and yeast to fry bread or tortillas. Sugar and yeast were reserved for bread baked in adobe oven, which we call "nidaa baah". Whereas, fry bread is self-descriptive and call "dah diniilghaazh. Any dough, we add corn meal or wheat when we feel like adding fiber to bread.
Winula
Authentic Native fry bead does not contain sugar nor, in most cases, yeast. And, it's normally flatten out into circles before frying.
doreen from az
the Italians have the same type fry bread only we call it zeppole- my mother is from Napoli and made these on the stove using her black iron pan. She then sprinkled with sugar! I do not know if she used cornmeal. The balls looked like fried pizza! Delicious! Will try this version
lightquest
I think using white sugar would be ok. White sugar and raw sugar are the same flavor. The difference in color is simply due to processing. The main difference is that white sugar is usually finely ground. Raw sugar is usually sold in larger crystals. Similar to the difference between table salt and sea salt or Kosher salt. If you use white sugar you might reduce the amount a little as the finer sugar will more completely fill your measuring spoon than the chunkier raw sugar.
Kevin
White sugar would be completely fine! I just use the raw to make it less processed. Let me know how it turns out for you!
Debbie
In my house, these are always dusted with cinnamon sugar to which a bit of nutmeg has been added. It's a terrific Autumnal treat that way!
Gillian Zyland
With ethnic recipes, there are usually so many righteous comments on everything from ingredients to mixing order to oven times. It makes me sad that there are only 16 total comments here, and many of these sound like pretenders appropriating native culture for themselves or their I’m-124th sliver-of-Indian ways. My family was indigenous, but I’m the last on my father’s side and I don’t know of other cousins. I want the boisterous family wrangling I remember, to make the best fry bread.
Mary French
Dorothy is right! That is not Fry Bread.Having lived in Arizona for many years, I have never seen any Navajo fry bread look like that.The Navajo lamb stew is also Delicious!
SunnyEdda
Omitting the sugar and substituting baking powder for the yeast gives the recipe for Cornmeal Dumplings found throughout the Caribbean. These were fried in oil (coconut oil is my preference). Also, omitting the cornmeal and it becomes the standard flour dumplings served with breakfast, lunch or dinner. My aunt would make my male teenage cousin knead the dough until firm for boiled dumplings. These were shaped into palm sized disks, thicker in the middle, then, boiled.
jvenek
I’m making this right now with my 2 year old after reading Kevin’s book Fry Bread! We love the book and can’t wait to try his version of fry bread!!
Susan
I am married into an American Indian family. I have never seen fry bread made with yeast, only baking powder. Some cooks use plain flour, some use self-rising flour, some cooks add dried milk. The bread is fried in lard, shortening or vegetable oil.I have not eaten fry bread sweetened with sugar, but have had it with powdered sugar or honey on top after it is cooked, but only at a powwow.
Debbie
In my house, these are always dusted with cinnamon sugar to which a bit of nutmeg has been added. It's a terrific Autumnal treat that way!
Mel
Has anyone tried it gluten free?
Abra
Trying with coconut flour right now... not my fave so far lol I will see how it fries!
Caro
My grandmother, with French decendance, made this with 1 cup of all-purpose flour, 1 egg, a little bit of baking soda, 1/2 cup of sugar and a little bit of milk to incorporate everything and the dough hangs from the tablespoon. And fries it in regular oil.
Winula
Authentic Native fry bead does not contain sugar nor, in most cases, yeast. And, it's normally flatten out into circles before frying.
Tamara
I noticed that you mentioned this was an Afro Indigenous dish. This recipe reminds me of hush puppies. A side that my grandmother and great grandmother made often for Sunday meals and family gatherings. I am keen to try this yeast version. Thanks for sharing your grandmother's recipe with us.
Dorothy Redhorse
As a middle age Dine (Navajo) woman, my family never adds sugar and yeast to fry bread or tortillas. Sugar and yeast were reserved for bread baked in adobe oven, which we call "nidaa baah". Whereas, fry bread is self-descriptive and call "dah diniilghaazh. Any dough, we add corn meal or wheat when we feel like adding fiber to bread.
Mary French
Thanks Dorothy. I have lived in Arizona for many years and have never seen anything called fry bread look like that.
doreen from az
the Italians have the same type fry bread only we call it zeppole- my mother is from Napoli and made these on the stove using her black iron pan. She then sprinkled with sugar! I do not know if she used cornmeal. The balls looked like fried pizza! Delicious! Will try this version
Susan
My pantry has everything except raw sugar. What would happen if I used regular sugar instead?
lightquest
I think using white sugar would be ok. White sugar and raw sugar are the same flavor. The difference in color is simply due to processing. The main difference is that white sugar is usually finely ground. Raw sugar is usually sold in larger crystals. Similar to the difference between table salt and sea salt or Kosher salt. If you use white sugar you might reduce the amount a little as the finer sugar will more completely fill your measuring spoon than the chunkier raw sugar.
Kevin
White sugar would be completely fine! I just use the raw to make it less processed. Let me know how it turns out for you!
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