Portuguese Donuts: Malasadas

Malasadas is famous Portuguese donuts. Unfussy yeast dough is deep fried, then coated with sugar. Deliciously crunchy outside and soft inside.

The local school is closed again due to the cold icy rain. That means kids are home and board out of their mind.

Although we would love them being at school so that we can find our peace at home, we kinda like having them at home occasionally. On the dreary weather day like this? We make Malasadas (Portuguese donuts).

We had malasadas for the first time in Hawaii several years ago. Our sister bought some from the famous Leonardo’s bakery. We loved it.

They were not the kind of fancy donuts adorned with coatings, toppings, or whatever you see in the famous doughnut shops these days. They were like plain basic fried dough, similar to Korean twist donuts.

But boy, weren’t they good! The soft and chewy texture of warm malasadas were so satisfying. Ever since we tasted, we had been making them around the winter time every year.

The dough is sticky, that’s why it creates soft and melt in the mouth texture.

We use a muffin scoop to scoop up the dough. It makes the job much easier.

You have to watch for the oil temperature. You can easily burn the outside of malasadas with the insides still remaining raw. We don’t use thermometer for frying. We just keep the flame on med-low heat adjusting frequently. It takes about 1 minute per side.

The granulated sugar coating makes a big difference. We love the contrast of crunchiness outside and softness inside.

You can’t just have one malasada and quit. They are just too good to eat only one. Such a humble treat to make everyone smile. We usually devour them all in a single sitting. So be aware!