Tiganites (Τηγανίτες)

Tiganites

Tiganites: Fried dough, sometimes called Greek-style pancakes, topped with honey

How fitting that we are posting this recipe for tiganites, sometimes referred to as Greek pancakes, in early November. Fitting, because November is when much of the olive harvesting in Greece is occurring. Our mother remembers that when the men of the village set out to begin their long and hard days of manually picking olives from the trees, they were sent off with their satchels loaded with tiganites. These disks of fried dough helped to sustain them and nourish them for the day. Tiganites, she explained, were a great option when options were limited as they are made from ingredients that even the poorest family likely had on hand.

Because our mother’s family were beekeepers, they usually had their tiganites topped with plenty of honey; on olive picking excursions, the honey was transported in jars to share with everyone. For those times when honey was scarce, tiganites were served either topped with grated mizithra cheese or plain. We’ve had them all ways (you know, for research purposes), and we must confess, any way you top them, we love them all!

Tiganites

Helpful hints

Tiganites are similar, sort of, to the more well known Greek fried doughnut loukoumades,. Unlike the round loukoumades however, tiganites are flat, larger, and can be served as either savoury or sweet.

You will note in the recipe that we offer a range for both the amount of flour, and the amount of water, to use. This is because all sorts of things can impact your dough, including the quality and type of flour you use, your altitude (seriously) and other stuff we can’t even begin to explain. The best thing to do is to look at the photos and video in this post to see what the consistency of your final dough should look like.

Sift your flour, and then measure it out for this recipe.

Shaping tiganites is not an exact science, and part of the charm is having each one slightly different than the next. Try to keep them relatively the same size however (we like the size of a playing card) to allow for easier cooking.

Traditionally, tiganites are topped with either honey or grated mizithra cheese. We have also topped tiganites with molasses; not as traditional, but quite delicious. Powdered, or icing sugar, would also be nice.

Pin this recipe if you like it!

Tiganites

The dough can be kept in the refrigerator for up to 3 days if you will not be frying up all your tiganites at once. Simply bring the dough to room temperature for approximately 15 minutes before frying the tiganites.

Want more recipes with fried dough? We don’t blame you! Check these out:

Tiganopsomo with feta

Lalagia

Sugar doughnuts

We love hearing from you!  If you have made our recipes, or if you have a question or comment, or simply want to say Hi!,  please leave a comment below!

Tiganites
Tiganites
Tiganites

Tiganites (Τηγανίτες)

Fried, flat discs of dough topped with honey, sometimes referred to as Greek-style pancakes
5 from 3 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Breakfast, Dessert, Snack
Cuisine: Greek
Prep Time: 25 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Resting time: 1 hour
Total Time: 1 hour 40 minutes
Servings: 20 tiganites
Calories: 75kcal
Author: Mia Kouppa

Ingredients

  • 1 tsp active dry yeast
  • 1/2 tsp sugar
  • 1/2 cup warm water
  • 3 ¼ to 3 ½ cups (485-525 grams) sifted all purpose flour
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1 ½ - 2 cups (375-500 mL) water
  • vegetable oil for frying
  • honey for drizzling over warm tiganites

Instructions

  • In a medium size bowl combine the yeast, sugar and 1/2 cup of warm water. Stir and let sit for approximately 5 minutes. You should see some bubbling at the surface; if you do not, your yeast may not be active and your dough may not rise.
  • In a large bowl stir together the sifted flour and salt. Start with 3 1/4 cup of sifted flour. Add 1 and 1/2 cups water and the yeast/sugar/warm water mixture from before. Using a hand held mixture, whisk well until well combined. See video.
  • Check the consistency of your dough; it should be relatively thin (see video). If it is too runny, add more sifted flour. If it is too thick, add more water.
  • Allow your dough to rest for approximately 60 minutes. Keep it covered in a draft free environment.
  • After your dough has rested, heat approximately 1/2 inch of oil in a frying pan and drop large tablespoons of dough into the hot oil. Repeat to add as many tiganites as you can in the pan without it being over-crowded. Your tiganites should be approximately the size of a playing card. Fry for approximately 3 minutes per side, until golden brown and cooked through. See video here.
  • Transfer your fried tiganites to a paper towel lined dish and repeat with the rest of your dough. If you would prefer not to cook all of your tiganites at once, your dough can keep for a few days in the refrigerator.
  • Serve warm, topped with plenty of honey.
  • Enjoy!

Video

Nutrition

Calories: 75kcal | Carbohydrates: 16g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 0.2g | Saturated Fat: 0.03g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.02g | Sodium: 60mg | Potassium: 23mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 0.2g | Vitamin A: 0.4IU | Vitamin C: 0.001mg | Calcium: 4mg | Iron: 1mg

Thanks for sharing!

24 Comments

  1. This was a family favourite in our household . My mom would make them for us for a treat or whenever she wanted to surprise us she would go into the kitchen and soon enough she had all of us around the kitchen enjoying them all together !! Thank you ! You brought back so many memories .

    1. miakouppa says:

      Aren’t moms amazing!! We are so happy that this post brought back happy food memories. Thank you so much for taking the time to comment 🙂

  2. This takes me back to my childhood. One of my aunts always made these in the xorio when we’d visit. We called them λαγγίτες (laggites). She would top them with tons of regular (granulated) sugar. Probably been 30 years since I’ve tasted one. I will for sure try your recipe soon. Honey sounds like it would be really nice on them! Thank you for sharing:)

    1. miakouppa says:

      Oh that is so wonderful! We are just thrilled that this recipe brought back family food memories. We hope that this recipe is as delicious as the ones your aunt made for you. Let us know what you think 🙂

    2. Us too!!!! My Yiayia made them all the time!!!!! Always sugar. Never honey. I can’t wait to make them!!!!

      1. miakouppa says:

        Hope you love them!! xoxo Helen & BIllie

  3. Ekaterina Botziou says:

    Delicious!!! xoxo

    1. miakouppa says:

      Thank you! They are so simple and so good!! 🙂 🙂

    1. miakouppa says:

      Thank you! They really are 🙂

  4. I’m excited to try out this recipe – I’m new to making Greek food and look forward in making this – I will be serving it with a thick chowder as sweetie loves dunking bread into his soups 😋😋

    1. miakouppa says:

      Oh that sounds wonderful Germaine! We love tiganites as a savoury treat too! If your darling likes dunking bread in soups, be sure to check out our other bread (and soup) recipes!

  5. Looks delicious 😋

    1. miakouppa says:

      Thank you so much!!

  6. Nick @ GreekBoston.com says:

    Tiganites, also known as Greek Fried Dough, are a delicious treat! Served warm, this little treat is often drenched with honey and sprinkled with cinnamon. I also like to add crushed walnuts to mine.

    1. miakouppa says:

      Yes, they are delicious with honey. Cinnamon sounds like a great addition too. We often also have them as savoury treats, sprinkled with a bit of mizithra! So good!!

  7. I just tried this and used started with three cups of flour and my batter turned into a ball of dough, which is extremely hard to thin with water. I tried again and only used 2 cups of flour and it was perfect! Curious what to do if the dough keeps rising in the fridge? Kept mine in for two hours and it started to spill over.

    1. miakouppa says:

      Hi! Thanks for your message! We’re happy that the dough worked out for you when you tried the recipe again. It’s a little surprising that your ball was way to thick; was it sifted and then measured? This could make a difference if not. Of course, there are variations in flours which is why we tend to use a range. As for the dough spilling over…it does rise quite a bit so you must be sure to use a large enough container. Sounds like you had some very healthy yeast 🙂 🙂 We hope that you loved the tiganites. And thanks so much for your comment and feedback!

  8. This recipe is my yiayia all the way. She would babysit my brother and I after school and her making tiganites would gather all the neighborhood kids for a snack! We had them with sugar. I have been craving them and I realize that my kids have never had them.😯 I will get on that! Thanks for your delicious recipes. You are my go-to for Greek recipes!!

    1. miakouppa says:

      Thank you so much Helen for your kind message, and for letting us know that we are able to bring back happy memories with our recipes; that makes us so happy!! Love that the neighbourhood kids would gather at your yiayia’s house for these special Greek treats!

  9. Hi. Love these. I just have a question. Have you ever tried the self risen flour? XXX? Can these be done with this flour? Thx much. Bia

    1. miakouppa says:

      Hi Bia. No, we haven’t made these with self rising flour. Not sure how they would work out – you would probably have to make adjustments to the recipe (with the yeast for example). Let us know if you try it and how it works out 🙂 xoxo Helen & Billie

  10. Can you use quick yeast so you don’t have to wait an hour? Love your recipes!

    1. miakouppa says:

      HI Helen! Thanks so much! Sure, you can use quick yeast – that will cut down the rising time. Enjoy ! xoxo Helen & Billie

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