Loukoumades (Λουκουμάδες)
Loukoumades are often called Greek doughnuts, but I like to think of them more as doughnut holes! These round balls of fried dough are soft and delicious. After they are fried they are generously drizzled with honey and then dusted with cinnamon.
Growing up in a Greek home we enjoyed lots of fried dough! That might sound strange, but the truth is there are many delicious recipes which begin (and sometimes end) with fried dough. These include the classic Greek Sugar doughnuts also called zaharota, Tiganopsomo, which is fried dough stuffed with feta, Tiganites which are often served for breakfast with either honey, or feta, or both, and Lalagia which are a traditional recipe from the Peloponnese. So much fried goodness!
Why this recipe works
The recipes is tested and perfect! You will end up with the most delicious loukoumades that hold their shape well, and which have the most amazing texture.
I have detailed exactly how to shape and then fry the loukoumades. I have described every step in great detail in order for you to be able to make these at home.
The recipe does not contain any eggs or dairy, making the loukoumades themselves perfect for Orthodox Lent, or for anyone who is vegan. If honey is not eaten (some vegans do not eat honey), then you can drizzle the loukoumades with maple syrup instead.
Key ingredients
All purpose flour Also called regular or plain flour, this white wheat flour is the basis for the loukoumades. It is easy to find, and generally the most affordable option. It is a very versatile wheat flour.
Salt I always season my flour with salt. It helps elevate all the flavours.
Sugar I use white granulated sugar to help activate the yeast; the sugar acts as food for the yeast.
Dry yeast In order for the loukoumades dough to rise and for them to be fluffy, you need to proof the dough with dry yeast. I keep my yeast in the refrigerator so that it stays fresh longer.
Water Use lukewarm water to help activate your yeast and to prepare your dough
Vegetable oil I use vegetable oil for frying my loukoumades because of the high smoke point, and the fact that it is a mild flavoured oil. I also use vegetable oil (and sometimes olive oil) to help shape my loukoumades, by dipping my spoon into it. This is described in the instructions.
Honey Whenever possible I use Greek honey, or locally sourced honey. I warm it up so that it drizzles easily over the loukoumades.
Cinnamon Ground cinnamon is usually dusted over the top of the loukoumades
Chopped walnuts Sometimes I like to add some finely chopped walnuts to the loukoumades as well, sprinkled over the top after the honey and cinnamon are added. This is not necessary however.
How to make it
Be cautious when making loukoumades. if you are not careful about using the right size pot, and keeping the oil at the correct temperature, you could have exploding loukoumades! Don’t be so afraid that you don’t make them however. Follow my instructions, and you will be fine!
Step 1
In a large bowl whisk together the flour and salt. Set aside.
Step 2
In a medium sized bowl combine the warm water, sugar and the yeast. Stir and set aside for approximately 5 – 10 minutes. You will see bubbling on the surface indicating that your yeast is still active.
Step 3
Slowly pour the yeast and water mixture into the bowl with the flour and use your hands to mix everything together. The dough will be very sticky. Mix just enough to ensure that there is no dry flour left in the bowl and that the dough is uniform; do not over mix. Cover with plastic wrap and cover with a clean towel. Set aside in a warm place for about 2 hours, until the dough has more than doubled in size.
Step 4
When your dough is ready, heat a good amount of vegetable oil in a deep but not too large pot. Your oil should be about 3 – 4 inches deep.
Step 5
Use an oil thermometer to ensure that your oil reaches, but does not surpass, 365 degrees Fahrenheit.
Step 6
Now you are ready to shape your loukoumades. Take a teaspoon and dip it into a small container filled with either vegetable oil or olive oil.
Step 7
With your non-dominant hand grab a fist full of dough and squeeze some dough through the space created by your thumb and forefinger (also called first or index finger).
Step 8
With your dominant hand use the teaspoon to cut off a piece of that dough and drop it into the hot oil. Repeat, dipping your spoon into the oil each time.
Step 9
Do not overcrowd your pot; your loukoumades need space to cook as you stir them around with a slotted spoon and you also don’t want to reduce your oil temperature too much by adding in too many loukoumades at a time.
Step 10
Stir your loukoumades around with a slotted spoon for several minutes until they are golden brown all over.
Step 11
When done, transfer to a paper towel lined plate or bowl and repeat until all the dough has been used.
Step 12
When the loukoumades are all done, heat the honey in the microwave or a small pot until it is easy to pour. Pour over the loukoumades (use as much honey as you like) and then sprinkle them with ground cinnamon and chopped walnuts if desired.
Video: Making loukoumades
Helpful hints
How to shape loukoumades
I use a teaspoon to form my loukoumades. It gives loukoumades which are just the right size. Between every ball that I form, I dip my teaspoon in either a bit of olive oil or vegetable oil. If you don’t do this your sticky dough will get all over your spoon and will not slide off into the pot of oil.
Fry with caution!
Let me be clear. Anyone who has led you to believe that making loukoumades is easy, is lying. Or they are a frying ninja, or a professional loukoumades maker. For the average home cook these fried balls of dough are difficult to shape and can be hazardous to make.
There are two important things to pay attention to when frying loukoumades (and anything really). The first is to make sure that you don’t add water to your hot oil. I have seen some recipes which suggest dipping your spoon into a glass of water between each loukoumades you shape. Not sure why you would do that, and risk dripping water into your hot oil, causing splattering. Dip your spoon in oil instead. it is safer, and actually works better.
The next important thing is to keep your oil at just the right temperature. For this, I strongly suggest you have a cooking thermometer that you can use to measure the temperature of the oil. I have found that the ideal temperature is 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Keep your eye on the temperature throughout the frying process – you want to make sure it stays at that steady level.
Recipe variations
Drizzling loukoumades with honey and then sprinkling with cinnamon is traditional. However, you can give this classic Greek dessert a modern twist by drizzling on melted chocolate, butterscotch, or even warmed up jam. I have seen loukoumades tossed in cinnamon sugar, and sprinkles. Get creative, and let your tastebuds guide you! Having said that, I prefer the original over all else!
Frequently asked questions
Why do my loukoumades explode when I’m frying them?
That’s right, exploding dough is a thing, and it’s a thing I have experienced quite a bit while trying to perfect this recipe. I’ve come to the conclusion that the culprit is oil that is too hot. You see, when you drop your loukoumades into the oil, if it is too hot the outside of your dough fries up quickly creating a firm crust all around your loukoumades. The inside however remains uncooked and as the internal heat builds up and the dough expands, the air trapped inside has nowhere to escape from (remember, already cooked and therefore formed outside) and so it finds a way to break through the crust. This violent explosion can cause oil to splatter everywhere. With research and experimentation (and a few near disasters) I have learned that keeping the oil at just the right temperature is key to well cooked, and safe loukoumades. If you don’t have an oil thermometer, invest in one. And until you do, please don’t make this recipe. I like you too much.
How do I shape loukoumades?
Making loukoumades is a messy business. You grab a fist full of dough in your hand (I am right handed, so I grab the dough with my left hand) and you squeeze so that a ball of dough oozes though the space created between your thumb and forefinger (or pointer finger). You can use the other 3 fingers of your left hand to help push the dough up so that it makes its way through.
Proper loukoumades dough is sticky and loose. So, as you push the dough through your thumb and forefinger you need to quickly, and with your other hand, use a spoon to scoop it off your hand and directly into the hot (but temperature controlled) oil.
Here’s a funny story about this recipe
So…in case any of you were wondering if Mia Kouppa Hollywood and media attention would change me and Helen…don’t worry. We’re still keeping it real, which is why this post for loukoumades includes the following:
- a full disclosure that sometimes, we mess up
- an even fuller disclosure that sometimes one of us messes up, without anyone realizing it, even herself!
- an admission that when questioned, and the realization of a mistake sinks in, the person having done the messing up maintains ignorance and innocence for about 5 minutes before breaking down and confessing all the yucky details
By the way…it doesn’t really matter which one of us messed up…Helen and I are a team. Also, Helen wants it to be clear; the messer-upper was me.
Let me start at the beginning. For those of you who have been following Mia Kouppa for a while (so happy), you may remember that there had already been a recipe for loukoumades posted – in the fall of 2018. You may have also forgotten that we posted this recipe, because after that initial feature, we never shared it again. Odd don’t you think? Especially because loukoumades, those honey-soaked fried balls of dough so popular in Greek cuisine, are usually favourites. Well, there was a reason for that – something about that recipe just didn’t feel right.
When we cook with our parents and take note of their recipes, measuring ingredients, taking photos, and the rest of it, we recreate their recipes ourselves before posting them for all of you. Quite a bit of delicious work, but this is our way of ensuring quality control. About a week after making loukoumades with our parents for the blog back in 2018, it was time to start thinking about when we could get together to test the recipe. Life was busy, so a week became two, then three, then maybe four and then finally we set aside a weekend to fry these balls of goodness. But, there was a problem.
As the keeper of the written word, and a self-confessed scatter brain, I realized that our parents’ recipe for loukoumades was no where to be found. Although there was a notebook devoted to keeping recipes and notes and any other bits of kitchen wisdom collected during cooking sessions with our parents, there were times when the book was forgotten. On those days, the recipe was written on a scrap piece of paper, or the back of a magazine, or an old receipt. What many may call irresponsible (how hard is it to remember a notebook?), others, aka I, call adaptable.
Unwilling to stress my dear sister, and really not having the time to make the loukoumades again with our parents (which deep down I knew was the right thing to do), I, ever resourceful, decided to just visit my parents and sift through the little copper container where they keep scraps of “recipes” – maybe luck would shine and there would be some reference to loukoumades. And guess what? There was!
Happily a photo was taken; it was essentially a list of ingredients and with a little research (remember, resourceful), I hobbled together a lovely recipe and passed it off as the original. Helen, dear, sweet, trusting Helen, was none the wiser. We got together, made the loukoumades, and thought…Hmmm. Something just didn’t seem right.
So, we made them again…and again…and again. They were good. They were quite good in fact, but we didn’t think that they tasted exactly the way our parents’ loukoumades did. However, our original loukoumades-making session with our parents was at that point many weeks prior. There weren’t many step by step photos to refer back to. So, we decided that our taste buds didn’t have superhero memories, and figured it was fine. Looking back I could have taken that opportunity to fess up…but the loukoumades were good. Very good! So, that recipe was posted, and lots of you made them and were really happy. Whew!
A few weeks later, at a family barbecue our parents arrived with spanakopita and a bowl full of honey soaked loukoumades. We decided that dessert would be eaten before dinner and dove right in. Then our dad brought out a smaller bowl of loukoumades that had maple syrup poured over them. He passed those to the vegan, non-honey eater, among us. I quickly stopped the eating saying, “Oh, sorry. You shouldn’t have those. There’s milk in them.”
Our dad overheard and said, “Milk? We don’t put milk in our loukoumades.”
“Yes you do.” I replied.
“No we don’t.” our dad maintained.
“Yes you do.” I argued.
“No, we don’t.” Our dad sounded pretty convinced.
Helen overheard the back and forth and being the rationale person that she is, she pulled out her phone and searched for the loukoumades recipe on our site. There it was. Milk. She showed our dad.
“Not our recipe.” he said.
Now Helen was confused. “What do you mean, not your recipe? This was the recipe we got when we made loukoumades with you”.
“Nope, not ours. We don’t use milk.” At this point our mom joined the conversation.
“Milk in loukoumades? No, we don’t put milk. You know who puts milk? Koubara. She puts milk. We tried her recipe once. Very good, but I can’t eat them because of the milk” our lactose-intolerant mother explained.
With a mouth full of loukoumades, a slow but sure realization came over me. The picture I had taken of the little slip of paper in the copper bowl was our koubara’s recipe. Good grief.
Helen realized something was up and asked darling me some very good questions. The progression of replies went something like this:
“Of course this is their recipe!! Whose else would it be?”
“Clearly they changed things up, and don’t remember.”
“Do you think someone found my notes and changed the recipe on purpose?!”
“I think they’re lying. Maybe they’ve started a food blog on their own and are holding out on us!”
“I’m sorry!! I lost the original recipe so I sneaked over to their house and took a picture of what I thought was their recipe, and then I re-copied it and I never told you because I had promised to be more organized and I didn’t have time to make loukoumades with them again. I’m so ashamed. I’m so sorry. Please don’t hate me. Hey…you know what…these loukoumades are really amazing. We should totally make them with Ma and Ba again so that we can get the recipe.”
And there you have it folks. I suppose I could have just altered the original post and edited the recipe. Or, I could have just left well enough alone (the original milk-included loukoumades were good)…but I just couldn’t do it. I considered leaving the original post up and then adding this one as well, but thought that might be too complicated. In the end, I know that honesty is always the best policy – even if it comes a few years later.
How to serve
Loukoumades are best served immediately after making them. I top my loukoumades with warmed honey, a sprinkling of cinnamon and usually some crushed walnuts. Alternative toppings include sesame seeds and crushed pistachios. More modern versions of loukoumades are served with caramel sauce, chocolate sauce or maple syrup.
Related recipes
Looking for other fried dough recipes? We’ve got these for you:
Tiganites Similar to loukoumades, but more dense and formed as flat discs, these are the classic Greek breakfast, made by Yiayia!
Sugar doughnuts Also called Zaharota, or Loukoumades tis paraleias (beach doughnuts), these fluffy sugar coated doughnuts taste like summer in Greece.
Tiganopsomo with feta Yum! Fried dough filled with feta. Honestly, nothing is better. You can even drizzle these with honey for a bit of sweet and salty.
Pin this recipe if you like it!
Loukoumades (Λουκουμάδες)
Equipment
- deep pot
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 1 ½ tsp active dry yeast
- 240 ml water
- vegetable oil for frying
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil or olive oil for dipping spoon into
For the topping
- 1/2 cup honey you can also use more
- ground cinnamon, to taste
- chopped walnuts, to taste optional
Instructions
- In a large bowl whisk together the flour and salt. Set aside.2 cups all-purpose flour, 1/2 tsp salt
- In a medium sized bowl combine the warm water, sugar and the yeast. Stir and set aside for approximately 5 - 10 minutes. You will see bubbling on the surface indicating that your yeast is still active.1 ½ tsp active dry yeast, 240 ml water, 2 tbsp sugar
- Slowly pour the yeast and water mixture into the bowl with the flour and use your hands to mix everything together. The dough will be very sticky. Mix just enough to ensure that there is no dry flour left in the bowl and that the dough is uniform; do not over mix. Cover with plastic wrap and cover with a clean towel. Set aside in a warm place for about 2 hours, until the dough has more than doubled in size.
- When your dough is ready heat a good amount of vegetable oil in a deep but not too large pot. Your oil should be about 3 - 4 inches deep.vegetable oil for frying
- Use an oil thermometer to ensure that your oil reaches, but does not surpass, 365 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Now you are ready to shape your loukoumades. Take a teaspoon and dip it into a small container filled with either vegetable oil or olive oil.1/2 cup vegetable oil or olive oil for dipping spoon into
- With your non-dominant hand grab a fist full of dough and squeeze some dough through the space created by your thumb and forefinger (also called first or index finger). It helps a bit to grease your hand a bit with some oil.
- Do not overcrowd your pot; your loukoumades need space to cook as you stir them around with a slotted spoon and you also don't want to reduce your oil temperature too much by adding in too many loukoumades at a time.
- Stir your loukoumades around with a slotted spoon for several minutes until they are golden brown all over.
- When done, transfer to a paper towel lined plate or bowl and repeat until all the dough has been used.
- When the loukoumades are all done, heat the honey in the microwave or a small pot until it is easy to pour. Pour over the loukoumades (use as much honey as you like) and then sprinkle them with ground cinnamon and chopped walnuts if desired.1/2 cup honey, ground cinnamon, to taste, chopped walnuts, to taste
- Enjoy!
This story is too hilarious!!! I don’t know how many times I’ve told myself that I would remember what I put in to my dishes only to realize that of course I didn’t!!
Ha ha! Thanks Dorie. We weren’t sure how to handle this little hiccup…but figured honesty was the best policy…and pretty funny.
I came over this recipe as I am planning a trip to Greece, mostly because I am a history nerd. But, while in Greece, I want to truly immerse myself in the culture, learning about the food, wine and language too, as I am able to appreciate and enjoy everything so much more. I compare going to a country without basic language skills, no knowledge of it’s history, culture and food to looking at a book while not being able to read. And I can tell you are very passionate about your food traditions, and that you made this with love, and I feel so lucky to be able to learn about authentic greek food from the comfort of my home. All thanks to the internet and passionate souls like yourself! Thank you for sharing, I look forward to trying this myself! Sending you a warm hug from cold Norway.
Thank you Evan!!! This message warms our hearts! We are so happy that you found us and that our content is helpful to you! xoxo Helen & Billie
Hi love your recipes but I am wondering if you know of these very crunchy biscuits shaped in small ring and coated with sesame seeds . They are not too sweet nor are they salty but they are lovely and found in lots of Greek homes for coffee. If you have the recipe would you be kind enough to share it with me.
Hi Madeleine! Great to hear that you are loving our recipes. We do know the cookies you are referring to. The closest thing we have on the blog right now are these koulourakia with orange. https://miakouppabbbwpc.wpcomstaging.com/tag/koulourakia-with-orange/
That sounds like Greek kouloura bread with sesame. There are round like a bagel but thinner with sesame. In Greece they are awesome. Look under Greek bread kouloura with sesame. Hope this helps🌷
Hi Cindy. We know what you are referring to and have a recipe for the kouloures with sesame seed. You can find the recipe here: https://miakouppabbbwpc.wpcomstaging.com/kouloures-%CE%BA%CE%BF%CF%85%CE%BB%CE%BF%CF%8D%CF%81%CE%B5%CF%82/
Hi Helen & Billie.
Thanks for this recipe for Loukoumades.
What can I say, yum yum & yum & yum & , well you know how it is.
I did go wrong somewhere though, somewhere between sifting flour and water & yeast.
I think I got the amount of water wrong, in translation of 8 ounces of water I got dr google to change it to litres and I got 236ml.
Overall slightly dense but still very yummy.
Kids loved them.
Next time I make them (Christmas day) I’ll weigh the water 😂
Thanks again.
Harry
Hi Harry! Thanks for giving the recipe a try. If you want, head on over to our You Tube channel where you can see a video of us making the loukoumades – there you can see what the dough should look like. Perhaps that will also help. Glad that the kids loved them (that is most important!! 🙂 ) xoxo Helen & Billie
Hi great resource you’ve created here! So here’s something you might find funny. I actually had made the recipe that you posted before, and they were so tasty, and w the technique described so well, easier to make than I expected. They even tasted exactly like the delicious loukoumades they serve in our neighborhood Greek restaurant. I happily bookmarked the recipe and put it out of mind until the next time I wanted to make a treat for my family to enjoy. Fast forward to a few months ago when I clicked the bookmark, only to discover recipe gone, and then I discovered your funny story and this new recipe.
So I set out to make the new and improved loukoumades! But even following all the steps, I struggled in a way I hadn’t with the first recipe. Not to mention all the exploding oil. I’m sorry to say that i miss the former recipe you had up. It may not be true to taste and texture or technique with what your parents make, but it was a close second (for me, anyway). Help? :-)))
Hi Reg,
Thanks so much for your message, and for the laugh! We’ve sent you an email with the original (wrong 🙂 ) loukoumakes recipe. Enjoy!! xoxo Helen & Billie
I agree, please share the old recipe: lydiadivenere@gmail.com
Thank you!
Hi Lydia, will send it to your email address. Enjoy 🙂
Hi…I followed your loukoumades recipe and they were absolutely delicious! Thank you 🙂 …next time I will double the recipe.
Yay! So happy to hear that Mary! We love loukoumades, and now we’re craving some 🙂 Doubling the recipe is a great idea! xoxo Helen & Billie
Hi Helen and Billie! I love your recipes and am making the loukoumades right now. Are you able to email me the original (wrong) recipe. I think it is closer to my mom’s! LOL
Ha ha! You are not the first to ask…we should probably create a post for our “wrong” recipe! Please let us know your email address and we’ll send it along to you! xoxo Helen & Billie
Hello! I was purposefully looking for a recipe without milk so this was perfect for me! My parents never used milk in theirs either so it tastes perfect to me too!
Amazing! So happy that you found our recipe! Enjoy 🙂 xoxo Helen & Billie
I ran out of milk but wanting some loukumades, thankfully I found this recipe. And I have to admit it’s better than milk one.
It’s so fluffy and chewy even when it’s cold. Thank you so much.
How wonderful! We are so happy that you found our recipe, and enjoyed it 🙂 Hope you continue to find much more to love here with us! xoxo Helen & Billie
Hi Helen! This recipe sounds delicious but may I request the first recipe you had published (love the story behind it!). Thank you so much! bitos1254@yahoo.com
Hi Barb! THanks so much! We will email you our original recipe! Enjoy! xoxo
This by far is the best recipe.
The loucomathes are fluffy yet crispy and even taste great the next day. This is our go to recipe we make them often and share with our neighbors.
Thank you so much for your incredible recipe
Thank you Penny!!! We are so thrilled that you love our loukoumades recipe, and thank you so much for taking the time to comment 🙂 xoxo Helen & Billie
Today I made these and they were absolutely delicious. Thank you so much for sharing this wonderful recipe. It was easy to follow and straightforward. This recipe is definitely a keeper and I can’t wait to the other recipes on your site.
Hi Racquel! We are thrilled to know that you loved our loukoumades 🙂 Thanks so much for taking the time to comment, and hope you continue to find much to love here with us! Let us know 🙂 xoxo Helen & Billie
My husband is from Greece and VERY picky about his desserts. This has become our family’s only recipe for loukoumades. He says mine are better than his mom’s 😛 Practice makes perfect to get the texture of the dough just right, when you do they are so delicious!
Yay! You can’t imagine how happy this makes us! We are thrilled to know that you love our recipe for loukoumades! Thank you so much for taking the time to comment – we appreciate it! Hope you continue to find much to love here with us 🙂 xoxo Helen & Billie
Great recipe ; loved it ;and signed up on Mia Koupa….overwhelmed when I received your 1st email after
16 minutes of signing in….I am french, born in Paris, but from greek parents….(Stassinos} maiden name.
So you took back Took back to my childhood with Mother,s cooking..I also brushed up with my greek
language…being a girl scout ; we had to learn the greek language….I remember they would ask in greek
we..would answer in “french” I came into both BEST WOLDS. GREAT !!
Hi Dominique! And Bienvenue! We are actually in Montreal, Quebec and so also speak French 🙂 On espère que tu trouveras plein de recettes à aimer sur notre site web et qu’elles te rappellent plein de beaux souvenirs ! xoxo Helen & Billie
Great and tasty
So glad that you loved them Mark! Thanks so much for taking the time to comment! xoxo Helen & Billie