The sweet fried dumpling that goes with everything. Our base recipe plus two variations the truck regulars already know about.
Festival is the sweet fried dumpling that appears alongside almost everything we serve. It has no business being as good as it is – it is essentially flour, cornmeal, sugar, and a pinch of salt, fried. But done properly, it is one of the most satisfying things on the plate.
The Base Recipe
Two cups plain flour. Half a cup fine cornmeal. Two tablespoons caster sugar. One teaspoon salt. One teaspoon baking powder. Enough cold water to bring it together – not too wet, not crumbly. Rest it for twenty minutes before shaping.
Shape into small logs, not balls. The elongated shape gives you more surface area and a better crust-to-interior ratio. Fry in neutral oil at 170C. Four minutes per side. They should float when they are done.
The Coconut Version
Replace a quarter of the water with coconut milk. The result is subtly sweeter and has a faint coconut flavour that works particularly well with curry goat.
The Scotch Bonnet Version
This one is not on the menu because most people find it confusing – sweet dough with heat? But the regulars know to ask. Half a scotch bonnet, seeds removed, finely minced, into the dough. The sweetness and the heat together are better than either alone.