Lokma is a fried dessert from Turkey made using flour, water, yeast and salt. They are mixed into a runny dough, resembling a batter. The dough is allowed to rise which gives the Lokma an airy texture.
Bite sized pieces of dough are deep fried until golden and the excess oil is drained quickly before immediately placing into syrup.
The Lokma is placed into cold syrup while still hot. This ensures that the lokma will absorb the syrup quickly. They are removed after just a couple of minutes. The syrup is made with water, sugar and flavorings which includes lemon, cinnamon, vanilla, rosewater or orange blossom water.
Lokma is also popular in some parts of the Middle East and Mediterranean. Most popular is the Greek version called Loukamades which are soaked in syrup or honey then topped with crushed nuts.
Lokma variations in different countries include toppings, such crushed nuts or chocolate drizzle. The dough might be spiced with ingredients like cardamom and shaped into rings and balls of various sizes. In Turkey, Izmir Lokması describes the variation of lokma shaped like a tiny donut while Saray Lokma describes the bite sized spheres.
Origin & Cultural Significance
The word Lokma is of Turkish origin and it translates to bite or morsel. It’s believed to have been served to sultans during the Ottoman Empire. Today, it’s eaten as dessert and it is a popular street food.
Turkish Lokma Recipe
Lokma is a sweet, fried dough dessert from Turkey. The dough is made using flour, water, yeast and salt. They are mixed into a runny dough, resembling a
batter.
Ingredients
Dough
- Water (warm) - 2 cups
- Flour- 2 ½ cups
- Yeast (instant) - 1 tsp
- Oil (for frying) - 500 ml
Syrup
- Water - 2 ½ cups
- Sugar - 2 ½ cups
- Slice of lemon - 1
Instructions
To make the syrup
- Boil the water, sugar and lemon slice in a saucepan over high heat until the sugar dissolves.
- After the sugar melts, lower the heat and simmer for 15 minutes more then remove from the fire.
- Remove the lemon slice and let it cool.
To make the dough
- Mix the water and yeast in a deep bowl.
- Add the flour little by little and whisk until it is a thick but still fluid dough.
- Cover it and let it rest for an hour.
- Heat the oil in a sauce pan.
- Put the dough in small pieces (you can squeeze through your fingers, use two spoons or a piping bag) into the hot oil and fry until well browned. Stir occasionally so that all sides get fried.
- Remove them from the oil using a slotted spoon and drain the excess oil on a rack or paper towels.
- Place them into the cold syrup immediately, mix it, keep it in the syrup for a minute or two, strain and remove from the syrup.
- Prepare the remaining dough in the same way.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 8 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 909Total Fat: 60gSaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 53gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 7mgCarbohydrates: 93gFiber: 1gSugar: 63gProtein: 4g
Nutrition is provided and calculated by Nutritionix. It is for general information purposes and is only a rough estimation.