Cireng
Fried tapioca snacks
Cireng (aci digoreng): Bandung's chewy fried tapioca snacks with sweet-hot rujak sauce
The name is Sundanese shorthand for 'fried tapioca', and in Bandung cireng is sold from carts outside schools and campuses, eaten piping hot from a paper cone. A garlicky scalded tapioca dough is shaped into flat ovals and fried until the outside is crisp and blistered while the inside stays stretchy and mochi-like. The dipping sauce is a quick rujak of palm sugar, tamarind and chilli. Chef's tip: use truly boiling water to scald the starch; with merely hot water the dough stays crumbly and the cireng turn hard as stones once fried.
- Total time
- 30 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
For the dough
- 9 oz tapioca starchplus extra for dusting
- 2 cloves garliccrushed to a paste
- 2 spring onionsfinely sliced
- 1 tsp salt
- ¾ cup boiling water
- 2 cups vegetable oilfor frying
For the rujak sauce
- 2 ⅛ oz palm sugargrated
- 1 tbsp tamarind paste
- 3 bird's-eye chilliescrushed
- ¼ tsp salt
- ¼ cup water
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Method
0/7 doneStep 1: For the sauce, simmer 2 ⅛ oz palm sugar, 1 tbsp tamarind paste, 3 bird's-eye chillies, ¼ tsp salt and ¼ cup water in a small pan over a low heat, stirring, until the sugar melts and the sauce is syrupy enough to coat a spoon. Leave to cool.
5 minStep 2: Mix 200 g of 7 oz tapioca starch in a bowl with 2 cloves garlic, 2 spring onions and 1 tsp salt.
Step 3: Pour in ¾ cup boiling water at a rolling boil and stir quickly with a wooden spoon until it forms a sticky, lumpy mass. Leave for a minute until cool enough to handle.
Step 4: Knead in the remaining 1 ¾ oz tapioca starch a spoonful at a time until the dough is smooth and no longer sticks to your hands. It will feel springy and slightly rubbery.
Step 5: Pinch off walnut-sized pieces and flatten into ovals about 5 mm thick. Dust them with a little starch so they don't stick.
Step 6: Heat 2 cups vegetable oil in a wok over a medium heat to about 325°F. Fry the cireng in batches, turning, until puffed, pale golden and crisp outside. Keep them moving and don't crank the heat: they can pop if the oil is too hot.
5 minStep 7: Drain and serve straight away with the rujak sauce for dipping; they firm up as they cool.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 380 kcal
- Protein
- 0 g
- Carbs
- 76 g
- Fat
- 9 g
- Fibre
- 1 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does cireng take?
- About 30 minutes in total: 15 minutes to prepare and 15 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegan?
- Yes. It has no meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of garlic?
- ½ tsp garlic paste or ⅛ tsp garlic powder per clove.
- What can I use instead of spring onions?
- Chives, or a little finely sliced onion.
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