Bolinho de ChuvaRainy Day Fritters
Rustic Cinnamon-Sugar Dough Fritters from the Farm Kitchen.
When the rain came to the farm kitchen, the fritters came with it: a batter of eggs, milk and flour dropped by the spoonful into hot oil and rolled in cinnamon sugar. Bolinho de chuva is less a recipe than a reflex — the Brazilian child's first cooking memory, made by grandmothers who never measured.
Ingredients
- 2 eggs
- 4 tbsp sugar
- 200 ml whole milk
- 280 g all-purpose flour
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 1 pinch fine sea salt
- 1.5 liters neutral oil, for frying
- 4 tbsp sugar mixed with 1 tsp ground cinnamon, for rolling
Method
- Make a thick batterWhisk the eggs and sugar until pale, whisk in the milk, then fold in the flour, baking powder, and salt into a thick spoonable batter — it should fall slowly from the spoon.
- Heat the oilBring the oil to 170°C — a drop of batter should rise slowly, sizzling, not brown instantly.
- Fry in spoonfulsDrop the batter in heaped teaspoons, a few at a time. They will puff, turn themselves, and cook to deep gold in 3 to 4 minutes.
- Roll hotDrain briefly and roll in cinnamon sugar while still hot — it will not stick to a cold fritter.
Questions
How long does Bolinho de Chuva take?
About 15 minutes of prep and 15 minutes of cooking — 30 minutes total, yielding 20 fritters.
Why the name 'rain fritters'?
They are the canonical rainy-afternoon project — pantry batter, hot oil, cinnamon sugar, children underfoot. The name is the recipe's occasion.
Can I make the batter ahead?
About 30 minutes, no more — the baking powder's lift is on a clock. Fry in small batches straight from the bowl.