Luqaimat are yeasted dough balls fried until crisp, glazed with date syrup and sprinkled with sesame seeds, a dessert tied to Ramadan and served with gahwa.
Also in: Dubai.
The story of Luqaimat
Luqaimat means small bites in Arabic. The dish descends from luqmat al-qadi, the judge's morsels, which al-Baghdadi described in the 13th century, and the same fried dough became lokma in Turkey and loukoumades in Greece. In the Gulf, luqaimat are little changed from those recipes and are often spiced with cardamom or saffron. The Michelin Guide describes the Emirati version as crunchy outside, soft and airy inside, glazed with date syrup and eaten with Arabic coffee, a dessert tied to Ramadan and special occasions.
How to make Luqaimat
Serves: Makes about 40
Ingredients
- 300g plain flour
- 60g fine semolina
- 1 teaspoon instant yeast
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- Half teaspoon salt
- Half teaspoon ground cardamom
- A large pinch of saffron threads, ground
- 300ml warm water
- 1 litre neutral oil for frying
- 200ml date syrup (dibs)
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
Method
- Mix the flour, semolina, yeast, sugar, salt, cardamom and saffron. Beat in the warm water to a thick, smooth, sticky batter.
- Cover and leave in a warm place for 1 hour 15 minutes until doubled and bubbly.
- Heat the oil to about 180C. Wet a spoon and a hand, scoop a walnut-sized ball of batter and drop it in.
- Fry in batches for 3 to 4 minutes, turning, until deep golden and crisp. Drain on paper.
- Pile the hot luqaimat on a plate, pour over the date syrup and scatter with sesame seeds. Serve at once with Arabic coffee.
Editor tip. Keep the oil at a steady 180C: cooler oil makes greasy, heavy balls, and hotter oil browns the shell before the middle cooks.
The editor picks for Luqaimat in Abu Dhabi are still in research. Meanwhile, see the Abu Dhabi signature-dishes index or the Abu Dhabi food guide.