lángos — Hungary

Lángos is a round, flat piece of dough deep-fried in oil until it puffs up with a blistered, golden surface and a soft, slightly chewy centre. It is made from a yeasted dough of wheat flour, sometimes enriched with mashed potato, which gives the fried disc extra softness and a faint sweetness under the crust. The dish is reported from Hungary and is also common across central Europe, sold from street stalls, market stands and stalls at fairs and festivals. It is closely tied to eating out rather than to home cooking, since deep-frying a large disc of dough calls for more oil and space than most kitchens keep on hand. To prepare it, the dough is kneaded from flour, yeast, warm water or milk, salt, a little sugar and, where used, mashed potato, then left to rise until roughly doubled. Portions are stretched or rolled into flat discs, sometimes poked with the fingers to keep them from puffing unevenly, and lowered into hot oil, where they are turned once until both sides are deep gold. What distinguishes this version is the topping applied straight after frying: the hot disc is brushed with garlic water or crushed garlic in oil, then piled with sour cream (tejföl) and grated cheese, with variations adding shredded cabbage, ham or a dusting of paprika. Further east, the same fried dough turns up under the name langallo, with the same base recipe and largely the same toppings.