Name: Picarones
Prep time: 35 min
Cook time: 65 min
Total time: 190 min
Cuisine: Peruvian cuisine
Ingredients: 350 g peeled camote (sweet potato), diced; 250 g peeled zapallo squash, diced; 750 ml water, for boiling and reserving as dough liquid; 400 g plain wheat flour; 8 g instant dry yeast; 30 g granulated sugar; 3 g anise seeds; 3 g fine salt; 350 g chancaca (unrefined cane-sugar block), chopped; 260 ml water, for syrup; 2 g whole cloves; 5 g cinnamon stick; 50 ml fresh orange juice; 900 ml neutral frying oil, for deep-frying; approximately 105 g retained by full batch

Peruvian picarones with sweet potato and chancaca syrup

Yield 16 rings

Prep time 35 minutes

Cook time 65 minutes

Passive time 90 minutes

Total time 190 minutes

Ingredients ↓

Overview

Peruvian picarones with sweet potato and chancaca syrup

Picarones are fried Peruvian dough rings made distinctive by the combination of camote, or sweet potato, and zapallo squash. The vegetables give colour and moisture to a yeasted dough. A chancaca syrup scented with warm spices completes the dessert; without that syrup the result loses a defining flavour.

Unlike a stiff bread dough, the mixture is sticky and elastic. Properly developed gluten and an unhurried rise make it possible to pull the batter into open rings. The water in which the vegetables were cooked also carries some of their flavour into the dough, so it is reserved rather than discarded.

Small rings and steady oil temperature help the thickest part cook before the outside becomes too dark. Chancaca is unrefined cane sugar sold in blocks, sometimes labelled panela. It contributes deeper cane and caramel notes than white sugar; plain white-sugar syrup is not an equal culinary substitute.

Ingredients

Dough

350 g peeled camote (sweet potato), diced
250 g peeled zapallo squash, diced
750 ml water, for boiling and reserving as dough liquid
400 g plain wheat flour
8 g instant dry yeast
30 g granulated sugar
3 g anise seeds
3 g fine salt

Syrup

350 g chancaca (unrefined cane-sugar block), chopped
260 ml water, for syrup
2 g whole cloves
5 g cinnamon stick
50 ml fresh orange juice

Frying

900 ml neutral frying oil, for deep-frying; approximately 105 g retained by full batch

Method

Cook the two vegetables.Put 350 g diced camote and 250 g squash with 750 ml water into a covered pan. Simmer for 18 minutes, then drain into a jug, reserving exactly 250 ml of cooking liquid for the dough and discarding the excess liquid. Both vegetables crush easily with a fork and no hard pieces remain.
Mash and mix a smooth dough.Mash the warm vegetables. Mix in 400 g flour, 8 g yeast, 30 g sugar, 3 g anise and 3 g salt. Gradually work in the reserved 250 ml vegetable cooking liquid, kneading or beating for 10 minutes until the dough is stretchy and sticky. The dough draws into elastic strands when lifted and holds no dry pockets.
Let the dough become airy.Cover the bowl and let the dough rest in a draft-free mild room for 90 minutes, until puffy and clearly aerated; use a sufficiently large bowl because the mass expands. The dough is noticeably inflated and has many fine bubbles beneath the surface.
Cook the chancaca syrup.In a separate saucepan place 350 g chancaca, 260 ml water, 2 g cloves, 5 g cinnamon stick and 50 ml orange juice. Simmer for 20 minutes, then strain out the whole spices. The syrup coats a spoon in a thin glossy layer rather than running like plain water.
Heat the frying oil.In a deep pan heat 900 ml neutral oil to 175 °C. Set a tray and wire rack alongside; have a small bowl of clean water ready to dampen fingers for shaping. A thermometer reads 175 °C and the oil is stable without smoking. Keep water away from the hot oil itself and never allow splashes into the pan.
Shape and fry the rings.With lightly damp fingers lift small handfuls of the elastic dough, make a central opening and lower them close to the oil surface. Fry in four batches of four rings, around 6 minutes per batch, turning as needed. Each picarón is inflated, evenly deep golden and no longer doughy at its thickest point. Avoid crowding and use long-handled tools to prevent oil burns.
Drain without compressing.Lift the rings onto a wire rack for a short drain and keep them in a single layer. Do not stack the hot rings or seal them inside a covered bowl. The exterior stays crisp and excess surface oil falls onto the tray.
Serve with syrup.Put two picarones on each of eight plates and spoon over an equal share of the warm, strained chancaca syrup immediately before serving. Syrup glazes the surface but the airy centre remains visible when broken.

Practical

Success points

Allow the dough to become visibly aerated before trying to shape it. Keep shaping hands only lightly damp, far from the bubbling oil. Fry in several small loads; count all loads in the cooking time.

Practical guidance

Serve the rings warm, two per plate, with the spiced syrup drizzled at the last moment. The centre should be tender and open-textured, while the outer surface is crisp enough to resist immediate soaking. The syrup can be made ahead, cooled and refrigerated, then rewarmed gently. The dough is best fried after its scheduled rise rather than kept warm indefinitely; continued fermentation changes both flavour and texture. Leftover cooked rings lose crispness quickly. Refrigerate promptly and eat within one day after reheating thoroughly; syrup is best stored separately in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to three days. If using a block sold as panela rather than Peruvian chancaca, verify that it is unrefined cane sugar; its mineral flavour and thickness can differ. Do not replace the sweet potato or squash with plain water alone because that would remove the vegetable base of the dough.

Control points

Dense interiorYeast had not raised the dough enough or oil was excessively hot. Wait for visible bubbles and monitor the oil.
Greasy ringsOil was too cool or the pan was overcrowded. Fry fewer at 175 °C and drain on a rack.

Nutrition per serving

Serving sizetwo rings and one-eighth of syrup
Calories450 kcal
Carbohydrates79 g
Protein6 g
Fat13 g
Fibre4 g
Sodium180 mg

Allergens and food safety

Wheat (gluten); confirm flour cross-contact and any labelled ingredients. Use a deep pan with generous headroom. Keep liquid away from hot oil; never add wet dough with dripping hands. Keep children away from the pan, and serve hot oil-fried food only after draining.

Closing

Result: Fried rings of fermented camote and squash dough served with chancaca syrup.
Key control: Allow the dough to become visibly aerated before trying to shape it.