Chicken Pesto Doughnuts
Yes. You read that right, Chicken Pesto Doughnuts. I kind of freaked out when my mother told me she was making them and invited myself over for dinner. Imagining some strange Frankenstein concoction of mangled chicken pieces in fried dough slathered with pesto, I went.
They were so much better than I expected.
Fluffy fried dough on the outside, cheesy, gooey, chicken and pesto on the inside, they were amazing.
She adapted them from Nadiya’s Pulled Chicken Doughnuts, winner of the Great British Bake-off and host of the BBC TV Series Nadiya Bakes.
Like anything involving a yeasted bread, you’ll have much more success with kitchen scales than your measuring cups in the first few steps.
Now Jennifer’s Chicken Pesto Doughnuts:
Look - the cheese even melts!
Makes 12
Active time 35 mins, rising time 2 hours, cook time 40 mins
Enriched dough:
4.5 cups (550g) strong bread flour - I used King Arthur's bread flour, plus extra for dusting
1 ½ sticks (175g) unsalted butter, softened
1/3 cup (60g) granular sugar
1 tsp fine salt
3 tsp (14g) fast-action yeast
4 eggs, lightly beaten
½ cup (100ml) cold water
Filling:
2 cups (280g) Shredded rotisserie chicken breast, 1 large or 2 small breasts
3 Tbsp Vegetaball’s Pesto (spicy or regular)
3 Tbsp Mayo
Savory topping:
1 tsp dried granular garlic
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp red pepper flakes (optional)
Directions:
Start by making the dough. Put the flour in a bowl, add the butter and rub in with your fingers until there are no big butter chunks remaining.
Now add the sugar and salt to one side of the bowl and the yeast to the other side. Mix thoroughly and then make a well in the center. Mix the eggs and water in a jug, then pour into the well and mix with the dry ingredients until the dough roughly comes together.
If using a mixer with a dough hook knead for 6 minutes on medium speed. Otherwise it takes about 10 mins kneading by hand (dough starts out very sticky).
Place in a greased bowl and leave to rise in a warm place covered with a wet tea towel or greased plastic wrap.
Meanwhile, make the filling by shredding the chicken with 2 forks. Now add the pesto and mayo and give it all a good mix. Cover and set aside in the fridge.
Once the dough has doubled in size, tip out onto a floured work surface. Roll the dough into a sausage shape and cut out 12 equal portions of around 90g each. Making them the same size is important if you want them to fry evenly.
Have a lined and greased baking sheet ready. Roll out a dough ball to a circle about 5 inches. Add a tablespoon of chicken mix into the center. Gently lift up the edges of the dough from all around the sides and seal the chicken inside, pinching firmly in the center. Pop it on the tray, pinched side up.
Do this to the rest of them, then pop the tray into the fridge for 1 hour.
In the meantime, make the topping by mixing the garlic, basil, salt, sugar and red pepper flakes.
Just before the hour is up, add the oil to a medium sized pan. Make sure the oil is not higher than halfway up the sides. Heat the oil on a medium heat – if you are using a thermometer you want the oil to reach 300°F (150°C). But if not, you can drop a piece of bread into the oil and if it sizzles and rises to the top, the oil is ready.
Prepare a baking tray lined with paper towel to drain the doughnuts on. Preheat the oven to 350°F (160 °C).
Gently place a doughnut into the oil, pinched side up. Don’t overcrowd the pan, just do two or three at a time.
Cook the doughnuts gently for 6 minutes until golden brown all over. Turn them over or push them down into the oil using a slotted spoon to cook the top. When ready, take out and pop onto the paper to drain, then pop in the oven for 10 minutes to finish cooking through, removing the kitchen paper first. While still piping hot, sprinkle with the savory topping.
Allow to cool down a bit, then eat them lukewarm, or even totally cooled.
Leftovers are even great the next day!