First, I had expected a sweet fried dough, but it turned out to be a delicious cheesy flavor that I encountered inside. Secondly, the texture wasn't like a typical doughnut that I'm used to from the United States. Since buñuelos are made from tapioca flour, they have a chewier, almost spongy texture, unlike the fluffier doughnut texture we may be accustomed to in the U.S. I felt very happy as I ate my fried ball of buñuelo, enjoying the slightly crisp fried exterior that encapsulated a soft and cheesy dough, still steaming hot from the fryer.
My friend Jennifer showed my friends and me how to make buñuelos when we visited her home in the countryside. Jennifer began by preparing a dough out of tapioca flour, corn flour, a few eggs, water, and-— most importantly— aged crumbly queso fresco. She kneaded the dough until all of the ingredients were well-mixed and formed into a cohesive mass of dough. At the same time, she had a pot of oil heating on the stove. She consistently checked the oil to make sure that it reached the correct temperature for frying.
Once the dough was prepared and the oil was sufficiently hot, Jennifer used the palms of her hands to roll pieces of dough into golfball-sized balls. She then dropped the balls of dough into the oil, and they began to fry. She continued to check on the frying buñuelos every few minutes, occasionally turning them in the oil to make sure all sides were equally fried. A buñuelo is done once the entire ball has a crispy, light brown exterior. Once all of the buñuelos were fried, Jennifer placed them in a bowl and served them to us with breakfast. Yum!
