Panzerotti are a leavened preparation of the Apulian cuisine, ideal to enrich an aperitif or a tasty appetizer. Born as a mostly humble dish, they have become a must of street food made in Puglia!
These are small calzones of dough filled with tomato and mozzarella and fried in oil. The result is crispy, golden crescents that win you over bite after bite. To enjoy them, however, you do not need to come to Puglia, as they are extremely easy to prepare even at home.
Perfect for young and old, they can be stuffed in many different ways as there are many variations. If you want, you can use the same dough to create a sweet version with ricotta, chocolate or jams. The recipe for Apulian panzerotti is therefore very simple and requires few ingredients.
Doses for 12 panzerotti
- 500 g of flour
- 300 ml of water
- 3 g dry brewer's yeast/10 g fresh yeast
- 1 tablespoon of olive oil
- 1 teaspoon of sugar
- 10 g of salt
- 300 g of mozzarella cheese
- 200 g of tomato puree
- Pepper
- Oregano
- Seed oil for frying
To begin, you need to combine flour, brewer's yeast and sugar in a bowl. Mix the ingredients with your hands. In another bowl pour the water, add salt and oil and mix. Pour in the flour we had set aside and mix until you get a bun smooth and homogeneous.
Place the dough on the work surface to knead it energetically for about 10 minutes. Then transfer it to a bowl, carve a cross on the surface and cover it with plastic wrap. The dough should rise for 2 hours in a warm place or until doubled in volume.
After the leavening, move the loaf to a floured pastry board, knead it for a couple of minutes with your hands and compose a loaf from which you will make balls of 80 g each (should be 10-12 balls).
Place the balls on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and let them rise again for 20 minutes. In the meantime, you can turn to preparing the stuffing. In a bowl put the diced mozzarella, tomato puree, salt, pepper and oregano. Stir with a spoon and keep aside.
At this point you need to take the balls again and roll them out with a rolling pin to make small disks that are not too thin. In the center of each put the filling and wet the edges with water. Then close them with your fingers, forming some crescents. Seal each panzerotto well with the help of a fork. Meanwhile, heat the seed oil in a frying pan. To tell when it reaches the right temperature, we recommend dipping a wooden toothpick in it. If bubbles form around the tip of the toothpick, the oil is ready for frying. The ideal temperature is around 170°C.
Dip the panzerotti and make them fry on both sides for about 4 minutes. When they are well browned you can remove them from the heat. Move them to a tray covered with paper towels to remove excess oil.
It is recommended that they be brought to the table still warm in order to appreciate their stringy heart. Enjoy!
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