This Hungarian fried bread is unbelievably addictive. Once you taste it, you never forget it.
I have to say, this week has been a good week 😎. What made the week so good, you ask? I got to work on a recipe for one of my favorite foods in the world. I’m telling you, Hungarian fried bread is the best. It’s some of my favorite street food from anywhere, and I promise that it will become yours too 😀.
I actually discovered this Hungarian deep fried flat bread (otherwise know as Lángos) while I was living in Romania. I don’t think I ever actually had it in Hungary, but thankfully langos is very popular in Romania also so I never had to worry about finding it. You could find a little shop that sells it on almost every other street corner in my city. Believe me, I wasn’t mad about that 😎.
This langos recipe isn’t difficult to put together. The ingredients for the dough are pretty typical for a dough recipe. It’s pretty similar to any other fried bread recipe with yeast. Of course, there are some helpful tips that you’ll learn by reading this recipe. I’ve made a bunch of the possible mistakes so you don’t have to 😅.
Now, let’s talk about langos toppings. The most typical way of eating langos, at least for Romanian langos, is with a garlic sauce called mujdei, sour cream, and shredded cheese. It’s a killer combination when it’s put on fresh, warm langos. So, let’s get to it already.
This post is all about how to make Hungarian fried bread.
Ingredients for Hungarian Fried Bread
Hungarian Fried Bread
- Flour- You should use all-purpose flour for this recipe.
- Salt- Salt- taking bread from drab to fab since forever.
- Sugar- This adds just the smallest hint of sweetness to the dough.
- Instant yeast- I chose instant yeast for this recipe just because it’s a bit easier. It’s actually really common to use fresh yeast in langos recipes, but, honestly, I never even knew that it existed until I moved to Romania 😂. I’m just not that comfortable working with it, so I stuck to what I know.
- Milk- Milk helps to give the langos a soft, fluffy texture.
- Oil- As you’ll soon learn, oil will be your best friend when making this langos recipe.
Garlic Sauce (mujdei)
- Garlic- This garlic sauce is no joke. If you hate garlic, I would probably stay away. That would be sad though… this stuff is really the icing on the… err… garlic on the langos.
- Salt- This actually helps to sweat the garlic to bring out some of the juices.
- Oil- Like always, I like to use avocado oil when I need a neutral-tasting oil. If you want to be truly authentic, you should use sunflower oil though.
- Water- This helps to thin out the sauce just a bit.
Other
- Sour cream- This is layered on as a topping.
- Cheese- Since I couldn’t find the exact kind of cheese that would be used in Romania, I used Muenster cheese. I think pretty much any white cheese would work, though. Just make sure it’s finely shredded, and it will look and probably taste perfectly authentic.
- Oil/fat for cooking- I prefer to fry things in lard, but, again, the most authentic frying oil would be sunflower oil.
How to Make Hungarian Fried Bread
Step 1
Start by making the garlic sauce. In a small bowl mix the salt and the minced garlic together. Stir in the oil.
Smash the mixture with either a pestle or the back of a spoon. The garlic should start to turn into a sort of paste. It doesn’t have to be totally pulverized though. Once the sauce has reached a paste-ish consistency, stir in the water. This is what the finished product will look like.
Step 2
Mix the dry ingredients together in a bowl.
Step 3
Stir the warm milk into the dry ingredients. It should be between 120°-130°F for instant yeast. I recommend testing it with a meat thermometer. The dough should be sticky, but not liquid. If it’s liquid, you can add a little bit more flour, but be careful because the dough is supposed to be sticky. Knead the dough with very well-oiled hands for 3-5 minutes until it has come together nicely. Add a little oil to the top of the dough, and cover it with plastic wrap. Let the dough rise for about 1 hour.
After an hour, the dough should have risen a bit.
Step 4
Lay the dough out on a very well-oiled surface. I used a glass cutting board. Cut the dough into 4 pieces and roll them into balls. Don’t forget to oil your hands. That’s truly essential here 😂.
Step 5
Let the dough balls sit for a few minutes so that the gluten relaxes a bit and they will be easier to shape. Make space for one of the dough balls, and push it out into a disc. Again, I know I sound like a broken record, but make sure the surface is very well-oiled. Also, be careful not to make the dough too thin. The ideal size is a little under ¼ in. thick.
Be careful not to make it too thin. The ideal size is a little under ¼ in. thick. The dough will be around 9-9½ inches in width. Yes, these things are supposed to be large.
Step 6
Transfer the dough disc to your hot cooking fat. It’s ideal to fry the langos at about 400°F. When transferring the dough, don’t worry if it doesn’t keep its perfectly round shape. Langos isn’t about perfection. If the middle of your dough bubbles up in the oil, carefully push it down with a metal flipper or something similar until it’s cooked enough to stay on its own. This will prevent large unbrowned spots on your langos. Flip the langos once the bottom is a nice, golden brown. You don’t want to go too dark with this or they will get hard.
Step 7
I put the finished langos on a paper-towel-covered plate. Repeat this process with each piece until they’re all fried.
For the toppings, spread on some of the garlic sauce with a pastry brush, according to how much garlic you can handle 😁.
Continue by spreading on a layer of sour cream, and topping with the shredded cheese. Now, the langos is ready to eat! Enjoy it while it’s still warm.
Questions about Hungarian Fried Bread
What toppings do you put on langos?
The most common way to eat langos is with garlic, sour cream, and cheese. However, it can also be eaten with other toppings. You can use Nutella, powdered sugar, or jam to turn it into a sweet treat as well.
Can I store Hungarian fried bread in the fridge?
Because it’s fried, langos is ideally eaten fresh. Storing it in the fridge can make it lose its crispy texture.
How do I shape langos?
The best way to shape langos is to gently push it into shape with well-oiled hands on a well-oiled surface. Because the dough is supposed to be sticky, adding flour can alter the texture of the final product. Using oil to keep the langos from totally sticking to you is how you can avoid becoming langos yourself 😂.
If you’re looking for more delicious recipes with cheese, try these.
Caramel Cheesecake Brownie Bars
Cheesy Chicken and Cabbage Casserole
Hungarian Fried Bread
Ingredients
Garlic Sauce
- 8 cloves Garlic (minced)
- ¼ tsp. Salt
- 1 tbsp. Oil (I used avocado oil, but any neutral oil will work.)
- 1½ tbsp. Water
Langos
- 3 cups Flour
- 2 tsp. Salt
- ¾ tsp. Sugar
- 2¼ tsp. Instant yeast
- 1½ cups Milk (warmed to 120°-130°F)
- 1 tbsp. Oil (Again, I used avocado oil, but any neutral oil is fine.)
Other
- Sour cream
- Cheese (I used Muenster, but pretty much any white cheese will be ok. The cheese should be shredded finely like seen in the pictures.)
- Oil/fat (for frying)
Instructions
Garlic Sauce
- In a small bowl mix ¼ tsp. of salt and 8 cloves of minced garlic together. Stir in 1 tbsp. of oil.
- Smash the mixture with either a pestle or the back of a spoon. The garlic should start to turn into a sort of paste. It doesn't have to be totally pulverized though. Once the sauce has reached a chunky paste-ish consistency, stir in 1½ tbsp. of water. Set aside for topping.
Dough
- Mix the 3 cups of flour, 2 tsp. of salt, ¾ tsp. of sugar, and 2¼ tsp. of instant yeast together in a bowl.
- Stir the 1½ cups of warm milk into the dry ingredients. The dough should be sticky, but not liquid. If it's liquid, you can add a little bit more flour, but be careful because the dough is supposed to be sticky.
- Knead the dough with well-oiled hands for 3-5 minutes until it has come together nicely. Add a little oil to the top of the dough (you shouldn't be seeing puddles of oil though), and cover it with plastic wrap. Let the dough rise for about 1 hour.
- Lay the dough out on a well-oiled surface. I used a glass cutting board to avoid sticking, but something metal or a countertop would work too. Cut the dough into 4 pieces and roll them into balls. Don't forget to oil your hands before rolling.
- Let the dough balls sit for a few minutes so that the gluten relaxes a bit and they will be easier to shape. Make space for one of the dough balls, and push it out into a disc. Again, I know I sound like a broken record, but make sure the surface is very well-oiled. Also, be careful not to make the dough too thin. The ideal size is a little under ¼ in. thick and around 9ish inches wide.
Cooking
- Transfer the dough disc to your hot cooking fat. It's ideal to fry the langos at about 400°F. When transferring the dough, don't worry if it doesn't keep its perfectly round shape.
- If the middle of your dough bubbles up in the oil, carefully push it down with a metal flipper until it's cooked enough to stay on its own. This will prevent large unbrowned spots on your langos. Flip the langos once the bottom is a nice, golden brown. Don't let it get too dark or it will become tough.
- I put the finished langos on a paper-towel-covered plate. Repeat this process with each piece until they're all fried.
Topping
- For the toppings, spread on some of the garlic sauce with a pastry brush, according to your own taste.
- Continue by spreading on a layer of sour cream, and topping with shredded cheese. Enjoy while still warm!
I hope you enjoy your Hungarian fried bread!