Fry Bread With Cornmeal and Coconut Oil Recipe (2024)

By Kevin Noble Maillard

Fry Bread With Cornmeal and Coconut Oil Recipe (1)

Total Time
1½ hours, plus 4 hours’ cooling and rising
Rating
4(77)
Notes
Read community notes

Ingenuity is behind Indigenous fry bread. When the United States government forcibly relocated Navajos (Diné) from ancestral lands in the 19th century, Native American women invented fry bread from government-issued commodities: flour, salt, yeast and water. Today, Native Americans have reclaimed this survival food as a tasty symbol of resilience. Cooks improvise on the basic formula using ingredients based on preference and geography: Styles, sizes and shapes differ by region, tribe and family. Fry bread is comfort food, and variations are shaped by memory and connection, leading to playful jests about the “right” kind. This particular recipe has Afro-Indigenous origins with its use of sugar and cornmeal, which add sweetness and density. But raw sugar replaces white sugar, and coconut oil steps in for lard. When used for frying, the oil’s aroma announces the arrival of something special.

Featured in: Fry Bread Is Beloved, but Also Divisive

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Ingredients

Yield:About 38

  • 1cup finely ground cornmeal
  • 2(¼-ounce) envelopes instant dry yeast
  • 1cup raw sugar
  • 1teaspoon fine sea salt
  • cups all-purpose flour
  • Unrefined coconut oil, for frying (about 32 ounces)

Ingredient Substitution Guide

Nutritional analysis per serving (38 servings)

100 calories; 3 grams fat; 3 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 0 grams monounsaturated fat; 0 grams polyunsaturated fat; 16 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram dietary fiber; 4 grams sugars; 2 grams protein; 53 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Fry Bread With Cornmeal and Coconut Oil Recipe (2)

Preparation

  1. Step

    1

    In a large pot, bring 2 cups water to a boil over medium-high. While whisking, add cornmeal to boiling water. Continue whisking slowly until smooth. Reduce heat to medium, add 1½ cups cold water and cook, stirring continuously to prevent lumps, until thick, about 6 minutes. It should be the consistency of oatmeal. Remove from heat and let cool in pot.

  2. Step

    2

    Add yeast, sugar and salt to the cooled cornmeal, along with 1 to 2 tablespoons of water to moisten the mixture. Gradually add flour, stirring with a metal whisk or potato masher to get rid of as many lumps as you can. Sprinkle with water as needed to keep dough moist but thick. Cover with a damp cloth and let rise for 3 hours.

  3. Step

    3

    Once dough has risen, it should be springy and sticky. Heat 1 inch of coconut oil in a cast-iron skillet to about 350 degrees. Test the heat by dropping a small portion of dough into the oil. It should gently sizzle but not splatter. Use two large, oiled spoons to make golf-ball-size portions: Scoop the dough with one spoon and push the dough off into the hot oil with the other. Re-oil the spoons using the oil in the skillet as needed to make new balls of dough. Work in batches, leaving room in the skillet, as the balls will expand in the hot oil.

  4. Step

    4

    Fry until bottoms are cooked to your desired color (light gold, golden or dark brown), about 3 minutes for golden. Using tongs, flip balls over to cook the other side to the same color, 1 to 3 minutes. Gently lift out of the oil, shaking off excess oil, and transfer to paper towel-lined plates to drain. Eat while hot.

Ratings

4

out of 5

77

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Private Notes

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Cooking Notes

Dorothy Redhorse

As a middle age Dine (Navajo) woman, my family never adds sugar and yeast to fry bread or tortillas. Sugar and yeast were reserved for bread baked in adobe oven, which we call "nidaa baah". Whereas, fry bread is self-descriptive and call "dah diniilghaazh. Any dough, we add corn meal or wheat when we feel like adding fiber to bread.

Winula

Authentic Native fry bead does not contain sugar nor, in most cases, yeast. And, it's normally flatten out into circles before frying.

doreen from az

the Italians have the same type fry bread only we call it zeppole- my mother is from Napoli and made these on the stove using her black iron pan. She then sprinkled with sugar! I do not know if she used cornmeal. The balls looked like fried pizza! Delicious! Will try this version

lightquest

I think using white sugar would be ok. White sugar and raw sugar are the same flavor. The difference in color is simply due to processing. The main difference is that white sugar is usually finely ground. Raw sugar is usually sold in larger crystals. Similar to the difference between table salt and sea salt or Kosher salt. If you use white sugar you might reduce the amount a little as the finer sugar will more completely fill your measuring spoon than the chunkier raw sugar.

Kevin

White sugar would be completely fine! I just use the raw to make it less processed. Let me know how it turns out for you!

Debbie

In my house, these are always dusted with cinnamon sugar to which a bit of nutmeg has been added. It's a terrific Autumnal treat that way!

Gillian Zyland

With ethnic recipes, there are usually so many righteous comments on everything from ingredients to mixing order to oven times. It makes me sad that there are only 16 total comments here, and many of these sound like pretenders appropriating native culture for themselves or their I’m-124th sliver-of-Indian ways. My family was indigenous, but I’m the last on my father’s side and I don’t know of other cousins. I want the boisterous family wrangling I remember, to make the best fry bread.

Mary French

Dorothy is right! That is not Fry Bread.Having lived in Arizona for many years, I have never seen any Navajo fry bread look like that.The Navajo lamb stew is also Delicious!

SunnyEdda

Omitting the sugar and substituting baking powder for the yeast gives the recipe for Cornmeal Dumplings found throughout the Caribbean. These were fried in oil (coconut oil is my preference). Also, omitting the cornmeal and it becomes the standard flour dumplings served with breakfast, lunch or dinner. My aunt would make my male teenage cousin knead the dough until firm for boiled dumplings. These were shaped into palm sized disks, thicker in the middle, then, boiled.

jvenek

I’m making this right now with my 2 year old after reading Kevin’s book Fry Bread! We love the book and can’t wait to try his version of fry bread!!

Susan

I am married into an American Indian family. I have never seen fry bread made with yeast, only baking powder. Some cooks use plain flour, some use self-rising flour, some cooks add dried milk. The bread is fried in lard, shortening or vegetable oil.I have not eaten fry bread sweetened with sugar, but have had it with powdered sugar or honey on top after it is cooked, but only at a powwow.

Debbie

In my house, these are always dusted with cinnamon sugar to which a bit of nutmeg has been added. It's a terrific Autumnal treat that way!

Mel

Has anyone tried it gluten free?

Abra

Trying with coconut flour right now... not my fave so far lol I will see how it fries!

Caro

My grandmother, with French decendance, made this with 1 cup of all-purpose flour, 1 egg, a little bit of baking soda, 1/2 cup of sugar and a little bit of milk to incorporate everything and the dough hangs from the tablespoon. And fries it in regular oil.

Winula

Authentic Native fry bead does not contain sugar nor, in most cases, yeast. And, it's normally flatten out into circles before frying.

Tamara

I noticed that you mentioned this was an Afro Indigenous dish. This recipe reminds me of hush puppies. A side that my grandmother and great grandmother made often for Sunday meals and family gatherings. I am keen to try this yeast version. Thanks for sharing your grandmother's recipe with us.

Dorothy Redhorse

As a middle age Dine (Navajo) woman, my family never adds sugar and yeast to fry bread or tortillas. Sugar and yeast were reserved for bread baked in adobe oven, which we call "nidaa baah". Whereas, fry bread is self-descriptive and call "dah diniilghaazh. Any dough, we add corn meal or wheat when we feel like adding fiber to bread.

Mary French

Thanks Dorothy. I have lived in Arizona for many years and have never seen anything called fry bread look like that.

doreen from az

the Italians have the same type fry bread only we call it zeppole- my mother is from Napoli and made these on the stove using her black iron pan. She then sprinkled with sugar! I do not know if she used cornmeal. The balls looked like fried pizza! Delicious! Will try this version

Susan

My pantry has everything except raw sugar. What would happen if I used regular sugar instead?

lightquest

I think using white sugar would be ok. White sugar and raw sugar are the same flavor. The difference in color is simply due to processing. The main difference is that white sugar is usually finely ground. Raw sugar is usually sold in larger crystals. Similar to the difference between table salt and sea salt or Kosher salt. If you use white sugar you might reduce the amount a little as the finer sugar will more completely fill your measuring spoon than the chunkier raw sugar.

Kevin

White sugar would be completely fine! I just use the raw to make it less processed. Let me know how it turns out for you!

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Fry Bread With Cornmeal and Coconut Oil Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is the best oil for fried bread? ›

Try avocado oil, peanut oil, sunflower seed oil, or ghee, which makes a delightful toast that I could eat topped with leftover saag every single day. If you've only got olive oil to work with, consider doctoring the flavor slightly by adding something extra before crisping your bread.

Why does my fry bread come out hard? ›

Don't over-knead—Be careful not to knead the dough too much because the bread will be hard and tough. More flour—The dough is sticky but easy to work with; keep your hands and work surface well-floured.

How did Native Americans make fry bread? ›

According to Navajo tradition, frybread was created in 1864 using the flour, sugar, salt and lard that was given to them by the United States government when the Navajo, who were living in Arizona, were forced to make the 300-mile journey known as the "Long Walk" and relocate to Bosque Redondo, New Mexico, onto land ...

How do you fry bread without absorbing oil? ›

Then brown each side. Beat an egg and pour onto a dinner size plate, drop the bread in flat and then turn to coat the other side. Then fry as normal, not much oil is absorbed this way. An egg tends to do about 2 standard slices.

Is it better to fry bread with butter or oil? ›

“Unlike the dry toast you can make in a toaster (or under the broiler in your oven), slices fried in oil are rich and luxurious; that bit of extra fat goes a long way in the flavor department.” Vaculin prefers oil over butter for her fried bread.

What is Navajo fry bread made of? ›

Combine flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl; mix in milk to form a soft dough. Divide dough into eighteen 2-inch diameter balls; flatten or roll each ball into 1/2-inch-thick rounds. Make a small hole in the center of each round to help keep them flat while frying.

Can you leave fry bread dough out overnight? ›

Let the dough relax.

Lay a clean dish towel over the top of the bowl and set it in a warm, dry place so the dough can rest for 10 minutes. The dough doesn't need to sit for longer than 10 minutes. It should be used within an hour or two and fried fresh. The fry bread won't taste as good if you let it sit overnight.

Why is my fry bread dough so sticky? ›

Overly sticky dough is normally caused by a combination of using the wrong flour and using too much water. I discuss these points in more detail above but in short: choose a flour that's produced for bread baking. These are normally labelled “Bread” or “Strong” flour.

Why is my fry bread hollow? ›

If the area is too warm, bread will rise too fast and begin cooking before the yeast has finished acting. Then, when placed to bake in the oven, the "over spring" is exaggerated and large air pockets form inside the dough.

Why was the book fry bread banned? ›

Fry Bread (2019) by Kevin Noble Maillard (Seminole)

School board has put the book donations on hold due to parents claiming the organization to be “a Marxist organization that promotes critical Race Theory.”

Why do Indians eat fry bread? ›

To prevent the indigenous populations from starving, the government gave them canned goods as well as white flour, processed sugar and lard—the makings of frybread.

What tribe invented fry bread? ›

The Navajo created frybread in 1864 when the U.S. government initiated the reservation system and food commodities for the tribes after disrupting their way of life.

What happens if you put too much oil in bread? ›

What happens if you put too much oil in bread dough? It will be too fatty. As the amount of oil increases, the gluten network won't be able to form right either so your bread ends up increasingly crumbly as the oil content goes up - and it won't rise as well.

Can you add too much oil to bread? ›

When too much oil is added, the dough will remain loose and unworkable. The only way to fix it would be to add some more flour, however you would need work the dough longer to encourage the gluten network to develop (given that some of the flour will be already coated with the oil).

Is Fried Bread good for you? ›

Health Problems

Fry bread can be eaten alone or as part of a meal, or can be dessert topped with butter, cinnamon and sugar or perhaps honey. Fry bread is tempting to most people because of the grease/lard/shortening ingredient and therein lies the problem. Not only is fry bread high in fat, it is also caloric.

Is olive oil good for frying bread? ›

Better than toast! Frizzling edges, fresh olive oil deep into pockets with a soft, chewy inside and crispy edges on the outside. For endless options, use one of our infused oils like Garlic or Herbes de Provence. You'll never go back to plain toast with your eggs!

Is bread fried in olive oil good for you? ›

While there are clearly healthier ways to cook foods, frying food with olive oil is unlikely to be significantly bad for your health.

Is canola oil good for frying bread? ›

Heat canola oil. Sprinkle a little flour on the oil to test whether it's hot enough; it should sizzle when the oil is ready for frying. Divide dough into 8 portions, shape as desired and fry until golden brown on both sides. Immediately remove from oil and drain well on paper towels.

Do you use olive oil or vegetable oil for bread? ›

You know that you can cook with olive oil — but did you know that you can bake with it? You can bake cookies, bread, cakes and more with olive oil.

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