This page may contain affiliate links. I receive a small commission at no cost to you when you make a purchase using my link. This post is about an Easy and Delicious Belizean Fry Jack Recipe!
Belize is a land of beautiful places, charming and gorgeous people, and home of INCREDIBLE CUISINE!
I fell in love with Belizean food during our 2013 trip to this magical place. I am excited to share recipes for some of Belize's most famous foods here, including this Easy and Delicious Belizean Fry Jack Recipe!
Jump to:
What Is A Fry Jack?
Fry Jack is a super delicious fried dough (fried bread) that is typically eaten for breakfast in Belize. They may be served with refried beans, cheese, and eggs. The fry jacks are also enjoyed as a sweet treat drizzled with honey and/or sprinkled with sugar!
They are made out of 6 ingredients, and are various shapes including triangular or moon shaped.
The fry jacks puff up when fried, and when torn open make a perfect pocket for whatever you would like to fill it with!
You'll definitely want to indulge in this traditional dish from Belize, which is super easy to make.
So, now let me tell you what you will need to make fry jacks!
🥘 Ingredients
You only need 6 simple ingredients to make these delicious Belizean fry jacks!
The ingredients you will need to gather (you may already have them in your pantry) are:
- All purpose flour
- Vegetable oil
- Baking powder
- Vegetable shortening
- Water
- Salt
It'll take you all of 5 minutes to gather your ingredients and measure them out. Then try to contain your excitement as we start to make one of Belize's most popular foods!
🔪 Instructions For This Belizean Fry Jack Recipe
It's super easy to make these puffy fry jacks, even to someone who is dough challenged like me!
Prepare The Dough Balls
Begin by sifting the flour, baking powder, and salt into a large mixing bowl Then break up the shortening into small pieces, and then incorporate shortening into the flour.
Use your hands to mix the shortening and flour together, until you achieve a mixture that looks and feels like cornmeal.
Then begin to add water, a little at a time, and work it with your hands until you get a lovely and soft dough. You don't want it to be sticky, which is why you add the water a bit at a time rather than all at once (you may get a sticky dough adding it all at once).
Add a little flour to your counter or the surface that you will rough the doll out on. Then divide the dough ball into 2, and then place it on the surface. Leave the dough to rest for around 15 minutes.
Roll Out The Dough
Now it's time to roll out the dough! Take your rolling pin, and roll each dough ball out into a round. The size should be around 8" in diameter. You may want to add a little flour to your hands to help minimize any stickiness.
Cut each round in half, and then in quarters, so that you will have 4 pieces to fry from each dough ball, for a total of 8 fry jacks.
Frying Your Fry Jacks
Time for the main event! Add vegetable oil to a frying pan so that the depth of the oil is around 1.5"-2". Turn up the heat to medium-high, and then let the oil get really hot.
You want the oil to get to a little over 350F before starting to fry your dough slices. If the oil is not hot enough, your fry jacks may not puff up! The oil should start bubbling prior to frying.
Add the dough pieces, and fry each side until golden brown. Feel free to use a pair of tongs to check the side that is being fried every few seconds to make sure you are getting the color you want and that the fry jack is not burning.
It's best not to crowd the pan, so you may have to fry in batches.
Drain your fry jacks of excess oil on a paper towel-line plate once you remove them from the oil, and get ready to enjoy your delicious Belizean treat!
Serving Suggestions For Your Fry Jacks!
Fry jacks are considered one of the traditional breakfast foods in Belize. So you can enjoy them served with refried beans, cheese, and eggs.
They can also be served with powdered sugar and/or honey for a sweet treat! My husband likes to break them open and then sprinkle sugar and drizzle honey into the middle of the fry jack.
Of course you can drizzle the honey and sprinkle the sugar on top. Either way, these puffy fry jacks are over the top delicious!
If you've had the pleasure of enjoying this popular Belizean breakfast bread in Belize, I hope that a taste of these fry jacks will transport you back to this beautiful place. And if you are trying these for the first time at home, I hope you might be inspired to visit Belize, a land of incredible cuisine, people, and charm!
FAQ
Fry jacks are made of simple ingredients to include flour, water, salt, shortening, and baking powder.
Fry Jacks are from the beautiful land of Belize! They are fried dough pieces traditionally served for breakfast with refried beans, cheese, and eggs. The fry jacks are also enjoyed as a sweet treat drizzled with honey and/or sprinkled with sugar!
If you don't want your fry jacks to puff up, you can cut a slit into the dough pieces before frying them.
Some Other Recipes You May Enjoy!
Here are some other Belizean recipes you may enjoy:
- Awesome Belizean Rice and Beans!
- How To Cook Delicious Belizean Stewed Chicken
- Belizean Stewed Beans
Join Me On A Fun Food Journey!
I invite you to come along on this food journey with me! Please sign up to get the latest recipes and inspiration for you to expand your food comfort zone! It's an incredible journey, please join me by signing up here.
Cheers!
Grace
Easy and Delicious Belizean Fry Jack Recipe
Equipment
- Rolling Pin
- frying pan
Ingredients
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 2 ts baking powder
- ½ tablespoon vegetable shortening I used Crisco
- ½ ts salt
- ½ cup water you may need a little less or a little more than ½ cup
- vegetable oil enough for around 1.5"-2" depth in your frying pan
Instructions
Prepare The Dough Balls
- Begin by sifting the flour, baking powder, and salt into a large mixing bowl Then break up the shortening into small pieces, and then incorporate shortening into the flour.
- Use your hands to mix the shortening and flour together, until you achieve a mixture that looks and feels like cornmeal. Then begin to add water, a little at a time, and work it with your hands until you get a lovely and soft dough. You don't want it to be sticky, which is why you add the water a bit at a time rather than all at once (you may get a sticky dough adding it all at once).
- Add a little flour to your counter or the surface that you will rough the doll out on. Then divide the dough ball into 2, and then place it on the surface. Leave the dough to rest for around 15 minutes.
Roll Out The Dough
- Now it's time to roll out the dough! Take your rolling pin, and roll each dough ball out into a round. The size should be around 8" in diameter. You may want to add a little flour to your hands to help minimize any stickiness.
- Cut each round in half, and then in quarters, so that you will have 4 pieces to fry from each dough ball, for a total of 8 fry jacks.
Frying Your Fry Jacks
- Add vegetable oil to a frying pan so that the depth of the oil is around 1.5"-2". Turn up the heat to medium-high, and then let the oil get really hot. You want the oil to get to a little over 350F before starting to fry your dough slices. If the oil is not hot enough, your fry jacks may not puff up! The oil should start bubbling prior to frying. Add the dough pieces, and fry each side until golden brown. Feel free to use a pair of tongs to check the side that is being fried every few seconds to make sure you are getting the color you want and that the fry jack is not burning. It's best not to crowd the pan, so you may have to fry in batches.
- Drain your fry jacks on a paper towel-line plate once you remove them from the oil, and get ready to enjoy your delicious Belizean treat!
Leave a Reply