“Koeksisters don’t count as carbs or sugars, koeksisters count as heritage, as culture, as family and history.”
Koeksisters are a beloved South African treat, known for their crisp, golden exterior and irresistibly sweet, syrup-soaked center. This traditional recipe captures the authentic texture and flavor that have made koeksisters a favourite for generations. Perfect for special occasions or weekend baking, these braided delights offer a satisfying crunch followed by a burst of sticky sweetness in every bite.
The Magic of Koeksisters
Koeksisters are a standout in South African cuisine, celebrated for their distinctive braided shape and glossy, syrup-laden finish. This recipe has been carefully crafted to achieve the perfect balance between a crisp outer shell and a luscious, sweet interior. With clear steps and reliable results, it’s an ideal choice for both seasoned bakers and those exploring traditional recipes for the first time.
Worth Every Moment
There are two main stages. First, you make your syrup by boiling and then simmering sugared water until it has a syrupy consistency. Adding a touch of glycerine to this syrup mixture is a great trick for giving your finished and dipped koeksisters that candied shine. Then separate your syrup into two batches before refrigerating.
Secondly, you make your cookie dough like batter. This starts with mixing your dry ingredients, such as flour and baking powder, with butter. Followed by the addition of a milk and egg mix. Try to not overhandle your dough while mixing. Once your dough is mixed and has been refrigerated for at least an hour, it’s as simple as rolling it out and cutting strips that have the same width as thickness. Then platting your strips into a twisted shape before deep-frying and dipping..
The Trick to Making Perfect Koeksisters
Once you have your twisted strips of batter ready, all that is left is the deep frying and syrup dipping. The key here is that you don’t want your oil to mix with the sugary syrup mix. The best way to avoid this is to keep your oil hot and your syrup cool. So as soon as a koeksister is done with its 6-7 minutes of deep-frying, you remove it and quickly dip it into the cool candied syrup mixture. Once you have gone through your first half of batter your sugar coating will most likely have gotten a bit warm, so you can whip out the second bowl of still cold syrup and continue.
If you have a craving for something super sweet and want to try one of our other treats, have a look at our Homemade Chocolate Nougat. I seriously doubt you will disappointed!
Ingredients
For the Syrup:
- 4 cups sugar
- 1 cup water
- 1 tsp cream of tartar
- ½ tsp tartaric acid
- 1 tsp vanilla essence / 1 teaspoon grated orange / lemon rind / 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon / ⅓ teaspoon ground ginger
For the Koeksister Batter:
- 1 large egg
- 2 cups flour
- 6 tbsp milk
- 6 tbsp butter
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- Oil for deep frying
Instructions
Syrup
Mix dry ingredients with water, boil, then simmer 10 minutes until syrupy. Add glycerine for shine. Chill overnight (make 2 batches for extra cold syrup). Keep syrup on ice while dipping—swap when it warms.
Dough
Sift flour, baking powder, salt. Rub in butter. Mix egg + milk, add lightly. Chill dough 1 hour. Roll 5 mm thick, cut strips, plait (about 8 cm long or mini with 2 strips).
Fry & Dip
Heat oil, fry 6–7 minutes until golden. Dip hot koeksisters straight into cold syrup, remove quickly, and cool on a rack. Swap syrup halfway to keep it icy.
Best Koeksisters Recipe – Classic South African Syrup-Soaked Treats
Ingredients
Method
- Add the dry ingredients to the water and bring the mixture to a boil.
- Allow it to simmer for 10 minutes or until syrupy, 5 to 10ml glycerine can be added before you remove it from the stove for a shiny koeksister.
- Set the syrup aside to cool in the fridge at least the night before.
- Make two lots, or use only half, because the secret is to have the syrup as cold as possible. While dipping, not only change your syrup when it becomes warm but also keep the syrup placed in a bowl of ice and change utensils, as you do not want the syrup to be mixed with the oil.
- Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt into a mixing bowl. Rub in the butter with your fingertips.
- Beat an egg thoroughly and add it to the milk. Add this to the flour mixture, taking care to handle as little as possible.
- efrigerate the dough for at least one hour.
- Roll out the dough to a thickness of 5mm. Cut into strips that are approximately 5mm wide and cut each strip into three lengthways, plait the pieces pressing the cut ends together firmly when platted must be plus-minus 80mm long or make Minnie sized koeksisters, then you plat with only 2 strips.
- Remember to fry in batches of 6 in the hot oil for 6 to 7 minutes, or until dark golden brown, keep the rest of the unbaked koeksisters covered to prevent them from drying out while baking.
- Deep-fry the koeksisters in the oil until golden brown.
- Dip the koeksisters into the cold syrup, for a few seconds, whilst they are still hot. (Out the hot in the cold)
- Remove from the syrup with a slotted spoon immediately and place on a wire rack… In this method, you will still have the sweetness but will taste the biscuit of the koeksister. The syrup will gradually become hot, so when you have done about half of the koeksisters take the remaining syrup from the fridge and use this for the balance of the koeksisters.