Priganice (fried dough puffs)

Name: Priganice (fried dough puffs)
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 1 h 35 min
Ingredients: 400 g all-purpose flour; 7 g dried yeast; 1 tsp sugar; 1 tsp salt; 380 ml water, lukewarm; 1000 ml sunflower oil; 120 g honey (optional); 150 g feta (optional)

Vegetarian

Приганице · Priganice

Light, airy puffs of yeast batter fried golden and served warm with honey, cheese or jam for breakfast.

Priganice (fried dough puffs) is a Montenegrin bread from Montenegro, ready in about 1 hour 35 minutes and made with all-purpose flour, dried yeast and sugar. It serves 6 and is rated intermediate to cook.

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Prep: 10 min
Cook: 25 min
Rest: 1 h
Total: 1 h 35 min
Serves: 6
Level: Intermediate
Calories: 367

Ingredients

6 servings

400 g All-purpose flour (opens in a new tab)Contains wheat, gluten
7 g Dried yeast (opens in a new tab)
1 tsp (4 g) Sugar (opens in a new tab)
1 tsp (6 g) Salt (opens in a new tab)
380 ml Water (opens in a new tab), lukewarm
1000 ml Sunflower oil (opens in a new tab)For deep-frying.
120 g Honey (opens in a new tab) (optional)
150 g Feta (opens in a new tab) (optional)Or fresh white cheese.Contains milk

Equipment

Method

1
Step 1
Whisk the flour, yeast, sugar (opens in a new tab) and salt, then beat in the warm water to make a thick, sticky batter. Cover and leave to rise for about 1 hour until bubbly and doubled.
- 5 min
How it looks · Photo: Kampus Production on Pexels
2
Step 2
Heat the oil in a deep pot to 170 °C.
- 8 min
- 170°C
- Stockpot / large pot (opens in a new tab)
- Food thermometer (opens in a new tab)
Food safety: Use a deep pot no more than a third full of oil and keep children away.
3
Step 3
Dip a spoon in oil, scoop walnut-sized pieces of batter and drop them into the oil. Fry in batches, turning, for 3–4 minutes until puffed and golden. Drain on paper.
- 18 min
4
Step 4
Serve warm with honey (opens in a new tab) for drizzling and cheese alongside.
- 1 min
How it looks · Photo: Willians Huerta on Pexels

About this dish

Origin: Montenegro · Commonly attributedVery similar fried yeast doughs (uštipci, mekike, mekici) are made across the Balkans.Also popular in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, CroatiaMore food from Montenegro
Dish: Breakfast · Snack · Breads & flatbreads · Sweets & confectionery
Cooking method: Deep-fried
Taste: mild, sweet, savoury
Diet: Vegetarian (lacto-ovo) · No nut ingredients
All labels
Vegetarian (lacto-ovo) · Eggetarian · Lacto-vegetarian · Pescatarian · Flexitarian-friendly · Egg-free · No nut ingredients · Alcohol-free · Pork-free · Beef-free · DASH-style
Without the optional extras: Vegan, Plant-based, Ovo-vegetarian, Dairy-freeWorked out from the ingredients. How labels work
Good for: Budget-friendly · Child-friendly · Festive & celebration
Cook more with: All-purpose flour · Dried yeast · Sugar
Techniques: Deep-frying

Allergens

Contains, can be adapted: Milkfrom feta
Contains: Wheatfrom all-purpose flour
Contains: Glutenfrom all-purpose flour

Based on typical versions of these ingredients and not verified allergen-free. Brands differ and cross-contact happens, so always check labels. For severe allergies, follow your clinician’s advice.

Nutrition

367 kcal per serving

Calculated

1 serving ≈ 146 g · recipe makes 6

Where the energy comes from

Protein 8%
Carbohydrate 57%
Fat 35%

Nutrition per serving and per 100 g
Nutrient	Per serving	Per 100 g*
Energy	367 kcal	251 kcal
Protein	7.4 g	5 g
Carbohydrate	52.1 g	35.6 g
Net carbohydrate	49.9 g	34.2 g
Sugars	0.9 g	0.6 g
Added sugars	0.7 g	0.5 g
Fibre	2.1 g	1.4 g
Fat	14.1 g	9.6 g
Saturated fat	1.5 g	1 g
Trans fat	—	—
Cholesterol	0 mg	0 mg
Sodium	392 mg	268 mg
Salt equivalent	1 g	0.7 g

Vitamins & minerals per serving

Potassium: 83 mg
Calcium: 17 mg
Iron: 3.1 mg
Magnesium: 17 mg
Vitamin A (RAE): 0 µg
Vitamin C: 0 mg
Vitamin D: —
Vitamin B12: 0 µg
Folate (DFE): 221 µg

How these numbers were made

Calculated from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) per-100 g values and the listed quantities.
*Per 100 g of combined raw ingredients; the cooked dish may weigh more or less.
Optional ingredients are not included: honey, feta.
“—” means the value isn’t known for enough of the ingredients; it is never zero by default.
Values are estimates for guidance, not for medical dosing. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. fdc.nal.usda.gov.

Good to know

Tips

Oil the spoon between scoops so the sticky batter slides off cleanly.

Common mistakes

Oil that is too hot browns the outside before the inside cooks.

Food safety

Let used frying oil cool completely before straining or discarding.

Storage

Best eaten within a few hours.

Original editorial recipe · FriendsPantry editorial · Not yet independently reviewed · Added 27 Oct 2026 · Updated 8 Nov 2026

Recipe DNA

How this dish is built

Compare with

Grouped by each ingredient’s role in the dish. Each band’s width is its share of the dish by weight. Choose a component to see what it does.

What the dish is built around

Main ingredient

All-purpose flour400 g
Feta (optional)150 g

Used in steps 1, 4

Baker’s notes

Customise in Bread & Bakery

Timeline and readiness cues

Mix and knead · about 15 min
Weigh everything. Knead until smooth and elastic: a small piece stretches thin enough to see light through (the windowpane test).
First rise (bulk) · about 1 h
About doubled, domed, jiggly, with bubbles on the sides. A floured finger poked in leaves a dent that fills slowly.
Bake · about 18 min
Deep golden; bread sounds hollow when tapped underneath, or reads 93–96 °C inside (enriched breads 88–90 °C).
Start to finish: about 1 h 33 min. Times are a guide — warmth changes everything; follow the cues.

If something goes wrong

Pale crust
Likely causes
- Oven too cool
- Too little sugar or no milk/egg for browning
- Over-fermented (yeast ate the sugars)
What to do
- Check the oven with a thermometer
- Brush with egg wash or milk
- Shorten the fermentation
Burnt bottom
Likely causes
- Tray too close to the heat
- Dark tray absorbs more heat
- Too much sugar in the dough
What to do
- Bake on the middle shelf
- Double up trays or use a light-coloured one
- Lower the temperature 10–15 °C and bake a little longer
Dough didn't rise
Likely causes
- Dead yeast (expired or killed by hot liquid)
- Kitchen too cold
- Salt in direct contact with fresh yeast
- Starter not active
What to do
- Liquid should be lukewarm (no hotter than 40 °C)
- Proof somewhere warm (an oven with just the light on)
- Mix the salt into the flour, not onto the yeast
- Feed the starter until it doubles in 4–8 hours
Over-proofed (sour smell, collapses when scored)
Likely causes
- Too warm
- Too much yeast
- Left too long
What to do
- Knock back, reshape and proof again briefly (yeast doughs)
- Use less yeast or a cooler proof
- Set a timer and check early with the poke test

Reviews & corrections

Reviews come from signed-in cooks and appear after a moderator checks them. We never show made-up ratings.

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