Sata Andagi is a cake-like, mildly sweet, deep-fried, and dense Japanese confectionary that is similar to doughnuts. It is also known as Okinawan doughnuts as it is made in Okinawa, Japan’s southernmost prefecture. Sata Andagi is believed to be native to Southern China, from where it came to Japan. It is not only popular in Japan but also in Hawaii among the Okinawan ancestry, who had come as immigrants there following the invasion of Okinawa by the US during World War II. Sata Andagi is also known as Andagi in Hawaii.
The doughnuts are crunchy on the outside and light and moist on the inside. The most important ingredient is the Okinawan brown sugar (also called kokuto) as it renders the unique smoky flavour to the doughnut. Kokuto is the method of slow cooking down sugarcane juice to make brown sugar.
Okinawan brown sugar, which is considered to be the healthiest sugar in the world, is made only in Okinawa so it is difficult to get it outside of Japan. You can also use white sugar to make the doughnuts. In fact, Sata Andagis in Okinawa made in white sugar are called Shiro Sata Andagi and those made in brown sugar are called Kuro Sata Andagi. There are variants of it in Okinawa, with the purple sweet potato version being the most popular.
Despite its dense texture, the Sata Andagis are not too sweet. It is not served with any syrup or dusting, making it quite easy to make. It can be served hot or at room temperature and eaten over four or five days. The doughnuts are usually made with cake flour but they can also be made with all-purpose flour and baking powder, which was what we recommend in our recipe below.
Though Sata Andagis are relatively easy to make, the technique, however, involves some knowledge on how to make it as close to the original as possible. For example, the egg mixture and dry ingredients should be perfectly balanced to do justice to the dish. The doughnuts should also be slow deep fried in low heat.
Preparation and cooking time
It takes 15 minutes to prepare the doughnuts, with cooking time taking about 8 minutes.
Serving for 6
Ingredients:
1 egg
1/3 cup of brown sugar
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 cup plain flour
½ tsp baking powder
1 tbsp vegetable oil for rolling the dough
3 cups of vegetable oil for frying the doughnuts
Method:
1. Whisk together the egg and brown sugar, add ½ tablespoon of vegetable oil to the egg and brown sugar and mix well.
2. Sift plain flour and baking powder into the egg, brown sugar, and vegetable oil mixture. Fold the mixture till it is soft. Make ping pong ball-sized doughnuts, using ½ tablespoon of vegetable oil for each doughnut.
3. Cook the doughnuts in low heat for about 7 to 8 minutes or until the doughnuts crack and turn golden.
4. Then, take the doughnuts out of the oil and place them on paper towels to drain and remove excess oil.
