Cuddruriaddri: Traditional Calabrese Recipe
I’ve for a few words for you “cuddruriaddri” – “cullurielli” – “grispuli“.
These are just some of the names used throughout the province of Cosenza for this traditional Calabrian food which you’ll usually find during the Christmas season.
In Cosenza, they are called “cuddruriaddri” or “cullurielli“. And, even after all these years in Cosenza, I still can’t pronounce these words to save my life! But, I like to think that if I just say “cuddruraiddri” very fast, maybe no one will notice how much I’m messing it up!
For me, growing up, we called them “grispuli” (much easier to say, right?) and when the Christmas season rolled around we often became quite excited knowing we would be indulging in this delicious treat!
Even though nowadays you can enjoy them all year round, it’s still very much tradition to make them during the Christmas period. In Cosenza, on the eve of the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, many Cosentini will have them for dinner.
Throughout the years, I’ve attempted to learn traditional Calabrian recipes from Polpette di Riso to Parmigiana di Melanzane (Eggplant Parmesan) to Bocconotti.
We’ve had to spend a lot more time close to home these days, so I decided now was probably a good time to learn this traditional and yummy Calabrian food and give this cuddruriaddri recipe a try!
As is the case with most recipes, there are so many different versions, this is the cuddruriaddri recipe I used:
Ingredients: (makes about 15)
500 grams flour 00
250 grams potatoes
13 grams salt
1/2 cube brewer’s yeast
500ml (approx) lukewarm water
oil for frying (peanut or sunflower oil is best)
Directions:
Boil potatoes (with skins) and then pass them through a potato masher into a large bowl. (Depending on the kind of masher you have, you may need to remove the skins first). I like to begin to mix the batter in a large bowl before moving it to a flat surface for kneading.
In a small bowl, dissolve the yeast in some water. Add some flour to the mashed potatoes and mix, then add some water and mix to begin creating your batter. At this point, you can add the yeast.
Now begin alternating between flour and water to form a soft dough. At the halfway point, add the salt. I find it easier to mix the ingredients using a fork at first as the dough is (and will remain) quite sticky. At the halfway point, add the salt.
Now you can move to a flat surface to knead the dough – be sure to lightly flour the surface. Knead the dough adding flour as needed – keep in mind that the dough should remain soft and a bit moist, it should still stick a bit to your hands.
Let the dough rest for about 10-15 minutes. Once you’ve left it to rest a bit, you can start dividing the dough into smaller balls. I weighed them on a scale (approx 60-70 grams each) – but you can make them as big or small as you like.
I formed the balls by folding the dough around and under – I think this helps to maintain its fluffiness when it’s time to fry them. Place the small rolls on a tray sprinkled with flour – space them out as they will double in size. (I used a kitchen towel with flour sprinkled on it so they wouldn’t stick as much to the surface). Cover with a kitchen towel and leave in a warm place for 2-3 hours to rise.
Now we are ready to fry our cuddruriaddri:
Prepare a small bowl with some oil. You will need to lightly rub your hands in some oil before picking up the small balls of dough. This will prevent them from sticking to your hands.
In a deep pan, heat up the oil. Gently take one of the balls and create a hole in the middle (like a donut). Then, then place in the oil. To prevent the hole from closing up put the tail end of a wooden spoon in the hole and twirl the “donut” around a few times. The cuddruriaddri will take form and you can go on to the next one.
Always keep an eye on the cuddruriaddri while frying and be sure to turn them over every so often. They are ready once they’ve reached a light golden colour.
Place the fried cuddruriaddri on a tray or plate lined with paper towels to absorb any extra oil.
You can check out this short video I made of the cuddruriaddri recipe for Instagram.
And there you have it, traditional Calabrian cuddruriaddri! Enjoy!
Does your family have a cuddruriaddri recipe? Have you ever tried making them? If you give this recipe a try, let me know in the comments below!
If you want to find out what I’m up to here in Calabria, you can keep up with my daily life and musings over on the Calabrisella Mia Facebook Page and Instagram!
Comments are closed.
Image Earth Travel
December 5, 2022 at 8:57 amMiss making these!
LuLu
December 23, 2022 at 1:28 pmI want to try and make a batch during the holiday break!
josie santoro
March 19, 2022 at 9:32 pmCan you translate the ingredients in English. When I was much younger my mother would make crispelle
My family is from platania and that is how they pronounced crispelle thank you
LuLu
March 26, 2022 at 9:56 amHi Josie,
As I’ve already mentioned to you before converting to “English” measurements will not be accurate and I can’t guarantee the recipe will work out.
And for this reason, I don’t include conversions when the recipes I’m making are in grams. If you really want to do more Italian recipes in the future, you might want to consider buying a digital scale (they are quite cheap) since most traditional recipes use grams.
This website does conversions https://www.thecalculatorsite.com/cooking/grams-cups.php but again, it won’t be as accurate.
Nyxie
March 15, 2022 at 10:31 amThese look amazing! Definitely a must-try!
LuLu
March 19, 2022 at 5:07 pmThey are definitely a favorite in the area of Italy I live in! 🙂
Melanie
December 17, 2020 at 3:20 pmThis looks so good. A definite must try with the kids.
Georgina | Culinary Travels
December 13, 2020 at 4:45 pmI adored these when I visited Napoli but I’ve never made them myself as I had no idea they were this straightforward. I will be cooking them ASAP.
LuLu
December 18, 2020 at 12:55 pmI was pretty surprised myself how easy they were to make! Enjoy!
Erica (The Prepping Wife)
December 11, 2020 at 1:20 pmThis recipe kind of reminds me of gnocchi and then you fry it. Very interesting! Definitely not something I had heard of before, and certainly can’t pronounce it either. But it looks delicious! I’ll have to give it a try.
LuLu
December 18, 2020 at 12:56 pmIt’s true, the dough is very similar to gnocchi but I think gnocchi use more potatoes.
Britt K
December 10, 2020 at 4:40 pmThis looks so simple! I am always intimidated by digging into recipes from other cultures because I automatically assume that they are going to be elaborate or hard to follow having not grown up with them. That being said, I LOVE trying new foods from other areas. So, an easier to follow recipe like this is DEFINITELY on my ‘must-try’ list!
Lyosha
December 10, 2020 at 1:12 pmwow! sounds pretty nice. i would love to try even though it’s the first time I ever see this dish
Lene
December 9, 2020 at 5:06 pmOooh, they look wonderful! Really hard to pronounce, but delicious. Thanks for sharing the recipe.
Melanie williams
December 9, 2020 at 12:30 pmNow stop making me hungry! These look so fab, impressive and perfect for the upcoming Christmas season x
Stephanie S
December 8, 2020 at 6:10 pmHi LuLu,
I’ve never made these before, but this sounds wonderful! I’m actually going to give this recipe a try. I am always looking for new recipes to try out, and I think this recipe would be perfect to try with my family. I love recipes that bring up sweet memories from the past. –That is always the best! Thank you for sharing. 🙂
Image Earth Travel
December 8, 2020 at 2:48 amI miss making these and really enjoyed learning how to make Cuddrurieddri in Rende.
Pop over to my site and check out my Cuddrurieddri experience and method. 😉
LuLu
December 8, 2020 at 8:33 amLooks like you had a fun time! 🙂
KareninCalabria
December 7, 2020 at 6:54 pmHa, ha – the names! In the south of the region, you often see the spelling “crispelle” and I first made acquaintance with these wonderful treats with the name “zeppole” and they were a type without the hole in the center. Yours look delicious – complimenti!
LuLu
December 8, 2020 at 8:27 amYes, there are so many names for them! Hahaha I have also heard them called zeppole but when I think of Zeppole I think of the dessert we have for the Festa di San Giuseppe (which is very different!)
Patrick Castagna
December 7, 2020 at 4:04 pmThanks for your post.
We call them crustoli. I don’t know if I’m spelling it right.
Happy Holidays, from Canada.
Pat (Pasquale)
LuLu
December 7, 2020 at 6:15 pmThanks, Patrick! I have a feeling every single town has a different name for them, but one thing is constant – they are delicious! 🙂
Kay | Blowing Bubbles With Mama
December 10, 2020 at 9:14 amA nice and easy recipe. I haven’t heard of these before but they sound great. I’d definitely be interested to try these!
Rita
December 7, 2020 at 3:13 pmThanks for the memories. I’m so glad I’m not the only one that can’t pronounce it. My son in law is from Naples and he makes me say it just so he can laugh. We usually had them on New Year’s Day. Mostly because we were a large family and it would have been too hard to do in Christmas Eve. But New Years was always a drop in throughout the day. I’m determined to try these this year. Thanks for the recipe too. Stay safe and have a great Christmas.
LuLu
December 7, 2020 at 6:17 pmIt’s my pleasure! These recipes bring me so much nostalgia for my childhood! Let me know how it goes if you try the recipe! Happy Holidays!