Panzerotti in Bari are the pillar of street food. In this recipe I will teach you how we prepare them at home, both in the fried and baked version.

Ingredients for 2 persons
150 g flour 0
150 g durum wheat semolina flour
185 g lukewarm water
6 g fresh yeast
10 g salt
2 mozzarella
200 g tomato pulp
3 tablespoons grated Parmigiano Reggiano
1.5 l oil for frying

Time: 1 hour + 1 hour and 30 minutes of leavening

Let’s cook!

Pour the flours into a large bowl, make a wheel in the center and pour the yeast dissolved into half of the water. Knead – adding the remaining water and, lastly, the salt – until the dough is smooth and elastic (we knead it for at least 10 minutes).

Let it rise in a bowl for about 1 hour and 30 minutes at room temperature if it is summer. For 2 hours in a warm place if winter.

Prepare the filling by cutting the mozzarella into cubes (drain it if necessary if it is soft and watery) and mix it with the tomato pulp in a strainer suspended on a bowl, so that it loses excess liquids. Let it drain for at least 1 hour. At the end, add the grated Parmigiano Reggiano.

Divide the dough into 10 balls and transfer them to a bowl, covering them with a lid so that they do not dry out.

Take a ball and roll it out with a rolling pin, giving it the shape of a circle of 16 cm in diameter. Fill it in the middle with a little spoon of filling and close it in two (like a half moon), pressing the edges well and removing any air bubbles.

Cut the excess dough with a pasta cutter. Seal it well with the prongs of the fork. Repeat it with the remaining balls.

Heat the oil for frying in a deep pan: check that it has reached the temperature by dipping a piece of dough. If it sizzles, the oil will be ready for frying. We fry a maximum of 2 panzerotti at a time, browning them on both sides for a few minutes (see picture on the top). Let them dry in a cup lined with absorbent paper and serve.

To make the panzerotti in the oven: put them on a baking tray lined with baking paper, brush them with a little tomato sauce to keep them from drying out and cook them in a pre-heated static oven at 230/250 degrees for 12 -15 minutes. Serve them hot.

Have a good panzerottata!