Kefir-Based Brushwood: A Simple Step-by-Step Recipe with Photos

Do you want to cook a classic lush brushwood – Use this simple step-by-step recipe for making kefir dough. This is exactly how our mothers and grandmothers made this beloved "childhood dish."

Kefir-Based Brushwood: A Classic Step-by-Step Recipe

Nutritional value per serving

227.4 kcal

Proteins: 6.4 g
Fats: 5.5 g
Carbohydrates: 37.7 g

*Nutritional value is calculated per 100g of ingredients

Total time: 30 min
Time in the kitchen: 30 min
Complexity:

A simple recipe.
Number of servings: 20

Sweet, with a bright honey flavor, "khvorost" can be baked using a variety of recipes, as very similar tea sweets are available in many European and Eastern countries.

Essentially, all brushwood recipes can be divided into two groups:

Thin brushwood

Lush brushwood

with milk

with vodka

on yeast dough

with kefir (with soda)

with sour cream

on condensed milk

While thin хворост is prepared without yeast or any other ingredient that helps the dough rise, and the sheets are rolled out as thinly as possible, fluffy хворост differs in that the dough is rolled out thicker, and the pretzels swell during baking due to the presence of yeast, soda, or baking powder in the recipe.

In Germany, fluffy brushwood is called "krebli", and in many Slavic countries - "verguny".

Today, we'll take a detailed look at a simple recipe for fluffy kefir-based хворост (fine brushwood), which you can follow to prepare an inexpensive and delicious version of a childhood favorite at home.

We will fry the pretzels simply in a frying pan, but if you prefer, you can use a deep fryer.

Making delicious, airy verguny is quick and easy, and the necessary ingredients can be found in any kitchen or at the nearest store.

A simple recipe for homemade kefir-based хворост (brushwood)

Crispy Kefir Brushwood – A Classic Recipe with Step-by-Step Photos

Ingredients

Servings

Kefir

200 G
Flour

330 G
Sugar

80 G
Egg C1

1 pcs
Vanilla sugar

10 G
Salt

1 pinch
Soda

0.5 tsp
Powdered sugar

50 G
Vegetable oil

200 G

Preparation

Step 1

We will bake fluffy soft verguny using low-fat kefir, but you can use any fermented milk product – yogurt, sour milk, kefir of any fat content, sour cream.

First, the kefir needs to be warmed up a little.

Step 2

Add a pinch of salt, 80 grams of sugar, and vanilla sugar to the warm kefir. Stir thoroughly until the ingredients are completely dissolved.

Step 3

Add 1 egg (white + yolk) and beat with a fork until smooth.

Step 4

Pour half a teaspoon of baking soda into 330 grams of flour and mix the dry mixture well.

Step 5

Pour the liquid ingredients into the flour and baking soda and mix the dough, first with a spatula, and then with your hands when the dough becomes firm enough.

Step 6

In the final step, knead the dough on a board by hand. The dough should be elastic but firm enough to prevent the finished pretzels from losing their shape during shaping and frying.

Step 7

As a result, you should get a lump like the one in the photo, which needs to be covered with a bowl for 10-15 minutes so that the soda reacts with the kefir and activates the dough rising process.

Step 8

Divide the finished dough into two parts. Cover one part with a bowl again, and we'll work with the other.

Step 9

Roll out the crust thickly enough. If it's too thin, the verguny won't fry properly, and the khvorost won't be fluffy and airy.

Step 10

We cut the dough into diamonds and form classic reguli by turning one of the corners into a slit in the center of the diamond.

You can make pretzels in any shape you like, or simply cut the dough into strips, squares, or diamonds. They will look different, but they will be just as delicious.

Step 11

Heat vegetable oil in a frying pan and fry each pretzel on both sides until golden brown.

Step 12

Once cooked, pretzels can be removed from the pan onto paper towels to remove excess oil.

Step 13

While still warm, roll the verguny generously in powdered sugar and arrange them beautifully on a plate.

Now you know how to bake fluffy хворост (brushwood) at home using kefir and baking soda. Serve this treat with tea or coffee, accompanied by a saucer of honey or jam.

If you're looking for a thinner, crispier kefir-based хворост, follow the step-by-step recipe for German krebels presented in this video: