I first tried Tequeños from a street vendor during a family holiday in Venezuela and it quickly became my favourite finger food. They may resemble our mozzarella sticks, just a better version of it. What makes them so special is the dough which once fried (or baked), tastes like a piece of soft bread stuffed with melted cheese. They can be served alone or with a dipping sauce. This is my husband’s recipe, and they are so good!!

It makes about 12 to 15 Tequeños

Ingredients

250 g (2 cups) all-purpose flour

2 g (1/4 tsp) salt

3 g (1/2 tsp) baking powder

60 ml (1/4 cup) water

15 g (1 tbsp) sugar

1/4 cup vegetable oil

60 (1/4 cup) full-fat milk

Sunflower oil for frying

150 gr cheese like cheddar, feta, or Turkish kashkaval (kaşar peyniri) are great choices. However, as long as it is a savoury and firm type of cheese that melts a bit, feel free to use whatever you prefer.

Method

Mix well the flour, salt, and baking powder.

Add water, vegetable oil, milk, and sugar, and knead the dough for about 5 minutes, or until smooth.

Press the dough into a disc, wrap it tightly in plastic wrap, and put it to rest for about an hour at room temperature.

When ready, place the dough on a lightly floured surface and knead with your hands until the dough is very smooth and elastic (about 2 or 3 minutes).

Add more flour over the surface, if necessary, and roll out into a rectangular shape, between 3-5 mm thick.

With a knife, cut the dough into 2 cm wide strips lengthwise, so you end up with 12 strips.

Cut the cheese into 6 equal pieces, and then cut each piece in half lengthwise (12 cheese sticks overall).

Take one strip of dough and cover the end of one cheese stick with dough.

Continue to wrap the dough around the stick in a spiral fashion, overlapping the edges, until you reach the other end.

Cover the other end with dough and pinch the edges to fully seal it (the cheese must be completely covered by the dough).

Repeat with the remaining cheese sticks.

Heat the oil over medium heat and when hot, cook the Tequeños in batches, turning them gently from time to time until golden.

When ready, lay them on a plate with paper towels to remove the excess oil and serve with your favourite dipping sauce.