Classic Fry Bread for Meals or Navajo Tacos (2024)

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Diana Rattray

Southern-cuisine expert and cookbook author Diana Rattray has created more than 5,000 recipes and articles in her 20 years as a food writer.

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Updated on 03/3/24

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Colleen Graham

Tested byColleen Graham

Freelance writer and co*cktail book author Colleen Graham is a seasoned mixologist who loves sharing her knowledge of spirits and passion for preparing drinks.

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Prep: 10 mins

Cook: 6 mins

Total: 16 mins

Servings: 4 servings

Yield: 4 loaves

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Many Tribes, Many Fry Bread Recipes

There are many recipes for fry bread, varying with the region and tribe. It may be made with yeast and cornmeal, and some recipes add shortening,lard, or another fat, or include an egg. This recipe is made with all-purpose flour and baking powder, creating a very simple fry bread with no extra fat or eggs. This recipe makes four small fry breadloaves. It can easily be scaled up for a larger family.

What's the Difference Between Fry Bread and Sopapillas?

Many cultures throughout the world have a version of fried bread. Native American fry bread and sopapillas are two types that are nearly identical and have similar origins. During the 1860s, the Navajo people and other tribes were resettled onto reservations in eastern New Mexico. Fry bread made good use of the government rations they relied on, which included flour, sugar, salt, and lard. Around the same time, residents of older New Mexico towns received the same ingredients and they too created a fluffy, crispy fry bread that became known as sopaipilla in Spanish. The Navajo version is round, while sopapillas are typically square or triangular. The recipes for each vary greatly, though sopapillas most often use shortening and water rather than fry bread's milk.

How to Serve Fry Bread

Once you learn how easy it is to make from scratch and how delicious fry bread is, you'll find lots of ways to enjoy it. Fry bread is an excellent choice to serve with a hearty stew or chili, and you can make fry bread tacos with seasoned ground beef and your favorite toppings. It's also a tasty snack when served with honey, maple syrup, or fruit jam or preserves.

Freezing Fry Bread

Fry bread can be frozen for up to three months. Wipe the oil off with a paper towel once the bread cools and wrap it tightly in plastic, then place it in a freezer bag. For better results, freeze the uncooked dough when it's still in the ball shape using the same type of packaging. Thaw the dough overnight in the refrigerator, unwrap it and let it reach room temperature before shaping and frying as normal.

Tips for Making Delicious Native American Fry Bread

Don't over-knead—Be careful not to knead the dough too much because the bread will be hard and tough.
More flour—The dough is sticky but easy to work with; keep your hands and work surface well-floured.
Dough thickness—Adjust the thickness of the dough for your use. For instance, when making tacos, start with a very thin dough (less than 1/4 inch). Press a deep indentation into the center to prevent it from turning into a ball.
Consider the oil—The key to oil is to ensure whichever you choose has a high smoke point. Some, such as extra-virgin olive oil, will smoke before it reaches the desired temperature, the bread will taste burnt, and your kitchen may fill with smoke. Vegetable oil and shortening are popular options; canola oil is considered a little healthier, and lard is traditionally used by many Native Americans.
Frying with lard—If using lard to fry the bread, make sure that you use about 2 1/2 cups of lard instead of the 3 cups of vegetable oil.
Frying with shortening—If using shortening instead of vegetable oil, you will need about 2 1/4 cups for frying.
Keep it warm—When cooking a larger batch, keep finished fry bread warm in the oven. Set the drained fry bread on a baking sheet fitted with a cooling rack in a 200 F oven so it doesn't get soggy.

WHAT YOU'LL NEED TO MAKE THIS DELICIOUS NATIVE AMERICAN FRY BREAD

A Cast-Iron Pan

A Good Quality Canola Oil

A Dependable Rolling Pin

"This is one of the quickest fried food recipes I’ve encountered. It was quite fun to make, and the cleanup was simple. The fry bread came out crispy on the outside and dense on the inside. It’s also easy to adapt to make larger loaves. Just cut the dough into two portions rather than four." —Colleen Graham

Classic Fry Bread for Meals or Navajo Tacos (7)

A Note From Our Recipe Tester

Ingredients

Vegetable oil, or shortening, as needed
See Also
Parāoa Parai Recipe: Crispy and Fluffy Māori Fry Bread | Maimoa Creative
1 cup all-purpose flour, more as needed
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon fine salt
1/2 cup milk

Steps to Make It

Gather the ingredients.
In a deep, 10-inch cast-iron skillet or heavy saucepan, heat about 1 inch of vegetable oil or shortening, as needed to 350 F.
If you don't have a deep-fry thermometer to attach to the pan, dip the handle end of a wooden spoon in the oil. The oil should bubble around it fairly steadily when it's ready. The popcorn method is another option: Place a kernel of popcorn in the oil, and it will pop when the oil reaches 350 to 360 F.
Meanwhile, combine 1 cup all-purpose flour, 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder, and 1/4 teaspoon fine salt in a bowl. Mix well to blend.
Add 1/2 cup milk and stir until the dough holds together.
Knead 3 or 4 times on a floured surface.
Divide the dough into 4 uniform pieces and shape each into a ball.
Using a lightly floured rolling pin, roll each ball of dough into a circle that's about 1/4- to 1/2-inch thick. Make a depression in the center of each round of dough (it will puff up while frying).
Carefully slide 1 or 2 pieces of dough into the hot oil. Fry for about 1 to 2 minutes on each side, or until lightly browned.
Remove the fried dough to paper towels to drain.

Feeling Adventurous? Try This:

Sprinkle the fry bread with a little cinnamon and sugar.
Dust the fry bread with powdered sugar and add a drizzle of honey or syrup.
Serve the bread as a taco salad base or with taco toppings (popularly called Navajo tacos). Be sure to make the circles of dough very thin for this use.
Cut hot fry bread into wedges and serve with salsa or a dipping sauce.

How to Store and Reheat Fry Bread

Fry bread is best when it's freshly fried. If you need to store leftovers, keep it at room temperature loosely wrapped in plastic or in an unsealed plastic bag for up to 2 days. To reheat it, wrap the bread individually in foil and bake in a 375 F oven for about 10 to 12 minutes.

Helpful Links

Quick Basic Salsa
25 Cooking Techniques Everyone Should Know
10 Cheap Foods That Last a Long Time
The Difference Between Jam, Jelly, and Marmalade

Southern Sides
Quick Breads

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
289	Calories
19g	Fat
26g	Carbs
4g	Protein

Show Full Nutrition Label

Nutrition Facts
Servings: 4
Amount per serving
Calories	289
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 19g	24%
Saturated Fat 2g	9%
Cholesterol 2mg	1%
Sodium 330mg	14%
Total Carbohydrate 26g	9%
Dietary Fiber 1g	3%
Total Sugars 2g
Protein 4g
Vitamin C 0mg	0%
Calcium 143mg	11%
Iron 2mg	9%
Potassium 77mg	2%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.

(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)

Recipe Tags:

Quick bread
fry bread
side dish
southern

Article Sources

The Spruce Eats uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

Miller, Jen. Frybread. Smithsonian Magazine. July 2008.

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