Sweet Stall · Fried Dough Fritters
Luqaimat
📷 Closely related photo — Photo via Pexels/Unsplash — free for commercial use
The name luqaimat literally means "small bites" in Arabic, but street vendors often fry them non-stop through Ramadan nights, selling thousands in a single evening.
Luqaimat are small balls of lightly leavened dough deep-fried until golden and crisp on the outside and soft inside, then drenched in date syrup or honey and sometimes dusted with sesame seeds. Stalls fry them in batches and serve them warm in paper cones, especially after sunset during Ramadan.
Why it's made this way: Luqaimat is closely linked to Ramadan iftar traditions across the Gulf, where a quick-fried, syrup-soaked sweet gives a fast burst of energy after a day of fasting, and the recipe is believed to share roots with the Levantine and Turkish fried-dough sweets carried along old trade routes.
Roughly what's in it
320kcal
4gprotein
46gcarbs
14gfat
Estimated per typical street-vendor portion — not lab-tested.
More from Saudi Arabia
Part of World of Street Food — 690 dishes from 118 countries.
Something wrong here? Tell us in the comments below.
Photo credits.