# Beignet is the name for fried choux paste. Period. Also crullers. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 27, 2014, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beignet-is-the-name-for-fried-choux-paste-period-also-crullers/691748 "2014-06-27T02:17:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![dracoi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90db22/32.png) [@dracoi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dracoi)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2014, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beignet-is-the-name-for-fried-choux-paste-period-also-crullers/691748/41 "2014-06-27T20:43:13Z")
This is why people in the American South should not be allowed to talk about or name food. The yam/sweet potato debacle is just another example. ---
**Author:** ![Penfeather](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/penfeather/32/384_2.png) [@Penfeather](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Penfeather)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2014, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beignet-is-the-name-for-fried-choux-paste-period-also-crullers/691748/42 "2014-06-27T22:01:06Z")
> [@Stoid](#): > > Precision and specificity enhance communication, how is it worthwhile for a single word to represent both black and white? It’s not a fast rule I’d cleave to. ---
**Author:** ![Stoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stoid/32/272_2.png) [@Stoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stoid)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2014, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beignet-is-the-name-for-fried-choux-paste-period-also-crullers/691748/43 "2014-06-27T22:18:25Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > Every single cite I’ve found says that beignets are what the ones like they have at Cafe Du Mondes, **Stoid** , so I don’t know where the fuck you’re getting your ideas. From everywhere, but the most authoritative: National Geographic: > [@](#): > > French cooks eventually developed two basic types of pastry: doughs that use yeast as a raising agent, and those that rise with their own steam. Doughs that are moist enough to use steam to fluff up are called choux pastries.\*\* Traditional beignets are a choux pastry.\*\* The first line in Wikipedia: > [@](#): > > Beignet (English pronunciation: /bɛnˈjeɪ/; French:[bɛɲɛ], literally bump),[1] synonymous with the English “fritter”, is the French term for a pastry made from deep-fried choux paste.[2] And then it says: > [@](#): > > The term beignet can be applied to two varieties, depending on the type of pastry. The French-style beignet in the United States **has the specific meaning of deep-fried choux pastry.** [10] Beignets can also be made with yeast pastry,[3] which might be called boules de Berlin in French, referring to Berliner doughnuts which have a spherical shape (i.e. they do not have the typical doughnut hole) filled with fruit or jam. The reference given for the first line is to (1999) Oxford Companion to Food, Oxford University Press > **[The Oxford Companion to Food](https://books.google.com/books?id=RL6LAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA75&dq=beignet%2Bchoux&hl=en&sa=X&ei=q-StU7a8OoXroATA6YHwAg)** > > Twenty years in the making, the first edition of this bestselling reference work appeared in 1999 to worldwide acclaim. Combining serious and meticulously researched facts with entertaining and witty commentary, it has been deemed unique by chefs and... From: Larousse gastronomique via Google books > **[The New Larousse Gastronomique](https://books.google.com/books?id=rqQRAQAAMAAJ&focus=searchwithinvolume&q=beignet)** > > Abstract: An encyclopedia of food, wine, and cookery outlines, in dictionary form, the culinary principles and techniques of French cuisine as they have evolved through history. Alphabetized entries give the etymology and definition of culinary... > [@](#): > > FRITTER. beignet Food dipped in batter and fried …another variety is made of a past like choux paste and called soufflé fritters or pets de nonne http://books.google.com/books?id=qRAz0D1VcZEC&pg=PA327&dq=beignet+choux&hl=en&sa=X&ei=q-StU7a8OoXroATA6YHwAg&ved=0CFIQ6AEwCQ#v=onepage&q=beignet%20choux&f=false"]The Chefs Compendium of Professional Recipes lists beignets under the “choux paste” items: http://books.google.com/books?id=HWe9AAAAQBAJ&pg=PT133&dq=beignet+choux&hl=en&sa=X&ei=q-StU7a8OoXroATA6YHwAg&ved=0CCoQ6AEwAg#v=onepage&q=beignet%20choux&f=false"]The French Cook states: > [@](#): > > “Beignets are French doughnuts prepared by frying choux in hot oil” From [http://fae-magazine.com/2013/01/04/pate-a-choux-cream-puff-cake/](http://fae-magazine.com/2013/01/04/pate-a-choux-cream-puff-cake/) > [@](#): > > Choux pastry is usually baked but for beignets it is fried From http://stores.renstore.com/food-and-drink/history-of-beignets"]History of Beignets > [@](#): > > ``` > Beignet, (pronounced Ben*YAY) a French word for fried dough or fritter, comes from the same original word that turned into bun in England, bugne in Belgium, and buñuelo in Spain. Beignets are usually made with an **unleavened, hot water paste,** but recipes also exist for beignets made with yeast dough that are related to raised doughnuts, sopapilla, Berliners, and funnel cakes. > > ``` ---
**Author:** ![Stoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stoid/32/272_2.png) [@Stoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stoid)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2014, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beignet-is-the-name-for-fried-choux-paste-period-also-crullers/691748/44 "2014-06-27T22:32:50Z")
> [@dracoi](#): > > This is why people in the American South should not be allowed to talk about or name food. > > The yam/sweet potato debacle is just another example. Since I dislike everything I have tasted with either name, I am not familiar with the details. Care to give me a sentence or two? ---
**Author:** ![Stoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stoid/32/272_2.png) [@Stoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stoid)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2014, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beignet-is-the-name-for-fried-choux-paste-period-also-crullers/691748/45 "2014-06-27T22:37:02Z")
By the way pets de nonne means “nuns farts”. Gotta love the French. ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2014, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beignet-is-the-name-for-fried-choux-paste-period-also-crullers/691748/46 "2014-06-27T22:41:41Z")
> [@Stoid](#): > > From: Larousse gastronomique > > > [@](#): > > > > FRITTER. beignet Food dipped in batter and fried …another variety is made of a past like choux paste and called soufflé fritters or \*\*pets de nonne \*\* Why is everyone quibbling about what deserves the awkward and unpronounceable appellation of beignet, when there’s an awesome name like “nun farts” available? ETA: Ninja’d, dammit. ---
**Author:** ![Stoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stoid/32/272_2.png) [@Stoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stoid)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2014, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beignet-is-the-name-for-fried-choux-paste-period-also-crullers/691748/47 "2014-06-27T22:42:37Z")
> [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](#): > > Why is everyone quibbling about what deserves the awkward and unpronounceable appellation of beignet, when there’s an awesome name like “nun farts” available? Indeed, an excellent point. ---
**Author:** ![dracoi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90db22/32.png) [@dracoi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dracoi)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2014, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beignet-is-the-name-for-fried-choux-paste-period-also-crullers/691748/48 "2014-06-27T22:49:28Z")
> [@Stoid](#): > > Since I dislike everything I have tasted with either name, I am not familiar with the details. Care to give me a sentence or two? I’ll go with [Wikipedia’s entry on this](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yam_%28vegetable%29): > [@](#): > > Yam is the common name for some plant species in the genus Dioscorea (family Dioscoreaceae) that form edible tubers. These are perennial herbaceous vines cultivated for the consumption of their starchy tubers in Africa, Asia, Latin America, the Caribbean and Oceania. There are many cultivars of yam. Although some varieties of sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas) are also called yam in parts of the United States and Canada, it is not part of the family Dioscoreaceae but belongs in the unrelated morning glory family Convolvulaceae. And from the Wikipedia article on [Sweet Potato](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sweet_potato), this comment: > [@](#): > > To prevent confusion, the United States Department of Agriculture requires sweet potatoes labeled as “yams” to also be labeled as “sweet potatoes”. ---
**Author:** ![Stoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stoid/32/272_2.png) [@Stoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stoid)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2014, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beignet-is-the-name-for-fried-choux-paste-period-also-crullers/691748/49 "2014-06-27T23:04:38Z")
So which one is the more common? Do they taste radically different? ---
**Author:** ![Labrador\_Deceiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Labrador\_Deceiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labrador_Deceiver)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2014, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beignet-is-the-name-for-fried-choux-paste-period-also-crullers/691748/50 "2014-06-27T23:05:30Z")
> [@Stoid](#): > > I don’t follow your thinking. The situation I am thinking of, the one I have actually experienced, is ordering a beignet expecting a tender, eggy cabbagehead and being served a chewy brick. > > If it is necessary to add additional words to be certain of mutual understanding (“i would like a beignet, please…assuming that you serve the hollow, tender spherical kind, not the chewy squares similar to bread.”) then the word itself, which once meant something very specific, has been rendered useless. Destroying a word’s usefulness to convey a specific meaning is corruption. What a waste of time. Beignets in the US are the type served in New Orleans. Claiming anything else is wrong. You may find fried choux dough sold as beignets at the occasional french restaurant, but it would be rare. If you want choux dough, ask for French beignets. When people ask you what the hell you’re talking about, you can wow them with the amount of time you’ve spent reading about it on the internet. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2014, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beignet-is-the-name-for-fried-choux-paste-period-also-crullers/691748/51 "2014-06-27T23:19:54Z")
> [@Stoid](#): > > I don’t follow your thinking. The situation I am thinking of, the one I have actually experienced, is ordering a beignet expecting a tender, eggy cabbagehead and being served a chewy brick. > > If it is necessary to add additional words to be certain of mutual understanding (“i would like a beignet, please…assuming that you serve the hollow, tender spherical kind, not the chewy squares similar to bread.”) then the word itself, which once meant something very specific, has been rendered useless. Destroying a word’s usefulness to convey a specific meaning is corruption. I’ve never had any problem getting the food I want using the words I want to use. If you’re incapable of thinking of a solution to this problem, that speaks to a certain level of linguistic incompetence on your part, not a problem with how humans have used language since the paleolithic era. It’s really ridiculous for you to blame the rest of the world for your own inadequacy. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2014, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beignet-is-the-name-for-fried-choux-paste-period-also-crullers/691748/52 "2014-06-27T23:21:18Z")
In other words, there are two kinds, and both are legit, and you just want to be anal and insist that you, and you alone, are correct. Gotcha. (Seriously though, why make such a fuss over _pastry_, **Stoid**? And thank you so much for sharing your bathroom habits. :rolleyes:) ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2014, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beignet-is-the-name-for-fried-choux-paste-period-also-crullers/691748/53 "2014-06-27T23:34:03Z")
> [@Labrador\_Deceiver](#): > > What a waste of time. Beignets in the US are the type served in New Orleans. Claiming anything else is wrong. You may find fried choux dough sold as beignets at the occasional french restaurant, but it would be rare. If you want choux dough, ask for French beignets. When people ask you what the hell you’re talking about, you can wow them with the amount of time you’ve spent reading about it on the internet. Pretty much. I’d think someone was obnoxious if they ordered a beignet, expecting a Cafe du Monde one and getting a choux one, and threw a hissy fit over that, because language is language. But at least they’d be using language in a reasonable way, expecting a word’s meaning to be its common meaning, not expecting some sort of lesser-used definition to prevail. > [@Stoid](#): > > Precision and specificity enhance communication, how is it worthwhile for a single word to represent both black and white? For fuck’s sake. It’s not like you order a beignet and they shoot you with a rifle. The words don’t mean black and white. They mean slightly different versions of deep-fried sweetened flour. You’re getting your unhealthy sugary greasy rush either way. Even if we ignore the entire rest of the language and limit ourselves to baked goods, this sort of ambiguity is nearly universal. A doughnut can be quick or raised. A biscuit can be quick, raised, beaten, or a British cookie. A cake can be quick, sponge, angel, or even (as some brioche concoctions do) raised, and that’s setting aside the sweet/savory meanings of “cake.” Which brings us to pie and the multitudinous variations on that word. Now, muffin’s an interesting one. If you order a muffin and someone brings you a lump of cow shit, you’ve a right to be angry. But the exception here proves the rule. Overwhelmingly, despite the different meanings, the word applies to roughly the same thing, and from context you can figure out what the significant differences are (if I am at a British themed tea house and I see tea and biscuits on the menu, I’m not going to ask for country ham on my biscuits). And if you can’t figure out the difference and it’s important, a simple question will clarify, even if you’re so impossibly delicate that one type of pastry Simply Will Not Do. What’s pitiful and absurd and obnoxious is to say that, because of this (again, NEARLY UNIVERSAL) ambiguity in the word, a word with two definitions, everyone must use the older, rarer definition of the word, must change their speaking habits to conform to outdated habits, because to do otherwise corrupts the language and forces you to–oh, the horror!–ask a clarifying question every now and then in order to satisfy your oh-so-precious dietary quirks. ---
**Author:** ![Stoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stoid/32/272_2.png) [@Stoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stoid)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2014, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beignet-is-the-name-for-fried-choux-paste-period-also-crullers/691748/54 "2014-06-28T01:27:05Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > In other words, there are two kinds, and both are legit, and you just want to be anal and insist that you, and you alone, are correct. Gotcha. Didn’t I just provide a bunch of cites to food experts? How do you take from that that it is me alone? Danilo Alfaro, a chef who writes about food for [about.com](http://about.com), has this to say: > [@](#): > > Beignets are a classic American pastry, even they are French in origin. Made from **deep-fried choux pastry** and then tossed in powdered sugar, there is no pastry quite so quintessentially New Orleans as beignets. > > This beignets recipe follows the traditional method of using choux pastry, which is leavened by the steam that’s generated when the dough hits the hot oil. **Some beignet recipes are made with yeast dough, but those are really just doughnuts. A true beignet is all about choux pastry.** And who determines legitimacy? I vote for the experts. The Café pastry and _pets de nonne_ are both fried pastry, but if they are both “beignets”, then “beignets” has lost its legitimacy as a word to indicate something specific. I like it when words mean specific things, I like precision. > [@](#): > > (Seriously though, why make such a fuss over _pastry_, **Stoid**? This: > [@](#): > > Beignet is the name for fried choux paste. Period. Also crullers. > If your “beignet” involves chemical leaveners, flour that has not been cooked onto roux with butter and water, or fewer than 4 eggs to a cup of flour…not beignet. > > Ditto crullers. > > Ignorance fought. is “such a fuss”? And the fuss is over the language used to describe the pastry, not the pastry. I bitch about the language being watered down all the time. As I said…I like precision and specificity in language - it reduces clutter, improves clarity and eliminates confusion. In this instance, if beignets means either pastry, then the clutter of qualifying descriptions is required to clarify the pastry one intends and avoid the confusion of receiving a puffy block when one anticipates receiving a nun’s fart. > [@](#): > > And thank you so much for sharing your bathroom habits. :rolleyes:) I stared at this for the longest time trying to figure out what in hell you could possibly mean, since I am about the last person you will ever find casually sharing bathroom habits… and it finally dawned on me! “Poot” - it refers to my computer. As I described earlier in the thread, that the quoting and citing is obnoxious on the iPad, so I wasn’t going to do it unless someone wanted it, because it would mean replying from my computer. Then I shorthanded it in the second reference after you challenged me for the cites. Man I’m glad I figured that out… it was making me nuts… ---
**Author:** ![Labrador\_Deceiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Labrador\_Deceiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labrador_Deceiver)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2014, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beignet-is-the-name-for-fried-choux-paste-period-also-crullers/691748/55 "2014-06-28T01:31:55Z")
Your “expert” clearly doesn’t know what the hell he’s talking about if he calls a beignet made from choux “quintessentially New Orleans”. Beignets in this country are based on the NOLA variety, which are made with yeast. ---
**Author:** ![Stoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stoid/32/272_2.png) [@Stoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stoid)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2014, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beignet-is-the-name-for-fried-choux-paste-period-also-crullers/691748/56 "2014-06-28T01:32:43Z")
> [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > The words don’t mean black and white. They mean slightly different versions of deep-fried sweetened flour. Not slightly different. As different as two foods from the same category can be. They are slightly different the way a hamburger and prime rib are slightly different. ---
**Author:** ![Labrador\_Deceiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Labrador\_Deceiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labrador_Deceiver)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2014, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beignet-is-the-name-for-fried-choux-paste-period-also-crullers/691748/57 "2014-06-28T01:36:37Z")
> [@Stoid](#): > > Not slightly different. As different as two foods from the same category can be. They are slightly different the way a hamburger and prime rib are slightly different. Yes, they are slightly different. They are both light, puffy fried pastry. Your analogy, like this thread, fails. ---
**Author:** ![Stoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stoid/32/272_2.png) [@Stoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stoid)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2014, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beignet-is-the-name-for-fried-choux-paste-period-also-crullers/691748/58 "2014-06-28T02:04:46Z")
> [@](#): > > > [@](#): > > > [@Labrador\_Deceiver](#): > > Your “expert” clearly doesn’t know what the hell he’s talking about if he calls a beignet made from choux “quintessentially New Orleans”. Beignets in this country are based on the NOLA variety, which are made with yeast. You are kinda mixing arguments; I leave it to NOLA foodies to decide if the choux or yeast varieties are “quintessential” New Orleans or not, but that is a separate matter from “Beignets in this country”. As far as the “quintessentially New Orleans”, Disney came down on the side of choux beignets when they built New Orleans square and started serving fritters, which was my introduction when I was a kid. And The Google reveals a variety of views and examples of confusion like [this](http://www.axs.com/satisfy-your-sweet-tooth-with-new-orleans-tastiest-beignets-10168) (I ran into a depressing number of sites evincing this kind of confusion): > [@](#): > > 1216666 470156 16082371 6 y2014m04d09 > Satisfy your sweet tooth with New Orleans tastiest beignets > New Orleans is infamous for its countless food choices to offer locals, born-and-raised folks and the tourists that visit. > … > New Orleans is a bevy of phenomenal food that will have you up in arms about where to go next, but there is one\*\* iconic pastry \*\*that will have you coming back for more, and that’s the **beignet.** > > Say it out loud: ben-yay. > > The beignet is quite similar to an English “fritter,” and it is obvious as to why. It is a very simple pastry as it is nothing more than \*\*a piece of deep-fried choux pastry \*\*(dough) that puffs up and is served hot with a whole lot of powdered sugar on top of it. Beignets are kind of like a funnel cake, but smaller and so much tastier. > > One of the most popular locations in all of New Orleans to bite into this delectable treat is **Café du Monde,** which sits right in the heart of the French Quarter. :smack: Then [this page](http://www.liverytours.com/new-orleans-culture/historical-new-orleans-favorites/)says: > [@](#): > > The History of Hot, Fluffy Beignets > From Rome and Gaul, to the Great White North and finally making its way down to the Big Easy, beignets are a puffy, hot and sweet dessert that has countless historical variations of this iconic, classic, New Orleans Dessert. One of the many New Orleans Favorites, beignets steal the hearts of visitors and locals alike. But, what’s the real story behind these little NOLA Treasures? > > French cooks developed two basic types of pastry: doughs that use yeast as a raising agent, and those that rise with their own steam. Doughs that are moist enough to use steam to fluff up are called choux pastries. **One of the more signature choux pasteries are traditional New Orleans beignets.** > > French Beignets feature sweet fruit fillings as well as savory meats, cheeses, potatoes and seafood. \*\*These choux pasteries \*\*find their influence from Italy’s zeppole pastries and Germany’s spritzkuchen. > > What New Orleans knows of as beignets, come from the French-Creole colonists. Early French settlers brought beignets with them as they migrated to the eastern coast of Canada, a region called Acadia, in the 17th century. The Acadians endured a forced migration as the British took control of the region a hundred years later and brought the concept of this classic New Orleans dessert down with them to New Orleans in the 18th century. > > The concept of the dessert is simple—the moist dough is fried and then covered with mounds of powdered sugar. These square doughnuts, with a history as rich as its flavors, are most associated with the French Quarter of New Orleans, Louisiana. > > New Orleans Favorites: **5 Facts about Beignets** > Unlike most doughnuts, beignets are square (the holes are not missing, here) > Beignets are usually fried in oils that have a high “smoke point” (fewer fires happen because of this) > Beignets are most often served with a thick dusting of powdered sugar (try not to wear black clothing) > **The choux pastry qualities of this dessert make for the fluffy center (no yeast, rises with steam)** > Beignets are traditionally enjoyed with hot coffee called cafe au lait a French phrase meaning “coffee with milk” And from [here](http://www.cityseacountry.com/category/new-orleans/): > [@](#): > > Beig…. What? > > Beignets (fritters) are pastries made from deep-fried \*\*choux paste \*\*and covered with powdered sugar. At the **Café du Monde t** hey serve you three Beignets and I loved them with Latte or you can try them with a hot chocolate. The above are outstanding examples of ignorance, which is what we are here to fight. The authors are scrambling up New Orleans, Café du Monde, choux pastry, yeast pastry, leavening agents, everything. It’s mush. The writer for chefs catalog is clear, at least: > [@](#): > > While the classic French beignet is a deep-fried choux pastry, New Orleans beignets are made with yeast dough. To serve, smother the beignets with powdered sugar and enjoy with café au lait, equal parts hot milk and strong, dark roast coffee and chicory. And this food blogger also: > [@](#): > > In French, beignet means fried dough. It is synonymous with the English word fritter and in France it specifically refers to deep fried choux pastry (unless wikipedia is a total liar, which is entirely possible). So since pate a choux is a French pastry dough, then we’re going to stick with calling these beignets even though in New Orleans the dough for making beignets is typically more of a traditional yeast doughnut dough. I promise, they are still really tasty and actually much easier to make! ---
**Author:** ![Stoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stoid/32/272_2.png) [@Stoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stoid)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2014, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beignet-is-the-name-for-fried-choux-paste-period-also-crullers/691748/59 "2014-06-28T02:11:28Z")
> [@Labrador\_Deceiver](#): > > Yes, they are slightly different. They are both light, puffy fried pastry. Your analogy, like this thread, fails. I can only conclude from this that you have not had both. ---
**Author:** ![Labrador\_Deceiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Labrador\_Deceiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labrador_Deceiver)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2014, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beignet-is-the-name-for-fried-choux-paste-period-also-crullers/691748/60 "2014-06-28T02:14:10Z")
I’m not mixing arguments. Beignets in this country are of the yeast variety, because New Orleans made them famous. Some French cooks will occasionally pop up with the French version, but they are not typical. A search for recipes overwhelmingly turns up the kind with yeast, and it isn’t even close. I have not only had both, but I have made both, often in professional kitchens. I never said they were indistinguishable, but they are more similar in concept than your silly analogy would suggest. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beignet-is-the-name-for-fried-choux-paste-period-also-crullers/691748.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beignet-is-the-name-for-fried-choux-paste-period-also-crullers/691748.md?page=4)