France • Regional Dish • Snack
French Pets de Nonne
A funny-named French choux fritter, fried until golden and dusted with icing sugar while still warm.
Instructions
- Combine the water, milk, butter, sugar and salt in a medium saucepan. Bring to a gentle boil over medium heat.
- Add the flour all at once. Stir firmly with a wooden spoon until the dough pulls away from the sides of the pan and forms a smooth ball, about 1–2 minutes.
- Transfer the dough to a mixing bowl and let it cool for 5 minutes.
- Beat in the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition. The dough should become glossy, thick and spoonable. Stir in the vanilla and lemon zest, if using.
- Heat 5–7 cm of oil in a heavy pot to 175 C.
- Drop small spoonfuls of dough into the hot oil, working in batches so the pot is not crowded.
- Fry for 4–5 minutes, turning occasionally, until puffed, deeply golden and cooked through.
- Transfer to a rack or paper towel-lined tray. Repeat with the remaining dough, letting the oil return to temperature between batches.
- Dust generously with icing sugar and serve warm, with honey or fruit preserves if you like.
Cultural Context
Pets de Nonne translates, with very little effort at politeness, as "nun’s farts." The name is often linked to the airy lightness of the fritters, though some stories suggest older wordplay or monastery kitchen folklore may have helped the joke along. Either way, it proves the French sense of humor can be as sharp as its pastry work. The German Nonnenfürzle follows a similar idea: small fried puffs with a name that raises eyebrows before dessert even arrives. Québec’s Pets de Soeur are different, closer to pastry rolled with butter, sugar and cinnamon. Same convent-adjacent comedy, different snack.
Fun Fact
Choux pastry is cooked twice: first in the pan to build the dough, then again through frying or baking.
Cook’s Tip
Eat them warm, when the outside is lightly crisp and the inside is airy and tender. Lower the oil heat if they brown too quickly.
Trivia
French pastry names can be surprisingly cheeky, proving elegant dessert culture occasionally enjoys a lowbrow joke.
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