At 4 a.m. on Sunday, the market in Papeete, the capital of the island of Tahiti, is already full of people, though it is still dark. Fermented taro sauce, lagoon fish, roast pork. The popular items sell out early, so everyone tries to get there a little sooner. Tucked into those bags there is usually a freshly fried doughnut twisted into a figure eight. The golden dough, coated with sugar, smells of sweet coconut. This is firi firi, a fixture of Tahitian Sunday breakfast.
On Sunday morning, you buy firi firi at the market
Tahiti is the main island of French Polynesia, which has 118 islands scattered across the South Pacific. A blog from Moana Voyages, which runs voyages around the Polynesian islands, even calls Sunday breakfast a Polynesian "institution," and writes that Sunday is the one day when it is forgivable to eat firi firi one after another. Firi firi is sold not only at market stalls but also in small shops in town and at the roadside.
The dough is flour and sugar with yeast, mixed with coconut milk in place of water. After a rise of a few hours, the thick, glossy dough is piped into figure eights, fried in oil and coated with sugar. The texture is crisp outside, and inside chewy, soft and gently sweet. Eating it with coffee is the standard Tahitian morning.
On the figure-eight shape of firi firi, the Moana Voyages blog describes a link to "varu" (the number eight), a movement in the Tahitian dance ori Tahiti in which the hips trace a figure eight. The Coconet, a site presenting Pacific cooking, describes firi firi as a Tahitian coconut doughnut eaten for both breakfast and dessert.
French Polynesia is also a place where French influence runs deep in bread and sweets. Even so, firi firi, a twisted, fried dough mixed with coconut milk, is a snack born in the island kitchen. Samoa's panipopo, another sweet from Polynesia, is likewise a bread made with coconut cream. The combination of coconut and wheat flour can be called a flavor shared by the islands of the South Pacific.
What to know when making it in a home kitchen
Except for the coconut milk, all the ingredients for firi firi are available at a supermarket. Coconut milk can be found in cans or cartons. The fat that has set in the can may be separated from the water, so shake well before opening, or pour it into a bowl and stir well before measuring.
The amounts in this article are based on the same formula given by the Moana Voyages blog and The Coconet (350 g flour, 200 ml coconut milk, 80 ml lukewarm water). Both let the dough rise for about 3 hours and fry at 170°C. In a home kitchen it is hard to pipe the dough straight into the oil in a figure eight, so this article uses a method of piping onto parchment paper and then lowering the paper into the oil with the dough.
You can make it with either cake flour or all-purpose flour. Cake flour gives a soft, light result, and mixing in half bread flour makes it chewier. For the first time, we recommend using cake flour alone.
Keeping the frying oil at the right temperature is the most important factor in making good firi firi. The Coconet recipe cautions that if the oil is too cool the doughnuts turn greasy and sticky, and if too hot the outside burns while the inside stays raw. A cooking thermometer gives peace of mind.
Ingredients (about 12 pieces, serves 4)
Because it uses wheat flour, it cannot be eaten by people with a wheat allergy. People with a coconut allergy should also avoid it.
How to make firi firi
The rise takes 3 hours, so if you want it for breakfast, you can also make the dough the night before and let it rise slowly in the refrigerator (see the FAQ). The frying itself takes about 30 minutes.
After frying the first one, break it in half and check the inside. If it is white and soft and cooked through to the center, that temperature and time are right. If the inside looks raw, lower the heat slightly and add about 1 minute to the frying time.
The dough is very soft and sticks to your hands. If you have no piping bag, you can substitute a heavy plastic bag with a corner cut off. Even if the figure-eight shape does not come out well, the taste is the same. Until you get used to it, it is fine to pipe sticks about 10 cm long.
Frying oil can catch fire if it gets too hot. Do not leave while frying, and keep it around 170°C with a thermometer. The dough has a lot of moisture, so the oil may spatter when you lower it in. Lower it gently, parchment and all, from close to the surface of the oil.
With coffee, while still warm
Firi firi is at its best freshly fried and warm. You can enjoy the crisp texture outside and the chewy texture inside. As Tahitians do, have it with hot coffee. Dipping it briefly in the coffee is also recommended.
Fried without the sugar coating, it is also good with maple syrup or honey. To strengthen the coconut aroma, mix an equal amount of shredded coconut into the coating sugar, and it adds an island-like fragrance.
The Moana Voyages blog also introduces, as another Sunday-morning taste alongside firi firi, how to make "coconut bread," a sweet bread made with coconut. The markets open in the early morning and the popular dishes sell out in the morning, so locals reportedly gather at the market from around 4 a.m.
Ways to vary it
Mixing 1 tsp cinnamon powder into the coating sugar makes a cinnamon sugar doughnut. Instead of a figure eight, piping and frying sticks about 10 cm long gives a churro-like shape that is easy to eat.
Adding the grated zest of 1 lime to the dough brings a refreshing aroma. Vanilla is also a specialty of Tahiti, so adding a little of the seeds scraped from a vanilla bean is another fun variation.
Frequently asked questions
Can I make the dough the night before?
Yes. After mixing the dough, cover it with plastic wrap and put it in the refrigerator to rise slowly overnight (8–10 hours). The next morning, take it out of the refrigerator, leave it at room temperature for about 30 minutes, check that the dough has risen and has bubbles, and then pipe it.
Can I store the fried ones?
It is best to finish them on the same day. If there are leftovers, wrap the ones before they are coated with sugar one by one in plastic wrap, put them in a freezer bag and freeze, and finish them within about 2 weeks. To eat, warm them still frozen in a toaster oven for 3–4 minutes, and coat with sugar while warm.
The dough is too loose to hold a shape.
It may have over-risen, or the coconut milk may have had a lot of water. Add 1–2 tbsp of flour at a time and mix, and adjust to a firmness at which it holds its shape when piped. You do not have to stick to the figure eight; dropping rounds from a spoon to make round doughnuts tastes the same.
Sources
- Moana Voyages (Aranui 5), "Sundays in the Islands of Tahiti: the Firi Firi & Coconut Bread Recipe." Accessed and checked 22 October 2026. https://www.moanavoyages.com/en/blog/the-firi-firi-and-coconut-bread-recipe/
- The Coconet, "Firi Firi." Accessed and checked 22 October 2026. https://www.thecoconet.tv/coco-cookbook/pacific-recipes-and-food-tips/firi-firi/
