Air Fryer Donut Recipes - Easy must-try donut recipes (2024)

FAQs

Is it better to bake or fry doughnuts? ›

Baked doughnuts are smaller, baking powder driven and more compact. A typical fried glazed donut will be around 269 calories, while a baked donut will have much fewer. The difference is the fact that you won't be dealing with any extra fat from the oil from frying when you bake.

All-purpose flour works well for doughnuts since it has a moderate amount of gluten–the binding protein commonly used in baking. This gluten content helps create a dough that is strong enough to trap air, which helps create the fluffy doughnut texture we all love.

In my opinion, this recipe for air fried donuts comes very close to the deep fried version. I wouldn't say they're better or worse—both are utterly delicious!

Underproofed – leads to stiffer (denser) donuts that don't puff up well when fried.

Some Dunkin' locations bake their donuts in house, but not all. There are three ways Dunkin' locations can acquire donuts, according to TikTok user and franchise owner Amir Mohamed.

While all purpose works well for this recipe, I much prefer bread flour because of the extra gluten. More gluten means more of a chew and I love a soft and chewy donut! Both can be substituted one for another in this recipe. If you happen to have bread flour, I'd recommend using that for best results.

Fry the donuts, two or three at a time, in the oil 2 to 3 minutes or until they are golden brown, turning once. Remove the donuts with the slotted spoon, allowing excess oil to drain back into the fryer or pan. Drain the donuts on paper towels to avoid a greasy end result.

Cooked in the air fryer, the doughnuts are surprisingly good, texture-wise: light, spongy, and just slightly chewy, comparing quite favorably with deep-fried doughnuts. Clearly there's a color difference between air-fried doughnuts (left) and deep-fried doughnuts (right).

There's only one way to make doughnuts even softer and fluffier and that is by scalding some of the flour. Scalding is a technique used to not only make bread softer, but also to make it stay soft for longer. You can use it for pretty much any recipe you like.

What makes Krispy Kreme donuts so fluffy? ›

A batch of original glazed starts with Krispy Kreme doughnut mix, water and yeast, the same single-cell fungi used to make bread rise. The yeast is what makes the original glazed so light -- it puffs the dough up with air, so it's not dense like a cake doughnut (more on this later).

Once the dough has finished rising, pour 2-3 inches of oil in the bottom of your pan. Heat the oil until 350°. The best way to know your oil is hot enough (and not too hot) to fry is by using a thermometer. Fry the donuts at 350° for about 1 minute on each side or until golden brown on each side.

Like most doughnuts, Krispy Kremes are fried (cooked in oil). Frying cooks the dough rapidly from the outside in to give the doughnuts their distinctive crispy texture. The flipper turns the doughnuts over midway through the oil.

They are healthier than fried donuts. The donuts are moist and fluffy, with a slightly crispy exterior. They are versatile. You can customize the recipe to your liking by adding different flavors of glaze or toppings.

Traditionally, donuts are fried rather than baked. Frying gives donuts their characteristic texture—crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside. The deep frying process creates the signature golden-brown color and allows the dough to expand and develop the airy texture.

Because ovens heat air, and air has no calories, baking in an oven does not add additional calories or fat to the foods you cook. This is why baking is a smarter option when working on controlling calorie, cholesterol or fat intake, as you are left only with the calories and fat from the foods in the pan.