Air Fryer Donut Recipe:
Easy air fryer donuts from scratch! These are ridiculously delicious and using an air fryer cuts out so much of the messy work involved with frying donuts. It also makes them just a little bit healthier... not that these are really a health food.
Equipment
- Air fryer
Ingredients
Dough
- 280 g all purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 20 g of sugar
- 1 tsp active dry yeast
- pinch of nutmeg optional but delicious
- 1 egg ideally at room temp
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 125 g whole milk or your favorite non-dairy milk (ideally at room temp)
- 50 g room temperature unsalted butter + extra if you’re making cinnamon sugar donuts
- Oil for the air fryer spray works well but you can also use liquid
Cinnamon Sugar Topping:
- 20 - 30 g butter
- 75 g sugar You may need a little more
- 1 - 2 tsp cinnamon
Chocolate Glaze
- 50 g powdered sugar
- 2 tbsp cocoa powder
- 2 tsp milk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
Make the dough
- Combine all of the dry ingredients in the bowl of a standing mixer or in a large mixing bowl. Stir to combine.
- In a separate bowl combine the egg, vanilla and milk and then pour it into the dry ingredients.
- Set the mixer to low and, using the dough hook, combine for a few minutes until the dough comes together. If you’re working by hand use a wooden spoon or your hands to combine the dough.
- At this point either increase the mixer to medium and knead for another 10 minutes or turn onto the counter and knead by hand. Either way you want a soft dough that’s very smooth.
- Set your mixer to low and then add the soft butter one piece at a time to the dough. Make sure the dough is truly at room temperature and is nice and soft before you start adding it in! You want to work slowly at this point and make sure the butter has time to emulsify. Once the butter has all been added knead for another few minutes until the dough is soft and smooth.
At this point you have two options:
- Let the dough rest in the fridge overnight and shape it in the morning
- Shape the donuts and then let them rest in the fridge
For option 1:
- Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl, cover it and just let it rest in the fridge overnight.
- In the morning roll the dough out on a floured surface till it’s half an inch thick.
- Cut out your donuts using a small round cutter ( I used 2.5 inches for the donut and then 3/4 inch to cut out the center hole). You can easily do this with glasses, cookie cutters, whatever other round things you can find.
- Place the cut donuts on a baking tray that’s either lightly greased or covered with parchment paper. Cover them and let them rise for 45 minutes or until when you lightly press on the dough it doesn’t immediately spring back.
For option 2:
- Let the dough rise on the counter for an hour or until it’s at least 1.5 times its original size.
- Roll the dough out on a floured surface till it’s half an inch thick. If the dough is too soft to work with place it in the freezer for 10 minutes to let the butter firm up.
- Cut out your donuts using a small round cutter ( I used 2.5 inches for the donut and then 3/4 inch to cut out the center hole). You can easily do this with glasses, cookie cutters, whatever other round things you can find.
- Place the cut donuts on a baking tray that’s either lightly greased or covered with parchment paper. Cover the tray and place them in the fridge overnight.
- In the morning let the donuts come to room temperature for about 45 minutes to an hour or until they no longer feel cold to the touch.
To fry:
- Preheat the air fryer to 350°F
- Spray or brush the donuts and basket with oil and fry for 4 minutes or until lightly golden. Make sure you give the donuts space and work in multiple batches.
- While they are frying combine the sugar and cinnamon in a bowl and melt some butter in a second bowl. For the cinnamon sugar mixture you can add cinnamon to taste, I prefer 1.5 tsps but feel free to add more or less depending on your preference. If you want to glaze them instead simply stir together the glaze ingredients in a small bowl.
- For cinnamon sugar donuts, dip the hot donuts in the butter and then in the cinnamon sugar mixture before letting them cool. For glazed donuts just dip the donuts in the glaze and then top with sprinkles if you're in the mood.