Make Donuts Without A Fryer: Is It Possible?

You can definitely make donuts without a fryer! There are a few ways to do this, including baking them in the oven or using an air fryer. Baked donuts are lower in fat and calories than fried donuts because they don't absorb oil during cooking. They also tend to be lighter and fluffier, with a cake-like texture, while fried donuts are denser and chewier. You can make baked donuts with a simple batter of gluten-free self-raising flour and homemade buttermilk, or try a yeast-based dough for a more bread-like texture.

Gluten-free donuts

Ingredients

Firstly, you will need to gather the following ingredients:

• Gluten-free flour blend (a good go-to is Better Batter, or gfJules Flour)
• Tapioca starch/flour (this gives the donuts more elasticity and a tender texture)
• Salt
• Cream of tartar and/or baking soda (these help the donuts puff up and brown)
• Sugar (for sweetness and tenderness)
• Instant yeast or active dry yeast (if using active dry yeast, you will need to activate it in warm milk first)
• Apple cider vinegar (for flavour and a stable rise)
• Eggs (helps bind the dough)
• Milk (for moisture and richness)
• Melted butter (for tenderness and flavour)
• Oil for frying (a neutral-flavoured oil with a high smoke point, like sunflower oil, is recommended)

Optional Ingredients for Glazes and Fillings:

• Confectioner's sugar
• Lyle's Golden Syrup or honey
• Water
• Cocoa powder
• Chocolate syrup
• Beet powder (for pink glaze)
• Gluten-free sprinkles
• Whipping cream
• Powdered sugar
• Vanilla extract
• Cream cheese
• Jam or jelly of your choice

Method

Now, let's get into the steps to make these delicious treats:

Make the Dough:

• In a stand mixer or large mixing bowl, combine gluten-free flour, tapioca starch/flour, salt, cream of tartar, baking soda, and sugar. Whisk to combine.
• If using active dry yeast, activate it by mixing with warm milk and a pinch of sugar, and set aside until frothy.
• Add wet ingredients: vinegar, eggs, milk, and melted butter. Mix well to form a wet dough.
• For fried donuts, you can let the dough rise in a sealed container in the refrigerator for at least an hour or up to four days. A longer chill time will improve the flavour.
• For air-fried donuts, you can proceed to the next steps without a lengthy rise time.

Shape the Donuts:

• On a lightly floured surface, divide the dough in half and shape each half into a disk.
• Sprinkle with gluten-free flour and roll out the dough to about 1/2 inch thick.
• Use a doughnut cutter or a large round cookie cutter (about 7 cm in diameter) to cut out donut shapes.
• If making donut holes, use a smaller cutter (about 2.5 cm) to cut out the centres.
• Place the shaped donuts and holes on a lined baking sheet, cover, and let rise at room temperature for about an hour.

Fry or Air Fry the Donuts:

• For frying, heat oil in a large pot or deep fryer to a temperature slightly above 350°F (160-165°C).
• Carefully place the risen donuts into the hot oil, a few at a time, and fry for about 2-3 minutes on each side until golden brown.
• For air frying, spray the air fryer basket with cooking oil and place the donuts inside in a single layer. Set the air fryer to 350°F and air fry for about 6 minutes, then flip the donuts and air fry for a few more minutes until lightly golden.

Glaze or Fill the Donuts:

• For a simple sugar glaze, mix confectioner's sugar with Lyle's Golden Syrup or honey, and a small amount of water to create a thick glaze.
• For chocolate glaze, add cocoa powder and chocolate syrup to the glaze.
• For pink glaze, add a bit of beet powder.
• Dip the warm donuts into the glaze and let them set on a wire rack.
• Alternatively, you can roll the warm donuts in granulated sugar, powdered sugar, or gluten-free sprinkles.
• For filled donuts, use a pastry bag or piping tip to fill the donuts with your favourite jam or jelly.

Your gluten-free donuts are now ready to be devoured! These treats are best enjoyed fresh, as they may dry out after a few hours. So, gather your friends and family and indulge in these delicious, fluffy gluten-free treats!

No-fry potato donuts

Ingredients

• 3 medium potatoes, peeled and quartered
• 1 cup of warm 2% milk (70° to 80°)
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 4-1/2 cups of bread flour, plus additional flour if necessary
• 2-1/4 teaspoons of active dry yeast
• 1-1/4 teaspoons of ground cinnamon
• 1/4 cup of butter, melted
• Sugar, salt, and vegetable oil for frying

Method

• Place the potatoes in a saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat, cover, and simmer for 15-20 minutes or until tender. Drain, reserving 1/4 cup of cooking liquid, and set it aside to cool to 70°-80°.
• Mash the potatoes and set aside 1 cup to cool to room temperature. (Refrigerate any remaining mashed potatoes for another use.)
• In a bread machine pan, place the milk, eggs, shortening, sugar, salt, bread flour, and yeast in the order suggested by the manufacturer, adding the reserved cooking liquid and potatoes. Select the dough setting. (Check the dough after 5 minutes of mixing; some flour may remain on top; add 1 to 2 tablespoons of water or flour if needed.)
• When the cycle is completed, turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface. Knead in an additional 1/4 to 1/2 cup of flour if necessary. Roll out to 1/2-inch thickness.
• Cut with a 2-1/2-inch doughnut cutter. Place on greased baking sheets; cover and let rise until almost doubled, about 25 minutes.
• Bake at 350° for 15-20 minutes or until lightly browned.
• Combine sugar and cinnamon. Brush warm doughnuts with butter and dip in cinnamon-sugar.

Tips

• No-fry potato donuts are best enjoyed on the day of baking but can be stored in an airtight container for up to 2 days.
• To make the process faster, you can place the dough in your oven with the oven light turned on to encourage it to rise.
• If you don't have a doughnut cutter, you can use the rim of a drinking glass to stamp out circles and then gently pull to form a hole in the middle.

Baked donuts

Ingredients

• All-purpose flour
• Salt
• Granulated sugar
• Active dry yeast or instant yeast
• Butter
• Milk
• Water
• Pure vanilla extract
• Powdered sugar

Optional Ingredients

• Nutella
• Jelly
• Cream
• Peanut butter
• Custard
• Chocolate chips
• Cinnamon
• Nutmeg
• Cardamom
• Brown sugar
• Pumpkin pie spice
• Freeze-dried raspberries
• White chocolate
• Lemon juice
• Almond milk
• Vegetable oil
• Baking powder
• Eggs

Steps

• Line a large baking tray with parchment paper and set aside.
• Mix dry ingredients: whisk together the flour, yeast, sugar, and salt together in a standing mixer fitted with a dough hook.
• Mix wet ingredients and fat: In a measuring jug, heat together the milk, water, butter, and heat until lukewarm, and the butter is melted. Stir in the vanilla.
• Turn the machine on low and slowly add the milk mixture. Mix for 2 minutes to wake up the yeast.
• Run a spatula under the dough to make sure everything is mixed well.
• Increase the speed to medium and mix until the dough is shiny and smooth, 6-8 minutes. The dough is supposed to be saggy and on the wet side.
• Rub your large mixing bowl with vegetable oil (or any flavourless oil). Place the dough in the bowl and turn to coat lightly.
• Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let the dough rise until doubled, 1 1/2 - 2 hours.
• Once it has risen, turn out the fluffy dough onto a floured work surface.
• Roll out to 1/2” thick.
• Using a round cutter (3” or smaller), cut out your donut circles. Dust your cutter in flour so it doesn’t stick to the dough. Then cut out the donut hole with a much smaller cutter (a piping nozzle can be used).
• If you want to make donuts to stuff with Nutella or jelly, then cut a plain round donut (a 2 1/2” cutter can be used).
• Cover your donuts with cling film and let them rise at room temperature for 20-30 minutes.
• Heat the oven to 350°F (180°C).
• Unwrap the donuts. Brush the very top (not the sides) with melted butter. Spray the tray with 2 tbsp of water.
• Bake for 13-20 minutes, until risen and slightly golden around the edges.
• Make the glaze: Simply whisk all the ingredients together. Use more water if needed to get a thin glaze.
• Take your donuts straight from the oven and dunk them into the glaze one by one. Dip each donut in the bowl of glaze with forks. Let the excess glaze drip off before placing them on a wire rack to dry.
• Once the glaze has set, you can double-dip them for extra sweetness and a chewier texture.
• Baked donuts are best enjoyed fresh, but they can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days. For longer storage, they can be frozen.

Air-fried donuts

Ingredients

• Milk
• Yeast
• Sugar
• Butter
• Flour
• Salt
• Oil spray
• Powdered sugar
• Vanilla extract

Method

First, whisk together warm milk, yeast and sugar in a small bowl and let the mixture stand until it becomes very bubbly. Then, in a separate bowl, whisk together melted butter, eggs and sugar until smooth. Stir in the yeast mixture until combined. Next, add the flour and salt to the mixture and mix on a low speed until a shaggy dough forms. Increase the speed to medium-low and knead until the dough is smooth and elastic. Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl, cover and let it rise in a warm place until it has doubled in size.

Once the dough has risen, punch it down and roll it out on a lightly floured surface to a thickness of about 1/2 inch. Use a donut cutter or biscuit cutters to cut out the donuts and the holes, re-rolling scraps as necessary. Place the donuts and holes on a large rimmed baking sheet in a single layer, loosely cover and let rise again in a warm place until doubled in size.

Preheat your air fryer to 350°F and spray the air fryer basket with cooking spray. Place the donuts in the basket in a single layer, about 1 inch apart, and lightly spray the tops with oil before air frying. Fry for 6-8 minutes, or until golden brown.

Glaze

While the donuts are frying, make the glaze by whisking together powdered sugar, milk, melted butter and vanilla until smooth. Dip the warm donuts into the glaze and place them on a wire rack to let the glaze set for about 5 minutes before serving.

Tips

• The dough should be a little tacky, so avoid adding too much flour during the kneading process.
• Make sure to measure your flour correctly to avoid overpacking your measuring cup.
• Don't wait too long to glaze the donuts – you want them to still be warm so that you get the classic crackly glaze look.
• If you don't have a donut cutter, you can use a 3-inch and 1-inch round cookie cutter to cut out the donuts.
• The ideal temperature for the dough to rise is between 75 to 78°F. If your kitchen is on the colder side, you can place the dough in an oven with the light on.
• Don't skip the double-rise and be careful not to overmix the dough.
• Don't roll out the dough too thin, or the donuts will be flat.

Nutella donuts

Ingredients

• 290g all-purpose flour
• 30g granulated sugar
• 1 tsp (3.1g) instant yeast
• 1 large egg (60g), lightly whisked
• 60g unsalted butter, at room temperature
• Neutral oil for frying (quantity depends on the size of your pot, you want it at least 10cm (4") deep)
• Granulated sugar for rolling the finished donuts in
• About 150g of Nutella, or filling of your choice

Method

Make the Brioche Dough:

• Combine all the ingredients except for the butter into a medium bowl. Bring together into a rough dough, then turn out onto a work surface (do not add more flour).
• Knead the dough for 8-10 minutes. It will start off as very rough, then will come together and become smooth and elastic, and when pressed lightly with a finger, the dough should spring back slightly.
• Flatten the dough out into a rough rectangle and add the butter to the surface of the dough. This part will get sloppy, so make sure that you have a bench scraper nearby. Incorporate the butter into the dough by squeezing it and kneading it in. Keep scraping any excess butter back onto the dough and kneading it in. Don’t freak out. It will all work together.
• Once the butter has incorporated into the dough, knead for a further 2-3 minutes.
• Shape the dough into a ball and then transfer to a lightly buttered bowl. Cover with plastic wrap. Leave to sit on the counter for about 20 minutes to kick start the rising process, then transfer to the fridge to rise for at least two hours, and up to overnight.

Shape the donuts:

• Cut 8-10 parchment squares. Turn the dough out onto a work surface (try not to use flour if you can). Divide into 70g portions. Roll each portion into a tight ball, making sure that they are well sealed at the bottom.
• Place each of the donuts onto a parchment square, flattening each one slightly, leaving adequate space between.

Proof the donuts:

Leave the doughnuts to proof for a second time. This rise time will depend on the weather and the temperature of your starting dough so will take anywhere between 20 minutes to an hour. When you poke them lightly with your finger, it should leave a small indentation that springs back.

Fry your donuts:

• While the doughnuts are proofing, heat neutral oil in a large heavy-bottomed pot (cast iron works great). Heat the oil to 350°F / 180°C. Place a wire rack over a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Place the granulated sugar for tossing into a shallow bowl.
• Once the oil has come to temperature, test it with a few scraps of dough. Gently lower the donuts two at a time into the hot oil. Cook for 3 minutes on one side and then flip again, and cook for a further 3 minutes, until golden brown. Remove from the oil using a slotted spoon and place on a cooling rack.
• Allow to cool for 30 seconds before tossing in the sugar. Repeat the process with the rest of the doughnuts.

Fill the donuts:

• Once the doughnuts are totally cool, poke a hole in them using a chopstick, and widen the hole using your finger.
• Place the Nutella into a piping bag fitted with a round tip. Carefully pipe the Nutella into the donuts, stopping when it starts to feel heavy. You may need to do a test to check the preferred amount of filling in each donut.

Storage

Store leftovers lightly covered at room temperature. Best eaten on the day that they are made.

Frequently asked questions