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Home » Recipes » Desserts

Vegan Donuts

Published: Mar 19, 2019 · Modified: Apr 28, 2022 by Bianca · This post may contain affiliate links · 12 Comments

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Vegan Donuts

Who doesn't love fluffy vegan donuts?! These are super easy to make, fried, not baked. Coat them in chocolate, glaze, powdered sugar and add sprinkles!

various vegan donuts with chocolate, pink glaze, powdered sugar, and sprinkles

Soft and fluffy on the inside, golden and crisp on the outside. These fried vegan donuts are the real deal.

And the best part is that you can get creative with coating and glazing the donuts! I've coated them in chocolate, pink glaze, and powdered sugar. Then added coconut flakes and sprinkles on top.

Damn, they are delicious. 

How to make Vegan Donuts

The ingredients

Making donuts isn't hard at all and you only need a handful of ingredients: 

  • all-purpose flour
  • sugar
  • instant yeast
  • plant-based milk
  • a bit of oil for the dough and more oil for frying

The basic steps

flour, sugar, instant yeast in a bowl
Step 1: Combine flour, sugar, instant yeast.
adding wet ingredients (milk and oil)
Step 2: Add plant-based milk and oil.
donut dough in a bowl
Step 3: Stir and knead into a dough.
donut dough in a bowl before rising
Step 4: Cover the bowl with a kitchen towel. Let it rise for 1-2 hours.
donut dough in a bowl after rising
Step 5: This is the dough after 1-2 hours.
rolling out donut dough
Step 6: Roll out the dough.
using a glass and test tube to cut out donuts
Step 7: Cut out donuts! I've used a glass and a test tube. Use what you have at home!
frying donuts in a wok
Step 8: Fry the donuts in fryer/pot/wok on both sides until golden.
donut glazing station with chocolate, powdered sugar, sprinkles, coconut and pink glaze
Step 9: Let the donuts cool off. Then add coating/glazing and toppings!
donut glazing station with chocolate, powdered sugar, sprinkles, coconut and pink glaze
Step 10: All done! I've coated them in chocolate, pink glaze, and powdered sugar.

Donut Glazing, Coating, Toppings

There are endless possibilities to coat/glaze/top the donuts. Here are a couple of my favorites: 

  • chocolate: melt baking chocolate or chocolate chips in a double boiler, whisk in a bit of coconut oil. 
  • pink glaze: I've used a store-bought pink glaze for these, but you can also make your own by using beet juice for this pink rosewater glaze
  • powdered sugar
  • white sugar mixed with cinnamon
  • sprinkles!
  • coconut flakes
various vegan donuts with chocolate, pink glaze, powdered sugar, and sprinkles

Donut FAQ

I don't have a fryer. Can I make these donuts?

Sure! I don't have one either. You can fry them in a pot or wok. Just fill enough oil so that the donuts can swim but leave enough space in the pot/wok because the oil will rise and we don't want any oil spillage or worse. Okay? Be careful with hot oil.

What to do with all that oil?

Don't toss it! Reuse it! Let it cool off completely, then strain it to remove crumbs, then fill it in a bottle and use it the next time you're frying!

How to store the donuts?

I wouldn't recommend storing these donuts for too long because they are best when fresh. They will already be drier the next day. So I recommend inviting your friends over for a donut party! If you have to, I would store them at room temperature in an air-tight container for a maximum of 1-2 days.

How to deep-fry in a pot?

Check out my how to deep fry in a pot-guide!

inside of a fluffy vegan donut

More Vegan Donut Recipes

  • Powdered Sugar Snow Star Donuts
  • Vegan Donut Holes coated with chocolate and sprinkled with pistachios
  • Baked Donuts with Rosewater Glaze

I had such a great time making these donuts, glazing and coating them and adding sprinkles (of course!). So I hope you will enjoy these as much as I did! Let me know if you give them a try!

If you don't want to miss out on any new recipes, subscribe to my newsletter, follow me on Instagram and Facebook!

Cheers, Bianca

various vegan donuts with chocolate, pink glaze, powdered sugar, and sprinkles

Vegan Donuts

Bianca Haun | Elephantastic Vegan
Who doesn't love fluffy vegan donuts?! These are super easy to make! They are fried, not baked. Coat them in chocolate, pink glaze or powdered sugar and add sprinkles or coconut flakes.
4.58 from 21 votes
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 35 minutes mins
Cook Time 15 minutes mins
Rising Time 2 hours hrs
Total Time 50 minutes mins
Course Dessert
Cuisine American, Vegan
Servings 14 smaller ones or 8 larger ones
Calories 104 kcal

Ingredients
 
 

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 tablespoons white sugar
  • 1 teaspoon instant yeast
  • ½ cup plant-based milk (e.g. almond milk) | at room temperature!
  • 1 tablespoon canola oil
  • frying oil

Instructions
 

  • Combine the flour, sugar, and instant yeast in a large mixing bowl, then add the oil and plant-based milk (at room temperature). 
  • Stir to combine, then knead (or let a stand mixer with a dough hook knead it) until a smooth dough forms. If the dough is too sticky, add more flour. 
  • Cover the bowl with a clean kitchen towel and let it rise for 1 to 2 hours until the dough doubles in size.
  • Roll out the dough onto a lightly floured surface to about 1⁄2-inch thickness. Use a glass to cut out the donuts and a test tube/glass bottle opening/small shot glass/whatever-you-have-at-home to cut out the donut hole.
  • Heat your frying oil to 350°F/175°C: You can use a deep-fryer if you have one or a pot or wok filled with just enough oil so that the donuts can swim in it. Make sure not to add too much oil in the pot because the oil will rise and you don’t want an accident to happen. Fry the donuts on each side until golden brown.
  • Transfer the donuts to a paper towel to remove excess oil. Let them cool off before applying the glaze/chocolate or powdered sugar.

Notes

Donut Glazing/Coating/Topping Ideas
  • chocolate: melt baking chocolate or chocolate chips in a double boiler, whisk in a bit of coconut oil. 
  • pink glaze: I've used a store-bought pink glaze for these, but you can also make your own by using beet juice for this pink rosewater glaze
  • powdered sugar
  • white sugar mixed with cinnamon
  • sprinkles!
  • coconut flakes
I don't have a fryer. Can I make these donuts? Sure! I don't have one either. You can fry them in a pot or wok. Just fill enough oil so that the donuts can swim but leave enough space in the pot/wok because the oil will rise and we don't want any oil spillage or worse. Okay? Be careful with hot oil.
What to do with all that oil? Don't toss it! Reuse it! Let it cool off completely, then strain it to remove crumbs, then fill it in a bottle and use it the next time you're frying!
How to store the donuts? I wouldn't recommend storing these donuts for too long because they are best when fresh. They will already be drier the next day. So I recommend inviting your friends over for a donut party! If you have to, I would store them at room temperature in an air-tight container for a maximum of 1-2 days.

Nutrition

Calories: 104kcalCarbohydrates: 16gProtein: 2gFat: 3gSaturated Fat: 1gSodium: 4mgPotassium: 27mgSugar: 2gCalcium: 4mgIron: 0.8mg
Tried this recipe?Mention @elephantasticvegan or tag #elephantasticvegan!
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Comments

    4.58 from 21 votes (14 ratings without comment)

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    Recipe Rating




  1. Katie says

    March 24, 2019 at 11:38 am

    The visuals of these donuts would definitely catch my kid's attention.
    Adding this to the occasional treats for them.
    Thanks for sharing the recipe!

    Reply
    • Bianca says

      March 25, 2019 at 8:42 am

      Awesome! I hope they enjoy them! :)

      Reply
  2. JOANNA says

    March 30, 2019 at 12:13 pm

    This looks amazing! I will definately give it a try!
    I hope I will manage as I am not a great cook!

    Reply
  3. Susan says

    June 05, 2019 at 4:15 am

    Do you think you could air fry these?

    Reply
  4. Janna says

    July 26, 2019 at 12:56 pm

    Hi! I just tried this recipe last night. Although still delicious, mine turned out hard and dense, more like a funnel cake than a fluffy donut.
    Do you think I should have added the yeast, sugar and milk together first and let the yeast get frothy before adding to the flour? Just wondering where I went wrong. Still yummy and though :)

    Reply
  5. Alexa says

    November 16, 2019 at 1:50 pm

    I did these last night and although the taste was really good, the texture was definitely dry and chewy (and not in a good way). Do you guys have any suggestions as to what can be added to the dough to make the doughnuts turn out more fluffy and soft?

    Reply
    • Rome says

      April 08, 2020 at 3:30 pm

      I tweaked it a little bit and added half a cup more almond milk, half a cup of warm water to the sugar yeast mixture and let the yeast activate for 15 minutes, half a cup more all purpose flour until the dough becomes more like a blob and a sprinkle more if it’s too wet, oh and a teaspoon of vanilla to the yeast mixture as well. Turned out a little more fluffier and lighter, kids loved it even more!

      Reply
  6. Baron says

    December 12, 2019 at 4:16 am

    i made this recipe just today! i had to make some tweaks based on what i had on hand. i had coconut oil, not canola, so i melted it and used what ended up being more like two tablespoons.

    i also only had regular dry active yeast, so i had to activate it in my soy milk with a little bit of sugar. that worked fine, although i ended up needing more yeast in the end. the dough was too dry and not rising properly, so i activated about another 1/2 tsp in a TB of warm water and a lil pinch of sugar. once it was foamy i worked it into the dough with some more flour. it took a while and felt weird, but it rose alright. if i had started with activating 1.5 tsp of the active yeast, it probably would have been fine.

    i also made mine in an air fryer because that’s what my roommate had. 6 min each at ~375, flipping partway. i was really excited because my other roommate is vegan, and i was happy to get a fluffy recipe that everyone can eat!

    Reply
  7. Mira says

    April 06, 2020 at 7:36 pm

    I tried this recipe with a few alterations. I used 2 tablespoons of oil instead of one as I wanted my dough to be a bit tackier, as well as adjusted the yeast amount to 1 1/2 tsp instead of one as a comment on here suggested and used water instead of plant milk as I do with all my vegan baking since I don't see a difference. I also kneaded the dough for 2-3 minutes on my mixer to work the gluten. The donuts turned out fluffy and delicious this way, would definitely recommend!!

    Reply
  8. Vai says

    May 09, 2020 at 6:17 am

    They were quite dry and chewy. I did everything to a T except I air-fried them instead of deep frying them. I even proofed them after cutting out the donuts to make sure they rose to the full capacity. Also used active dry yeast but I made sure to activate it before adding it in to the flour mixture, so that shouldn't have created an issue.

    Reply
  9. Helen says

    November 05, 2020 at 10:02 pm

    Hi! Can I bake the donuts?? 🍩

    Reply
  10. Kayah says

    July 24, 2021 at 10:13 pm

    This is the recipe I have been looking for and I will try it out and submit results tomorrow!

    Reply

Welcome!

I’m Bianca. On my blog, you’ll find easy & delicious vegan recipes. I create 'meaty', 'fishy', and 'cheesy' recipes because I like to blow minds.

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