These are true homemade Sourdough Donuts, made without any commercial yeast. A slow fermentation gives these donuts a spectacular flavor and texture. They’re like no donuts you’ve ever tasted.
It’s official, you guys – these are my favorite donuts ever! I mean, who doesn’t love a good donut? What’s your favorite donut style; cake or yeast? Some folks like the cake style donuts and, sure, they’re tasty. But, me? I’m partial to the airy/chewy texture of a good yeast donut.
What makes Sourdough Donuts taste so good?
Making donuts with the natural yeast of a sourdough starter takes them into another stratosphere. Seriously, these donuts are GOOD. The starter gives the donuts a special chewy texture and deep flavor.
If you don’t have one, check out my post to learn How to Make a Sourdough Starter. Then check out my system to Feed and Maintain Sourdough Starter.
I’ve been mulling over the idea of a sourdough donut for a while now. Being a huge baking geek, I’m always thinking of the possibilities beyond bread-baking for my starter. I just knew that sourdough starter would be a great base for a yeast donut–if I could create a well-balanced recipe.
How I created this Homemade Donut Recipe:
To create this recipe I looked to my Whole Grain Sourdough Waffle recipe and my Rhubarb Fritters. I wanted a donut with a texture somewhere between those two; the open crumb and chewy texture of the waffle, with the sweet, spicy, enriched flavor of the fritter.
Because the starter doesn’t get a boost with commercial yeast, the recipe is a 2 day process. Don’t worry though, the vast majority of time is hands-off.
About working with Sourdough Starter:
A night in the refrigerator is essential for the flavor and texture of the dough. Also, since this is a fairly sticky dough, it’s much easier to roll and cut while it’s still cold from the refrigerator.
A long kneading time and two-day fermentation allows the dough to retain lots of air without collapsing. You’ll see a great “poof” when you drop the donuts into the fryer.
Even though these donuts are really big, they’re light and airy and not at all heavy or greasy (and, seriously, what sane person is going to complain that a donut is too big?). A roll in cinnamon sugar gives these babies a perfectly crunchy bite.
I bake a lot, really way too much for two people to eat. I don’t need to crave sweets since they’re always around. But I have actually caught myself dreamily remembering the crunchy bite and lightly chewy texture of these Sourdough Donuts.
I can’t wait to make them again. They’re totally worth the time and effort–and calories. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to jump on the elliptical…
Watch the recipe video to see how-to make true Sourdough Donuts.
Since you’ve got your starter fed, check out the entire list of My Best Sourdough Recipes. Have fun!
I know you hate to throw away that sourdough discard. Check out these recipes that use sourdough discard.
If you love this recipe as much as I do, I’d really appreciate a 5-star rating!
Sourdough Donuts with Cinnamon Sugar
Start the day before to make a true Sourdough Donut without commercial yeast. The long fermentation of the dough gives these donuts fantastic flavor and texture.
Ingredients
- 1 cup (8 oz, 235 ml) whole milk, warmed to about 120°F (slightly warmer than body temp)
- 1 large egg (room temp)
- 4 tablespoons (2 oz, 55g) unsalted butter, melted
- 1 cup (8 oz, 224g) active sourdough starter (100% hydration)
- 3.5 cups (18 oz, 504g) unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup (4oz, 112g) granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon cardamom
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon table salt
- Cinnamon Sugar for coating
Instructions
Make the dough (day 1)
- Combine the warm milk, butter and egg with the starter in a mixer bowl. With the mixer running, add sugar, spices, salt and 2.5 cups of the flour. Mix until it forms a thick batter.
- Switch to the dough hook and add the remaining flour (amount of flour may vary based on the hydration of your starter). The dough will start out quite sticky. Knead on medium low speed for 15 minutes (speed 2 on my stand mixer) until the dough clings to the hook and clears the sides of the bowl.
- Scrape the dough into a lightly floured surface and knead into a smooth ball. Place the dough into a lightly oiled bowl, turning once to coat the dough. Cover and set the dough aside at room temperature for fermentation.
- After 1 hour uncover the bowl, lift one edge of the dough over into the middle of the dough. Repeat with the other three sides of the dough then flip the dough over. Cover the bowl and set aside.
- Every hour for another 2-3 hours repeat the folding as described above. After 3-4 hours of fermentation the dough should be lively, elastic and airy. If the dough is still sluggish give it another hour or two at room temperature. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
Make the Donuts (day 2)
- Remove the dough from the refrigerator. While the dough is still cold, without kneading, roll to 1/2" thick on a lightly floured surface.
- Use a 4" round cutter to cut donuts. Use a 1.5" cutter to cut center hole. Line the donuts on a well-oiled, parchment or silpat lined baking sheet, leaving space between the donuts for the dough to rise (I used 2 baking sheets). Reroll the scraps of dough and continue cutting donuts until all the dough is used up. Brush the tops of the donuts lightly with oil.
- Cover the sheet pans with plastic wrap and set aside to rise. The donuts are ready when you poke the dough and the dent slowly fills in. If the dough bounces right back it's not quite ready. This rise should take about 1 1/2 hours. The time will vary based on the temperature of the room.
- Meanwhile, heat 2 quarts of oil to 350F° in a large heavy pot. Fry the donuts a couple at a time, about 2-3 minutes per side, until golden brown and puffy.
- As you take each donut out of the oil, immediately roll in the cinnamon sugar to coat the entire donut. Set on a cooling rack while you fry the rest of the donuts.
- Best eaten warm or within a couple of hours of frying.
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Danielle
Hi there,
I was wondering if it’s safe to let an enriched dough like this sit out at room temperature for so many hours? 4-5 hours and then again for an 1.5 hours seems like a long time for raw egg and milk…or is it safe because of the sourdough starter? I wouldn’t be concerned if i didn’t want to give one to my 9 month old baby as an Easter treat.
Eileen Gray
Hi Danilelle, thanks for the questions. Any enriched dough sits out for hours to proof – brioche, croissants, danish, etc. Also, the donuts are cooked and the temperature goes well over the 140F danger zone for bacteria. Yeast is a living thing (it’s a type of fungus) and that’s why it grows at room temperature and then stops when the dough is cooked. These donuts are safe to eat!
Jason
What a perfect looking donut. Thanks for sharing the recipe.
Rachel
Don’t have a dough hook on my mixer, can I just knead by hand?
Eileen
Yes, the dough is quite sticky so keep your hands well floured.
Dewi
Can these be baked instead of fried?
Eileen
Sure, but honestly the texture will be different.
Shawn
Is your starter 100% or 166%? You mentioned you replenish with a 1:1.
Eileen Gray
Hi Shawn. At the time I created this recipe I had been replenishing my starter with equal volume water and flour, which means that by weight I had 166% water to flour. Actually, I’ve recently switched to replenishing my starter with equal weights since I’ve been doing a lot more sourdough recipes. But for this donut recipe my starter was at 166% hydration. So if you’re starter is at 100% you might need a little less flour. I would add the last bit of flour 1/2 cup at a time until you get a soft yet not super-sticky dough. If you watch the video you can see that the dough does gather on the hook, but it is not stiff.
Bailey
These sound amazing. Do you have any thoughts about how to make these without milk? Like using almond milk or Greek yogurt? Trying to think of how to make these a little more friendly for lactose allergies.
Eileen Gray
Hi Bailey. I think that almond milk would probably be a good substitute. If you want to try Greek yogurt I would suggest using half yogurt and half water to get it closer to the consistency of milk.
Marie
I made them to day went by the recipe..they were amazing..thanks for sharing the recipe.
Eileen Gray
So glad you liked them, Marie. This is truly one of my favorite recipes I’ve ever created.
Becky
When you say refrigerate over night about how much time do you mean? Typically I let my sourdough breads sit overnight for 12 hours in the fridge. Is that ok for this recipe as well?
Eileen Gray
Yes. The time is very flexible. I’ve left the dough as long as 16 hours with no problem.
Adam
My current sourdough starter is made using a whole wheat flour. Will it still rise properly if I use it with the white flour in this recipe?
Eileen Gray
You want to use the whole wheat starter but otherwise follow this recipe? If so, yes, sure. That shouldn’t be a problem. In fact, I kind of like the idea of a little whole wheat in this donut. I’d love to see a photo if you made them. Enjoy!
Hannah
Hi there – mid making these in NZ! Is there a good time/way to freeze them for later? It’s just the two of us and we are in lockdown so bit tricky to share them!
Eileen Gray
If it were me, I would fry and donuts, but not roll them in sugar. Freeze. To eat later, warm them in the oven and then roll them in the sugar while they’re still warm. Enjoy!
jan
Eileen…..hi….this may seem a dumb question but i will ask it anyway!
Today someone at work brought in a batch of Krispy Kreme’s. As i was eating one, which is just sweet on sweet on sweet, i thought, “I’d like this so much more if there was a *division* of flavors, like sourdough”
so, my question, lame or not, is: do these donuts have the piquant sourdough flavor i love so much?
thank you for the recipe….never have made sourdough bread before, so this will be an adventure!
Eileen Gray
Hi Jan. Thanks for the question. I would say these donuts are less sweet than an average donut. The flavor is a little more bready than cakey and it’s a nice contrast with the cinnamon sugar. As far as getting the “piquant” sourdough flavor, that would depend on your starter. There’s some great information on this website about adjusting your starter for more or less acidity.
Madi
If I wanted to make these as a chocolate doughnut, how much cocoa powder would you recommend using? My kids have been begging for doughnuts so I’m really excited to try these!
Eileen Gray
You can replace a 1/2 cup of the flour with cocoa. So instead of using 3 1/2 cups of AP flour try using 3 cups of flour and a 1/2 cup of cocoa. Otherwise keep the recipe the same.
Josh
Don’t you think 2-3 minutes per side is much too long? I find 60-75 seconds is perfect. Also when I fry them they turn black almost within seconds what causes this
Eileen Gray
Do you have a thermometer in the oil? Perhaps your oil is too hot.
Vegetarian Me
Substituted soy milk but everything else according to the recipe and they are divine!
Eileen Gray
Great!
Renina Sales
Was the starter used fed or discard for this recipe? I’m assuming fed, but it doesn’t state. Thanks?
Eileen Gray
The starter should be fed and active. Thanks for pointing that out. I’ve updated the recipe.
Martha
After making the dough, my family requested I make cinnamon rolls instead of donuts. The dough seems sweet enough that I’m going to give it a try!! Hoping for great success!!
Eileen Gray
Let us know how it turns out.
Simone
What type of oil do you typically fry in? Can I fry in beef lard?
Eileen Gray
I use basic vegetable oil. I’m afraid beef lard would impart a strong flavor. But to tell the truth I haven’t used beef lard.
Rachel Foster
Would these be good with a glaze instead of cinnamon sugar?
Eileen Gray
Yes!
Laurie
Thanks for the lovely recipe and video. Donuts turned out fantastic!! I did some in glazed also! I’m not sure how to upload pics. I read up on frying donuts first and watching the temp and adjusting was super important. Also I didn’t have cardamom so I added some allspice to the dough. Oh and a touch of brown sugar to the coating.
Eileen Gray
Sounds wonderful. If you post pics on either Facebook (bakingsenseblog) or Instagram (eileen.bakingsense) you can tag me.
Peter
I made these today and they were fantastic… Thank you.
Eileen Gray
You’re welcome. Glad you enjoyed them.
christine
Hi!
Im in the process of letting it sit out for 4~5 hours before going in the fridge. I usually let my starter sit in the oven with the light on to optimize temperature. Would you say I should do that for the dough or should i just leave it out in room temp? I live in Los Angeles and it some what warm these days 🙂
Thanks a lot!
Eileen Gray
I like the dough to ferment at a warm room temp, 70-75F. Sometimes if my kitchen is very chilly I’ll turn on the oven just long enough to take off the chill. So leaving it in the oven with the light would be similar. P.S. It’s cold and rainy here in PA so I’m very jealous of your warm days.
Paula
Hi !! I’m in the process to let them rise after I cut them (they looked so beautiful!)… it’s been about 3hrs and they are still flat 🙁 My starter is bublee again, so not sure what happened. Is it worth it to keep them at RT a few more hours, or are they already ruined?
Eileen Gray
Hi Paula, Was the dough cold when you cut the donuts? If so, it will take longer to rise. Did you go through the fermentation process on the first day and then refrigerate overnight or are you making them all in one day. The starter will rise faster than the donuts because it’s just flour and water. The Donut dough has sugar and other ingredients that make the dough behave differently. I would not start over. I’m sure the donuts are fine. Give them a poke to see if they feel light and puffy or dense. See if the dent when you poke springs right back or slowly fills in. If it springs right back give them more time to rise. If the dent fills in slowly the dough is ready.
Melissa
Hi! This tecipe sounds amazing!! Im currently out of oil, is the dough firm enough i could use the air fryer to make them, do you think? Thank you!
Eileen Gray
I’m sorry, but I have no experience with the air fryer.
Melissa
Just in case anyone is wondering, 350 F degrees in air fryer for same time recipe calls for!! Then i brushed with butter and shook them in a bag with cinnamon and sugar. Turned out GREAT!!!
Eileen Gray
Great. Thanks for the tip.
Gretchen Schlueter Brennan
Thank you I was wondering about the use of an air fryer.
Anne
Hi! Would it be possible to half this recipe? Would the proportions still be the same? 12 large donuts is way too much to eat warm with just two of us!
Eileen Gray
Yes, you can make half the recipe. Roll the dough to the same thickness, etc. You could also freeze extras (before rolling them in sugar). Take them out of the freezer and warm in the oven and then roll in sugar.
Dani J
I just did the day one process, up to putting my dough in a bowl but am concerned that my dough is too sticky..is it pretty sticky when it goes into the bowl or should it be relatively easy to knead into a ball at that point? Wondering if I should knead with more flour until it is less sticky? I probably added another half cup of flour just to get it into the bowl, but had a lot of sticky batter on my fingers still. Thank you!!
Eileen Gray
It is a wetter batter. You should be able to see the texture of the batter in the recipe video. Did you weigh your flour or measure with a cup. If you use a cup make sure to “dip and sweep” for measuring. That is you dip the cup into the bin and then sweep away the excess flour. If you spoon the flour into the cup you have less flour by weight. Also, if your starter is a wetter starter that can make a difference.
Lisa
Hey Eileen! This recipe looks awesome. I can’t wait to try it. Two questions, when it says to oil the bowl and to brush the tops of the donuts lightly with oil, do you recommend vegetable oil for that? And could this recipe be made as donut holes? If so, how would you adjust? Thanks so much!
Eileen Gray
Yes, I use vegetable oil. I make donut holes form the center pieces. The only adjustment is that they’ll probably rise faster and will fry faster.
Andrew
These turned out incredible! Everyone was shocked we made these at home. We made a simple chocolate glaze too and that was delicious. So far I’ve tried the sourdough pretzel recipe from here and these donuts and they were both great! Really the only problem I’ve had or change I’ve made is the amount of starter used. I only used about 160g. Over 200g is a lot of starter and that could possibly be all of my starter. Anyway, they still turned out great.
Eileen Gray
For future reference if you’re interested, my post about How to Keep a Small Starter describes how to do a 2 day feeding to get enough starter for my recipes without maintaining a lot of starter between baking sessions.
Jenny
Used this recipe a few times now and it works every time! I’ve tried a number of your recipes using my sourdough starter and being a newbie, I must say they’re super easy to follow. Really enjoying this sourdough journey during these testing times! Thank you! 🙂
Eileen Gray
Sourdough is fun, isn’t it?
Helen Ounifi
Hi Eileen
Thank you for these recipes I am a novice Sourdougher- so far I had success with my loaves so getting more adventurous with my discard.
I don’t have unbleached flour do you think normal AP flour is OK to use or should I use the Organic white bread flour?
Thanks in Advance
Eileen Gray
I think bleached ap flour would work. The dough might be a bit softer since bleached flour has a finer grain and softens the texture a little. The best bet might be to use 3 cups of the bleached ap flour and 1/2 cup of the bread flour to help strengthen the dough a bit.
Helen Ounifi
Oooooh thank you for the speedy reply. Will give it a go
Helen Ounifi
they were totally yummy!!!! English muffins next…. looked for a crumpet recipe?
Thank you thank you thank you
Ibe
Hello. Thanks for the recipe. I’m just starting to get comfy working with sourdough starter.
When you say you need 1 cup starter for this recipe, are you talking about a levain type of situation or just straight up starter from the jar?
Eileen Gray
This should be an active starter that has been fed and is actively rising or just beginning to recede. If by “levain type of situation” you mean starter that has been fed and is active, then yes. I wouldn’t take the starter “straight up” from the jar if it hasn’t been fed within a day or less (depending on how active your starter is).
Ranjana chandak
Would like to try this recipe
. Is there any substitute for egg. Would appreciate. Thanks in advance dear
Eileen Gray
Here’s a list of egg substitutes I found on-line. I haven’t tried them specifically, but maybe this will help.
Tim
Thanks for the recipe. It turned out great. My wife is gluten free and so far no issues.
Bryant
Hi there, do I let the dough rest for 4 hours and then after the 4 hours start folding every hour on the hour? Or do I let the dough sit for 4 hours but each hour fold? Thanks for clarifying!
Eileen Gray
The folding happens during the 4 hours.
Sandy
Hi Eileen
I just finished these doughnuts, they are delicious but when reading to see how to store I messed up and used a cup of my discard. I am new at this and have been reading so many things on sourdough starter, luckily they turned out.
How should I store them for a few days without freezing?
Thanks again for the recipe.
Sonia
Hi Eileen, Thanks for the recipe! I just wanted to double check that Unbleached All Purpose Flour is Plain Flour as it is known in the UK?
Eileen Gray
I assume it’s plain flour. As I understand it, there is no “bleached” flour in Europe and the UK. All purpose is a medium protein flour.
Britiany
Hi Eileen,
I was wondering about steps 3 and 4 on day 1. Do I let it sit for 4-5 hours first and then every hour fold the dough? Or am I folding the dough every hour in the 4-5 hours in step 3? Sorry if I’m making it more confusing than it is! Thanks!
Britiany
Eileen Gray
You fold the dough every hour, for a total of 4-5 hours.
Britiany
Thank you so much! I fried them today and they were delicious!!
Angela
What can I use to replace the milk in this recipe? My grandson has dairy, soy and tree nut allergies and would love to make some for him. Thank you in advance
Just starting my sourdough journey and can’t wait to try all your recipes. I will be making your sourdough semolina bread tomorrow. Wish me luck
Eileen Gray
Hi Angela, any non-dairy milk should work.
Amy Warriner
These turned out beautifully! Delicious! Wondering if you could leave it in the fridge longer than overnight…say 2 days? Great recipe!
Eileen Gray
Yes, I think you can leave it for up to 2 days.
Grace
Hi Amy,
I left mine (the other half) for at least 4 days It was still good. It was more fluffy and I have decided to make it into “beignets “ with salted caramel filling. They were divine!!!
Thank you Eileen. Your recipe is the best
Grace
Hi Eileen!
Thank you so much for this wonderful recipe. It’s the best doughnuts I’ve ever made – fluffy, not oily and the addition of cardamom is divine!!! I have made this twice already and your recipe is now in my “recipes-to-keep” folder. At these very moment, I’m going trough your pita bread recipe. I will defo update you how it will turn out. Again, thanks a lot!
Grace
Sheri
Hi Eileen!
I’m going to try out your doughnut recipe this weekend for Father’s Day! Do I need to do anything different to the dough if I want to make mini doughnuts? Also, have you ever filled these doughnuts?
Eileen Gray
No change for mini donuts except that they might rise faster, especially in the warmer weather. I haven’t filled this donut recipe, but I believe if you look through the comments and reviews another reader did fill these donuts with good results. There is no reason you can fill them.
Jolene
Has anyone tried using this with half whole wheat flour and half I bleached flour? I did quite a bit of baking off Glenda Groff’s site aroundthefamilytable.com and wondered if I could adapt this to whole wheat.
Eileen Gray
You certainly could.