Tessa's Recipe Rundown
Taste: Since the doughnuts themselves aren’t very sweet, the sugar coating balances everything out into a perfectly sweet bite.
Texture: Crunchy sugar coating on a golden brown doughnut, with a slightly crisp exterior and a fluffy, light interior. Heaven!
Ease: Super simple and ready in just 1 hour!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe: Quick, homemade, delicious copycat recipe that will totally satisfy your craving.
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Homemade Chinese Doughnuts bring the nostalgic buffet classic straight to your kitchen – no takeout required!
Most recipes utilize store-bought refrigerated tubes of biscuit dough, but I wanted a from-scratch version. So, I went to work in the kitchen to perfect a homemade version.
This recipe is sort of a sweet biscuit dough variation, deep fried, and finished with a generous sugar coating – all made with simple pantry staples. The exterior crunch is marvelous, and the inside is soft and tender.
These sweet treats are simple to make, ready in 1 hour, and they’re even egg-free! Serve with a scoop of vanilla ice cream for the best dessert ever.
Sprinkle of Science
How to Make Chinese Doughnuts
What are Chinese Donuts?
Chinese Doughnuts are the round Americanized versions of the traditional fried Chinese sweets known as youtiao. Common in most American Chinese restaurants (especially buffets), they are the perfect sweet treat after a big dinner.
Can I Substitute the Milk?
I recommend using whole milk in this recipe. Using 2% milk, 1% milk, or vegan milks may change the flavor and richness of the doughnuts, so it’s worth the extra trip to the store for whole milk.
Do I Really Need to FRY These Doughnuts?
Chinese Doughnuts are definitely best when fried in oil. If you want to experiment with air frying or baking, note that the texture and appearance of your doughnuts will be more biscuit-like.
Tips for Frying Doughnuts
- Use a thermometer for the oil. Always use a deep fry thermometer to ensure your oil is at the perfect temperature throughout the process.
- Be sure your oil is at 350°F to avoid greasy, over-browned, or undercooked doughnuts. I preheat mine 5–10°F hotter to offset the temperature drop upon adding the dough. Adjust your stove slightly as needed throughout the frying process to ensure your temperature is consistent. Note: never leave hot oil unattended.
- I recommend using a Dutch oven for frying. They’re heavy and sturdy, and the size and shape help avoid oil splatter.
Which Oil for Frying?
I recommend using canola oil here, but any neutral oil with a high smoke point (such as vegetable oil) should work just fine. Avoid flavored oils or oils with a low smoke point, such as olive oil.
How to Tell When Chinese Doughnuts are Cooked?
Use a cake tester or toothpick to check the middle of your doughnuts for doneness.
How to Store Chinese Doughnuts
As with any fried foods, Chinese Doughnuts don’t keep well. Once fried, these are best served the same day. Store leftovers inside an airtight container at room temperature for up to one day.
More Recipes You’ll Love:
- Old-Fashioned Sour Cream Doughnuts
- Krispy Kreme Copycat Glazed Doughnuts
- Classic Cake Doughnuts
- Pumpkin Old Fashioned Doughnuts
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Ingredients
- 2 cups (255 grams) all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 6 tablespoons (85 grams) cold unsalted butter, cubed
- 3/4 cup (170 grams) whole milk
- Canola oil for frying
- Granulated sugar, for coating
Instructions
- Pour 2 inches of canola oil into a heavy bottomed pot with a deep-fry thermometer attached. Heat to 350°F.
- Meanwhile, in the bowl of a food processor, combine the flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder. Add the butter and pulse several times to cut the butter into the flour until the mixture resembles coarse meal. You can also do this by hand with a pastry blender. Stir in the milk until combined.
- Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and dust the dough with flour. Gently pat the dough out until it’s a 1/2-inch in thickness. Use a 2-inch round biscuit cutter to cut out circles.
- Fry the doughnuts a few at a time, being careful not to overcrowd the pot. Fry until golden brown and cooked through, about 2 minutes per side, being careful not to let them burn. Let drain on a paper bag (or paper towels) to soak up the excess grease.
- While still hot, generously coat each doughnut in granulated sugar. Serve. Doughnuts are best served the day they are made.
How many calories do these donuts have in them???
I’ve been looking everywhere to find the stopite ingredients to these crazy but delicious donuts
Hello, thanks for the amazing recipe! Tried it at home. I do have a slight problem though, my doughnuts were pretty doughy on the inside.. how do I rectify that?
Ours too..so we flattened them out more and they fried extremely puffy and completely hollow. Very Disappointed
Hi I just tried the recipe and for some reason when I added the milk it was too doughy. it’s very humid which many think messes up exact recipes. I did add about a tablespoon more flour which helped. these are amazing and soo GOOOD,. I did sorta burn a couple but that was because I was running low on oil at the end and didn’t add more or was playing with the setting on the stove.
I ran across your recipe today while scrolling through Pinterest. I thought you’d be interested to know that yes – this style of food is authentically asian. I have a Chinese cook book that is written in traditional Mandarin and sold in Taiwan. They just refer to them as sugar coated puffs. Their recipe only uses flour, water, salt, and eggs for the batter. They serve them w/ just sugar, or with jam/jelly. I look forward to trying your recipe, to see how it compares.
My grandpa loved chinese buffets too! My dad, grandpa, and I would always go together. Such good memories. Love these donuts! I’m excited to make them for my dad. Thanks!
I have just found your blog and your work is amazing! I love the sound of these doughnuts; so much quicker than regular yeasted ones. P.s the recipe rundown is such a clever idea. Pinned! x
Hmm, you said these weren’t quite as light and fluffy as the restaurant version, do you think increasing the baking powder would help that?
I’m excited to try these, they were always my favorite part of chinese buffets as a kid.
I meant that they’re not as quite as light as a yeast raised doughnut, which is what many people think of when they think of a doughnut. These are more more rich. I would be cautious about using any more baking powder as you might start to develop a bitter, metallic taste.
So sorry for the loss of your grandfather. He sounds like a special man.
(Gonna try these donuts!)
Thank you! He definitely was, no one else like him! Hope you enjoy the doughnuts 🙂
I’m so sorry for your loss, Tessa. But, on a happier note, these doughnuts look divine. I wish I could eat that whole stack by myself. (Don’t judge!)
Thank you Olivia! And believe me, there were quite a few gone before the rest were even fried 😉
Hi Tessa, deepest sympathy to you and your family for your loss.
I love these donuts, tried to get one through the monitor! That’s how great they look.
Pinned these and your Old Fashioned Sour Cream donuts, which are one of my favorites. Thanks so much!
Hi Tessa,
Thanks for your excellent blog! I’m very sorry for the loss of your grandfather. I LOVE chinese buffets too (good ones!) even for special occasions…. 🙂 I have never thought of making chinese donuts before. Thanks for the recipe and the great step-by-step guide!
Hi – your recipes made me a hero at Christmas Time! On the Chinese Donuts recipe, you say to put the flour, sugar, saly, etc. in the food processor. I assume you mean salt?
Yep, just a typo.