Everybody loves to eat doughnuts or also called donuts. These small, fried, and sweetened dough cakes usually shaped like a ring or a ball are found all over the world. It can be eaten as a snack paired with great tasting coffee or can be eaten alone. One thing is for sure, donuts are incredibly delicious. Even those weight conscious individuals find donuts simply hard to resist. There are however different types of donuts out there, each is different from the others when it comes to the taste and flavor because of the different fillings. We have gathered some of the different types of donuts so that whenever you find yourself having a hard time deciding which donut to order, refer to this post to know how each differs from the other.
Donuts are commonly known as fried dough shaped like a ring, although it is hardly the only one. Well most donuts are made of deep fried doughs, donuts are not always shaped like a ring and not all donuts have to taste sweet. Round shaped donuts are usually donuts filled with fruit preserved while those some donuts, usually small donuts, often have holes in the middle and are sometimes called drop donuts or donut holes. Basically, donuts are deep fried delicious pastry that comes in different shapes, sizes, fillings and different flavors.
Basic Types of Donuts
Although most donuts are made of dough, a common ingredient, there are other types of batter that can be used as well and it will be discussed further below.
Yeast Donut
These are donut that are made of yeast from leavened dough, yes as the name itself suggests. Yeast donuts are a little yeasty, a bit of chewy and are not as sweet (sometimes no sweetness at all) as other types of donuts. Most of the time, for Yeast donuts to have taste and flavor it usually comes from its fillings, sugar coatings and glazing.
Yeast donuts can also be topped with either cinnamon sugar, granulated sugar, frosted sugar or powdered sugar.
How to make yeast Donuts:
Yeast donuts are made using a straight dough or a sponge dough. With the straight dough method, making yeast donuts is very simple. All you need to do is mix all the ingredients then set aside for an hour allowing it to ferment.
Meanwhile, start heating frying pan with oil on temperature of 375-385 degrees Fahrenheit. Once dough has been fermented, simply cut the dough in a donut shape that you like. Then place it in the heated frying pan. Donuts will tend to float at this point.
After cooking, remove donuts and add your favorite topping or glaze of choice.
Cake Donuts
Another type of donut that is made from cake batter that uses either baking soda or baking powder. Cake donuts have a more richer and more buttery flavor simply because of the enormous amounts of butter used.
There are two ways on how to make cake donuts:
First method: using loose leavened batters by pipping donut batter in either a traditional round shape or a donut shaped with holes. Most of the time, piped cake donuts are baked but you can also fry in cooking oil.
Second Method: using firm and leavened dough. The dough is rolled then cut into shape of choice for your dough and cook by either frying and or baking.
Cake donuts can also be topped with powdered sugar or cinnamon sugar.
Potato Donuts
The ingredients used in making yeast donut is similar to making potato donuts, although most of the time the flour is replaced by either potato starch and mashed potatoes.
Mochi Donut
Mochi donut is made with either tapioca starch or glutinous rice. A Japanese American type of cake donut but has a lighter texture as compared to cake donuts.
Mochi donuts are considered to be gluten-free simply because all purpose flour was not used therefore a mochi donut is more healthier as compared to yeast or cake donuts.
Vegan Donut
Vegan donut are a type of donut that uses soy, almond milk or coconut milk instead of using cow’s milk. And when it comes to eggs, eggs are usually replaced with powdered egg.
Different Donut Shapes
As previously mentioned, donut can also come in different sizes but the most common and widely known shape of a donut is round with a hole in the middle or often called as ring donuts.
Ring Donuts
When we think about donut, the shape that usually comes to mind is a ring shaped donuts. It is the most common shape of a donut. It is made by usually joining both ends of a long dough.
Filled Donuts
Filled donuts are also called cream filled donuts. These type of donuts shapes are still round but there are no ring or holes in the middle. It is called filled donuts because the donuts are filled with different types of fillings such as cream (cream filled donuts), vanilla custard, fruit preserves and others.
The most common filled donuts are called Jelly donuts but Bavarian cream donuts is also a popular filled donuts available in donut shops especially the famous Dunkin donuts shop.
Donut Holes
Donut holes is another variety of shapes of a donut. It is actually the dough at the center of a donut that was taken out to form the ring shaped donuts, hence called donut holes. They can either be topped with different glaze flavors or often filled with different fillings.
How to make donut holes:
In most of the donut shop in the US, donut holes are made by creating a small, yeast raised dough into balls. As mentioned, donut holes are made using the center of the donut cut to form into a ring shape donut. Donut holes are then fried and then topped with glaze before serving.
Since donut holes are tiny donuts, the recommended cooking time to prevent it from overcooking is about 3 1/2 minutes.
Drop Donuts
Drop donuts and donut holes basically has the same size but the only difference between the two is that donut holes comes from the center of the donut to form ring donuts while drop donuts on the other are made by placing a small drops of batter to the fryer. Since these are just drops of batter, most of the time the shape is irregular.
Cruller donuts
Cruller donuts are usually made from a rectangular shaped dough, then a cut is made in the middle so that it can be pulled and twisted. Examples of cruller donuts are cinnamon twist donuts and French crullers.
A French crullers may appear like a regular donut wherein they have the same hole in the middle. It is usually made of Choux pastry.
Old Fashioned Donuts
Old fashioned donuts is similar to cake donuts but the rough tends to rise more during the frying process of the donut. This type of donuts are usually fried on low temperature settings that results in a donut with smooth edges. One more thing, most of the donuts uses yeast, but with old fashioned donuts it uses baking soda instead.
Different Types Of Donuts
Glazed Donuts
Glazed donuts is by far the most popular type of donuts. Available not just in big time donut shops but also in family-owned bakeries as well.
Glazed donut are made with glaze toppings. The toppings are different varieties of glazes that are made from sugar, base of milk and vanilla, sometimes cocoa powder is used too. There are different flavoring available that can be added to your glazed donut and that includes maple syrup, strawberry and chocolate frosting (the most common topping).
To make glazed donuts, the donuts are first dipped to the prepared glaze and then placed on a rack to cool down. Several toppings can be added to the glazed donut while it is still wet, such as sugar and candy sprinkles. Topping the donuts while still wet will help easily bind the ingredients to the glaze.
Boston Cream Donuts
If you are familiar with the Boston cream pie, a cake that is topped with glaze (chocolate glaze) and then filled with vanilla custard, Boston cream donut is the donut version of the cream pie.
Boston Cream donut do not have donut holes. Boston cream donut is a round donut that is, as mentioned, filled with vanilla custard then topped with chocolate. Chocolate glazed topping and vanilla custard goes well together with Boston cream donut.
Sour Cream Donuts
Sour cream donut is also called old fashioned donut. It is a type of cake donut made with sour cream added to the cake batter. When sour cream mixed with cake batter of old fashioned donut, it will result to a moist, soft and fluffy texture type of donuts.
Most of the time, sour cream donuts are topped with vanilla flavored glaze, though you can top this donuts with any topping glaze as you like on your sour cream doughnut.
Cronut
Cronuts was created by a French American Pastry chef Dominique Ansel sometime in 2013. Cronut donuts are basically a hybrid between croissant and donut, hence the name ‘cronut’.
A Cronut is usually filled with flavored cream. It’s shape is similar to a common donut wherein it is also ring shaped although it is a little more taller than the typical donuts.
Toppings for cronuts can either be apple slices, blackberry or caramel frostings.
Jelly Donuts
Jelly donut is a type of filled donuts. Since there are no holes nor cutouts in the center of the donut, this means more space to add fillings. Holes are not made because aside from more space for fillings, no holes means there will be no spilling of fillings from the donut.
Jelly donut comes in different shapes but jelly donuts are commonly on a cylindrical shape.
There are different varieties of jelly donuts depending on the location. For example, in Australia they usually serve hot jam donuts. While in the US, they usually serve the standard jelly donuts. On the other hand, in Israel, they usually serve donuts filled with jams.
Cinnamon Twist donuts
This type of donut is not your typical round, ring hole donuts but rather a donut that is long with a twisted shaped donut covered in cinnamon sugar. Cinnamon twist donuts actually belongs to the cinnamon roll family.
Cinnamon Twist donuts are usually served during breakfast or as an afternoon snack.
In making this donut, the dough is twisted and formed into a long braid like shape. Since Cinnamon donuts contains cinnamon powder and then covered with cinnamon sugar, its flavor does not seem to overpower the entire flavor of the donut.
Coconut Donuts
Coconut donuts are more likely similar to the traditional donut, it comes in different sizes and shapes but the most common one is the circular shape with either a hole or without a hole.
Coconut donuts are named as such simply because a traditional donut is covered with shredded coconut. There are also instances where grated coconuts are added to the donut batter and formed into donut then topped it with coconut toppings.
Long John Donuts
Long John donuts are not your typical round and ring hole donuts, but rather Long Johns are oblong shaped donuts. It is not different from the traditional donut as it is also a yeast donut and are also fluffy donuts too.
Long John Donuts can be prepared is different ways. It can either be served as a plain donut, or you can choose to topped it with glaze, or it can also be filled with cream or jellies.
Maple bacon one of the flavors of Long John Donuts that everyone should definitely give it a try. It is a sweet and salty pastry treat.
Apple Fritters
Apple Fritters is another type of donut that is made from yeast dough. The batter is mixed with freshly cooked apple chunks and cinnamon. Donut shops have plain apple fritters donuts although cinnamon glazed apple fritter donuts are available too.
Maple Bacon Donut
As the name itself presents, maple bacon donut is a type of donut that is mixture of both a maple syrup and sprinkles of bacon. Maple bacon comes in different varieties of sizes and shapes. To make it more delicious, maple bacon donuts are usually topped with additional maple syrup and this time using real bacon.
Apple Cider Donuts
Apple cider donuts or also called Cider donuts is similar to coconut donuts. It is made using generous amounts of apple cider, cinnamon and often used applesauce.
Maple Bar Donut
Maple bar donut is usually covered with maple glaze. Although maple bar donuts can also be filled with either cream or custard. Other names maple bar is known for are: Maple Bismarck, maple cream stick, maple bacon or sometimes called maple glazed long john donuts.
Frequently Asked Questions
The two common types of donuts are the filled donut and the ring donut.
Glazed donut is the most popular type of donut. A popular American donut brand Krispy Kreme is known for creating the best glazed donut in the world.
Final Thoughts
Most donut shops have wide variety of donuts to choose from. Each with different shapes and sizes, different glaze toppings and different flavors as well. More and more types of donuts and more different flavors are invented everyday, that is why head over to your nearest donut shop and you might actually find a new favorite.
The list mentioned are just some of the common types of donuts in the market today however there are still countless donuts out there that you can try.
From list mentioned, which of the donuts have your tried and which one is already your favorite. Let us know what you think.