Air fryer donuts are incredibly fast, easy, and delicious! Just 4 minutes in the air fryer and you’ll be devouring these donuts and donut holes!
Why this recipe works
Everyone loves donuts. They are one of those guilty pleasures that we don’t indulge in often. But these air fryer donuts carry a lot less guilt because you are not deep-frying them.
By using canned biscuits and your air fryer, you can have donuts and/or donut holes any time you want!
RELATED: you might also like this recipe – Lemon Baked Donuts or Peanut Butter & Jelly Donuts
Ingredients you will need
Get all measurements, ingredients, and instructions in the printable version at the end of this post.
Ingredient Info and Substitute Suggestions
DONUT – We tried both flaky homestyle and buttermilk biscuits. The standard buttermilk biscuits are recommended here as they do not fall apart and taste much more like a donut vs a dressed up biscuit.
TOPPING – We have provided a recipe for chocolate glaze, peanut butter frosting, and cinnamon sugar topping in the recipe card at the end of this post. You can also top them with a lemon glaze which you can find on my lemon baked donuts post or opt for a store-bought frosting if you prefer.
How to Make Air Fryer Donuts
These step by step photos and instructions are here to help you visualize how to make this recipe. You can Jump to Recipe to get the printable version of this recipe, complete with measurements and instructions at the bottom.
- Before baking the donuts, prepare your toppings as you will need them ready as soon as the donuts are done. (Please refer to the printable recipe at the end of this post for the topping instructions, or use your own!)
- Spray the air fryer basket with cooking spray.
- Open the canned biscuits and separate into 8 pieces.
- Use a small cookie cutter or dough punch of about 1-½ inch in diameter to cut out the center of each biscuit. Keep the center for donut holes.
- Bake biscuit donuts & holes 4 at a time for 4 minutes at 350F.
- Immediately remove (be careful as they will be very hot) and roll in butter and cinnamon-sugar, dip in chocolate glaze, or spread with your favorite frosting. Add sprinkles before the frosting or glaze hardens.
Frequently Asked Questions
We tried both flaky homestyle and buttermilk biscuits. The standard buttermilk biscuits are recommended here as they do not fall apart and taste much more like a donut vs a dressed up biscuit.
Set up a donut bar for kids and friends to make their own. Have multiple topping options as shown and let them go to town. Have kids do this over a plate or over a sheet pan to catch all the crumbs and/or drippings.
Making air fryer donuts is a super fun weekend idea that you and the kids will love. Heck, you don’t need kids around to make these donuts for yourself!
More Air Fryer Recipes
- Air Fryer French Toast Bites
- Air Fryer Chicken Nuggets
- Air Fryer Pretzel Bites
- Air Fryer Apple Fries
- Air Fryer Bagels
- Air Fryer Boiled Eggs
- Air Fryer Chicken Breasts
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Air Fryer Donuts
IMPORTANT – There are often Frequently Asked Questions within the blog post that you may find helpful. Simply scroll back up to read them!
Print It Pin It Rate ItIngredients
- 16 ounce can Jumbo buttermilk biscuits
Cinnamon-Sugar Topping
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
- 2 tablespoons sugar
Chocolate Glaze
- 2 1/2 tablespoons butter
- 1/3 cup chocolate chips
Peanut Butter Frosting
- 2 1/2 tablespoons butter
- 1 tablespoon creamy peanut butter
- 2/3 cup powdered sugar
Other topping ideas
- Powdered Sugar
- Sprinkles
Things You’ll Need
Instructions
Prepare Toppings First
- Before baking the donuts, prepare your toppings as you will need them ready as soon as the donuts are done.
Cinnamon Sugar
- Melt 3 tablespoons of butter in a wide bowl in the microwave for about 30 seconds. Mix cinnamon with sugar in another wide bowl.
Chocolate Glaze
- Melt 2 1/2 tablespoons of butter in a wide bowl in the microwave for about 30 seconds. Add chocolate chips to the melted butter. Microwave for another 30 seconds. Whisk until lumps are gone and glaze is smooth.
Peanut Butter Frosting
- Melt 2 1/2 tablespoons of butter in a wide bowl in the microwave for about 30 seconds. Stir creamy peanut butter into the melted butter, then stir in powdered sugar. Mix until smooth.
Bake the Donuts
- Spray the air fryer basket with cooking spray.
- Open the canned biscuits and separate into 8 pieces.
- Use a small cookie cutter or dough punch of about 1-½ inch in diameter to cut out the center of each biscuit. Keep the center for donut holes.
- Bake biscuit donuts & holes 4 at a time for 4 minutes at 350F.
- Immediately remove (be careful as they will be very hot) and roll in butter and cinnamon-sugar, dip in chocolate glaze, or spread with your favorite frosting. Add sprinkles before frosting or glaze hardens.
Expert Tips & FAQs
- We tried both flaky homestyle and buttermilk biscuits. The standard buttermilk biscuits are recommended here as they do not fall apart and taste much more like a donut vs a dressed up biscuit.
- Set up a donut bar for kids and friends to make their own. Have multiple topping options as shown and let them go to town. Have kids do this over a plate or over a sheet pan to catch all the crumbs and/or drippings.
- Please note, the nutrition calculation does NOT include any of the toppings since we don’t know what you will choose.
Nutrition
This post originally appeared here on Feb 4, 2021.
Amanda Formaro
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Kathy K says
I make my own biscuit mix. Do you think I could mix up a batch of that, and use it for these donuts?
Amanda Formaro says
I haven’t tested these with homemade biscuits, but I would imagine it should work.