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My air fryer donuts are made from scratch and are fluffy, doughy, and perfectly glazed. Just 4 ingredients, no yeast, and ready in minutes.
If you love donut recipes like us, try my mochi donuts, protein donuts, donut holes, and breakfast donuts next.
Table of Contents
If you’ve been wondering how to incorporate your air fryer into your favorite desserts, I have one word: donuts!
But not just any donuts. I’m talking light and fluffy, yet crisp and enveloped in a delicate glaze. Best of all, you only need four ingredients and your handy air fryer. My family request it at least once a week!
Why I love this recipe
- Shortlist of ingredients. All you need is my famous Greek yogurt dough and powdered sugar for the glaze.
- They’re fast to make. A few minutes of prep time and no more than 8 minutes in the air fryer!
- Healthy. Each one is oil-free, low-fat, and has only 115 calories each! Plus, they’re easy to make vegan and or gluten-free.
- Totally scratch-made. There’s no frozen biscuit dough or pre-made dough here. Just simple, good-for-you ingredients. Trust me, you can taste the difference.
Key Ingredients
- Self-rising flour. A combination of all-purpose flour, baking powder, and salt. You can skip the store-bought kind and make my homemade self rising flour.
- Vanilla yogurt. I use full-fat vanilla Greek yogurt, but any flavored plain yogurt works. If you use flavored Greek yogurt, you must add two tablespoons of maple syrup or sugar to compensate for the tartness.
- Powdered sugar. Mixed with water to create a glaze. You can cut the calories and sugar by using a powdered sugar substitute.
- Sprinkles. Optional, but adds a fun pop of color!
- Water. To mix the dough.
How to make air fryer donuts
I’ve included step-by-step photos below to make this recipe easy to follow at home. For the full printable recipe instructions and ingredient quantities, scroll to the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
Step 1- Mix the dough. In a large bowl, stir the flour and yogurt until a thick dough remains.
Step 2- Shape. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth. Divide the dough into 8 equal portions. Roll out each portion into a sausage shape and connect both sides to form a donut.
Step 3- Air fry. Air fry the donuts at 200C/400F for 7-8 minutes or until firm. Repeat the process with the remaining donuts. Let them cool completely.
Step 4- Add the glaze. Combine the powdered sugar and water to make a glaze. Dip each donut in the glaze, place them on a wire rack, and top with sprinkles.
Arman’s recipe tips
- Save time. Make the dough in a stand mixer with a dough hook.
- Only have plain yogurt? Add 1/4 of sugar or maple syrup to give the dough a sweet flavor.
- Don’t add more flour to the dough. The dough is supposed to be a little sticky, so resist the temptation to add more flour.
- Let the donuts cool completely before adding the glaze. Otherwise, it will glide off the donuts.
Frequently asked questions
You can, provided you can find one that fits in your air fryer basket (mine could only fit a 4-count donut pan).
I tested this recipe multiple times to ensure the dough remains soft and fluffy. If your dough is a little dense, it means you’ve overbaked them. Remove the donuts once a skewer comes out mostly clean.
I’ve tested these donuts with almond flour and while they do work, they aren’t as fluffy or doughy in the middle.
Air Fryer Donuts
Video
Ingredients
- 1 3/4 cup self rising flour
- 1 cup vanilla yogurt * See notes
For the glaze
- 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar sifted
- 1-2 tablespoons water or milk
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, add your flour and yogurt and mix well, until a thick dough remains. If the dough is too thin, add more flour. If the dough is too thick, add more yogurt.
- Lightly flour a kitchen surface and transfer the dough onto it. Knead it several times until smooth. Divide the dough into 8 equal portions. Roll out each portion of dough into a long, sausage shape and connect both sides to form a donut.
- Line an air fryer basket with parchment paper. Place 2-4 donuts on them (depending on how big your air fryer is), ensuring the donuts are at least half an inch apart, to ensure they have room to rise and spread.
- Air fry the donuts at 200C/400F for 7-8 minutes, or until firm on the outside. Repeat the process until all the donuts are cooked.
- Let the donuts cool completely. While cooling, prepare the glaze. Sift the powdered sugar into a large bowl. Add 1-2 tablespoons of water (or milk) and mix until a thick and smooth glaze remains.
- Dip each donut in the glaze and place them on a wire rack. If desired, top with sprinkles.
Notes
Nutrition
More air fryer treats
Originally published September 2022, updated and republished July 2024
What an easy, yummy and quick recipe. Thank you.
Love these air fryer donuts so much!