These homemade Nutella donuts are deep fried to perfection, then rolled in sugar and filled with creamy Nutella buttercream! They're a fun breakfast treat for any Nutella lover!
You might also like these Nutella cupcakes or these chocolate coconut donuts!
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Ingredient Notes
You just need a few ingredients to make these deep fried Nutella donuts!
Instant Yeast - The yeast is what helps the dough rise! I like using instant yeast (as opposed to active dry yeast) because you don't need to bloom it first.
Nutella - I'm partial to the classic Nutella, but any chocolate hazelnut spread will work!
The complete list of ingredients and amounts is located in the recipe card below.
How to Make Fried Donuts
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment, combine all of the dough ingredients and knead on medium low speed for about 5 minutes. The dough should come together in a cohesive ball that pulls away from the sides of the bowl but is still slightly sticky. If the dough does not come together, add in more flour 1 tablespoon at a time until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl.
Place the dough in a large, lightly greased bowl and cover. Place the dough in the fridge and chill overnight (8-12 hours).
In the morning, remove the dough from the fridge and allow it to rise at room temperature for about 30 minutes.
When the dough is finished rising, lightly punch it down and then turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Roll the dough into a large rectangle about ½ inch thick.
Using a 3 ½ inch round cookie cutter, cut the dough into 12 circles. If you don't quite get 12 you can re-roll the scraps and cut out more circles. If desired, you can then use the leftover scraps to make donut holes! Use a 1 inch or 1 ½ inch round cookie cutter to punch some donut holes out of the scraps. Lightly cover the donuts and let rest while the oil is heating.
Lightly cover the donuts and let rest while the oil is heating.
Pour 2-4 cups of vegetable oil (you want it to be about 2 inches deep) into a large, heavy bottomed pot or dutch oven and heat over medium high heat until the oil reached 375°F. Place a cooling rack on top of a baking sheet and position it next to your stove. [I love this thermometer because it clips to the pot.]
Once the oil reaches 375°F, fry 3-4 donuts at a time for 1 minute on each side. The donuts should be a deep golden brown. Remove from the oil and place on the cooling rack to allow excess oil to drain off. I always make 1 donut first and check to make sure it's cooked through!
Repeat with the remaining donuts as well as the donut holes.
While the donuts are still warm, toss them in the granulated sugar! Place back on the cooling rack and allow to mostly cool to room temperature before filling.
Transfer the Nutella buttercream filling to a piping bag fitted with a large bismark tip. Poke the bismark tip into the side of each donut and fill with the Nutella frosting. [It's easiest to make a hole in the side of the donut using a chopstick prior to filling.]
The Nutella donuts are best eaten immediately!
Recipe Notes
To cut the round donuts, you can use a legit donut cutter, or just different sized round cookie/biscuit cutters! I have a set of round biscuit/cookie cutters that work great perfectly! I use the 3.5" circle for the donut and the 1.5 inch circle for the leftover holes.
If you don't want to roll the donuts in sugar, you can dip them in a simple glaze (like from these classic donuts).
Recipe FAQ's
These donuts are best eaten the same day, but will keep covered in the fridge for up to 2 days.
This recipe was specifically designed for deep frying the donuts. If you would prefer baked donuts, I suggest looking up a different recipe.
Nope! I prefer a cold rise because the dough is easier to work with. But you can do a minimum of 3 hours in the fridge instead of overnight
Use an instant thermometer to check the internal temperature! You want to shoot for around 190°F.
Tips for Success!
For best results I always recommend using weight measurements (especially when baking) because it's the most accurate. Kitchen scales are super affordable and also reduce the number of dishes you have to do! However, all my recipes also include US customary measurements for convince. Use this chart to convert measurements for common ingredients!
Substitutions: In all my recipes, I've included substitutions that I know will work, but I cannot guarantee results if you substitute ingredients that I have not recommended. [For example, granulated sugar and honey are indeed both sweeteners but they have very different properties so they can not always be swapped 1:1. Using honey in a cookie recipe that calls for granulated sugar will yield a giant mess.] In the recipe card you'll find links to the specific ingredients/brands that I use.
A note on salt: I almost exclusively use Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt because it's the best all-purpose salt for cooking and baking. If you're not using kosher salt, consult this handy guide for a conversion chart! When in doubt, if you're using table salt just reduce the amount by half for baked goods. When cooking, I prefer to under-salt because you can always add more! If you've over-salted, adding a little bit of acid (like lemon juice) can help.
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Recipe Card
Nutella Donuts
Special Equipment
- 2-4 cups vegetable oil for frying
Ingredients
Donuts
- 4 cups all purpose flour
- ½ cup granulated sugar, plus extra for rolling
- 1 cup whole milk
- ½ cup unsalted butter, melted
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons instant yeast
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
Nutella Cream Filling
- ½ cup unsalted butter, room temperature
- ¼ cup Nutella
- 1 ½ cups powdered sugar
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1-2 tablespoons heavy cream, as needed
Instructions
Donuts
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment, combine all of the dough ingredients and knead on medium low speed for about 5 minutes. The dough should come together in a cohesive ball that pulls away from the sides of the bowl but is still slightly sticky. If the dough does not come together, add in more flour 1 tablespoon at a time until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl.
- Place the dough in a large, lightly greased bowl and cover. Place the dough in the fridge and chill overnight (8-12 hours).
- In the morning, remove the dough from the fridge and allow it to rise at room temperature for about 30 minutes.
- When the dough is finished rising, lightly punch it down and then turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Roll the dough into a large rectangle about ½ inch thick.
- Using a 3 ½ inch round cookie cutter, cut the dough into 12 circles. If you don't quite get 12 you can re-roll the scraps and cut out more circles. If desired, you can then use the leftover scraps to make donut holes! Use a 1 inch or 1 ½ inch round cookie cutter to punch some donut holes out of the scraps. Lightly cover the donuts and let rest while the oil is heating.
- Lightly cover the donuts and let rest while the oil is heating.
- Pour 2-4 cups of vegetable oil (you want it to be about 2 inches deep) into a large, heavy bottomed pot or dutch oven and heat over medium high heat until the oil reached 375°F. Place a cooling rack on top of a baking sheet and position it next to your stove. [I love this thermometer because it clips to the pot.]
- Once the oil reaches 375°F, fry 3-4 donuts at a time for 1 minute on each side. The donuts should be a deep golden brown. Remove from the oil and place on the cooling rack to allow excess oil to drain off. I always make 1 donut first and check to make sure it's cooked through!
- Repeat with the remaining donuts as well as the donut holes.
- Add about ½ cup granulated sugar to a small bowl.
- While the donuts are still warm, toss them in the granulated sugar! Place back on the cooling rack and allow to mostly cool to room temperature before filling.
Nutella Cream Filling
- In a large bowl using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream together the softened butter and Nutella until smooth.
- Add in the powdered sugar and salt and mix on low until fully combined.
- Then beat on high for 3-5 minutes until the buttercream is super light and airy.
- If the frosting in too thick, you can add in 1 tablespoon of cream at a time to thin it out a bit.
- Transfer the Nutella buttercream filling to a piping bag fitted with a large bismark tip. Poke the bismark tip into the side of each donut and fill with the Nutella frosting. [It's easiest to make a hole in the side of the donut using a chopstick prior to filling.]
- These Nutella donuts are best eaten immediately!
Notes
Nutrition
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Tina Jordan says
Hello! These look absolutely wonderful and I intend to try them out! Can you let me know, if you are using an active starter or discard?
Carmen Stancovici says
Hi! Thanks for sharing your recipe! Do you mix your starter with sugar? Or is it a regular starter? Thanks!
Kyleigh Sage says
Hi! It’s just a regular starter!