How Hot Your Oil Needs To Be When Frying Doughnuts

It seems like every corner of the world has its own version of the doughnut. Greece has loukoumades coated in honey, India has the gulab jamun, Japan has the Pon de Ring, and Argentina has Bolas de Fraile. Doughnuts are literally everywhere. Maybe it's because they are fantastic comfort food, or maybe it's because everyone, everywhere is obsessed with fried bread. And regardless of the different dough recipes used for the various kinds of doughnuts out there, they all look and taste familiar with a golden skin protecting a sweet fluffy center, and more often than not, they are coated in some form of sugar (via Delighted Cooking).

These days, if you are having a doughnut craving, you can simply saunter up to a Dunkin' Donuts and order whatever your heart desires, but every now and again the urge to make your own sweets hits. Maybe it's because you watched too many episodes of the "Great British Baking Show," or were scrolling through the foodie side of TikTok, but now you've got it in your head that you can fry up your own doughnuts.

A lot of people think they know how to fry food. They think, "It must be easy! I'll just heat up the oil and throw the batter in." But once the oil begins to sizzle and pop, people tend to shy away and turn down the heat, assuming they are reducing the risk of not only burning themselves but also burning their doughnuts. This is a huge mistake. Doughnuts rely on a hot fry to brown on the outside and cook thoroughly. The Kitchn warns that attempting to fry at low temperature will give your pastry a greasy and chewy crust, which no one wants.

So what should you do? Don't fear the heat — understand it. Use a candy thermometer to help monitor the oil's temperature. Wait until it reaches around 350 degrees Fahrenheit (The Kitchn suggests it can be between 350 and 360 degrees Fahrenheit), or if you don't have a thermometer, drop some of the dough into the rolling oil to see if it floats to the surface while sizzling, then maintain that temperature (via Food Network). So, what are you waiting for? Go and fry it up, and don't be afraid of a little heat.