How to Make Chocolate Filled Donuts

Co-authored by wikiHow Staff

Last Updated: December 13, 2021 References

Chocolate filled donuts are a delicious dessert you can make in the comfort of your own kitchen. They can be made with simple ingredients and minimal specialized equipment. After you make the dough, you will refrigerate it for 6 hours. You will then make the chocolate filling, fry the donuts, coat the donuts with sugar, and let them cool completely. Finally, you will use a pastry bag to fill each delectable donut with chocolate.

Ingredients

The Dough

2 ½ teaspoons active dry yeast
2/3 cup (160 mL) whole milk
3 ½ cups (420 grams) all-purpose flour
1/3 cup (65 grams) granulated sugar
2 teaspoons kosher salt
3 eggs
7 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 gallon (3.8 L) canola oil, for frying

The Chocolate Filling

¾ cup (180 mL) whole milk
2 egg yolks
¼ cup (50 grams) granulated sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons cornstarch
¼ cup (40 grams) dark chocolate chips

For the Coating

1 cup (200 grams) granulated sugar

Part 1

Part 1 of 4:

Making the Dough

1
Cut the butter into pieces. You will need to separate the butter into about 7 or 8 equally sized pieces. An easy way to do this is to utilize the printed measurements on the butter wrapper. For example, you can cut the butter into 7 equal pieces of 1 tablespoon each by cutting along the tablespoon measurements on the stick of butter.^{[1]
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2
Let the milk and butter come to room temperature. You will be using both milk and butter to make your dough. It is important that both the milk and butter are at room temperature to ensure proper mixing of the ingredients. Leave the following ingredients on your kitchen counter for 30 minutes to bring them to room temperature:^{[2]
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- 2/3 cup (160 mL) whole milk
- 7 tablespoons unsalted butter
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3
Attach a dough hook to your mixer. In order to make chocolate filled donuts, you will need an electric stand mixer or an electric hand mixer. If using a stand mixer, it needs to be fitted with a dough hook attachment. This will ensure that your dough is properly mixed.
4
Combine the milk and yeast. In the bowl of your electric stand mixer or in a large stainless steel bowl, combine the milk and yeast. Stir the two together with a spoon, and let stand until the yeast is completely dissolved. This should take about 1 minute. You will stir together:
- 2/3 cup (160 mL) whole milk
- 2 ½ teaspoons active dry yeast
5
Add the eggs, sugar, salt, and flour. Once the yeast has dissolved completely in the milk, it is time to add and mix additional ingredients. Place the flour, sugar, salt, and eggs in the bowl of your electric stand mixer or, if using a hand mixer, in a large stainless steel bowl. Mix on low speed for about 3 minutes. In addition to the milk and dissolved yeast, you will be mixing:
- 3 ½ cups (420 grams) all purpose flour
- 1/3 cup (65 grams) granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 3 eggs
6
Add the butter. You will next add the butter, two pieces at a time. Add two pieces and mix on low speed until the two pieces of butter are completely incorporated into the dough. Keep adding the butter two pieces at a time, making sure it is fully incorporated before you add the next pieces. It should take a total of 5-6 minutes to incorporate all 7 tablespoons of butter.
7
Refrigerate the dough. Once you have incorporated the butter, remove the bowl of dough from the base of your electric stand mixer. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Refrigerate the donut dough for at least 6 hours, but no more than 15 hours.

Part 2

Part 2 of 4:

Making the Chocolate Filling

1
Add the milk, egg yolks, vanilla extract, and sugar to a small saucepan. Turn the saucepan on low heat. Stir continuously until the mixture reaches 160 degrees Fahrenheit or about 71 degrees Celsius. You will be stirring together:
- ¾ cup (180 mL) whole milk
- 2 egg yolks
- ¼ cup (50 grams) granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2
Add the cornstarch. Once the mixture of milk, egg yolks, vanilla extract, and sugar has reached a temperature of 160 degrees Fahrenheit or 71 degrees Celsius, add 2 tablespoons of cornstarch. As you add the cornstarch, turn the heat up to low-medium. Cook for 5-6 minutes until the custard gets very thick. Stir the mixture occasionally as it thickens.^{[3]
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3
Stir in the chocolate chips. Once the filling has reached a custard-like consistency, stir in ¼ cup (40 grams) chocolate chips. Stir until the chocolate is completely melted and combined with the filling mixture. The filling should have a pudding-like consistency. Remove from the heat.^{[4]
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4
Add the chocolate filling to a piping or pastry bag. You will need a piping or pastry bag and metal tip to insert the chocolate filling into the donuts. Scoop the chocolate filling into the piping bag fitted with the metal tip. Place the bag in the refrigerator for 30-45 minutes.^{[5]
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Part 3

Part 3 of 4:

Making the Donuts

1
Prepare a baking sheet. Once you form the donuts, you will be placing them on a baking sheet where they will rest until frying. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Spray the parchment paper with nonstick cooking spray. Set the prepared baking sheet aside.
2
Flour a work surface. You will be rolling out dough and forming donuts on a well floured work surface. Your kitchen counter, a large pastry board, or a large cutting board will work well. Lightly dust your work surface with flour, taking care not to pile on too much flour.^{[6]
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3
Roll the dough. Remove the donut dough from the refrigerator and place it on your floured work surface. Take your hands and gently roll the dough into a 12 inch or 30 centimeter square. The square should be about ½ inch or 1.27 centimeters thick.
4
Cut the dough into donuts. Using a 3 ½ inch or 9 centimeter round cookie cutter, cut the dough into 9 separate donuts. If you don't have a round cookie cutter, you can use a cup or glass that is 3 ½ inches or 9 centimeters in diameter. Transfer the donuts to the baking sheet you prepared earlier.
5
Let the donuts rise. Once you have transferred the donuts to the prepared baking sheet, you will cover them with a piece of plastic wrap sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Move the baking sheet full of donuts to a warm spot. Allow the donuts to rise in the warm spot until they are pillowy, about 2 to 3 hours.
6
Prepare the sugar coating. In a small bowl, place 1 cup (200 grams) of granulated sugar. You will be using this sugar to coat the donuts after you fry them. Set the bowl of sugar aside.
7
Line a large baking sheet with paper towels. After the donuts rise, you will fry them. After frying the donuts, you will need to place them on an absorbent surface to drain excess oil. Line a large baking sheet with several layers of paper towels. This is where you will place the donuts as you remove them from the oil.
8
Prepare your frying equipment. In a large, heavy bottomed pot, pour about 3 inches, or 7.5 centimeters, of canola oil. Heat the oil to about 350 degrees Fahrenheit or about 177 degrees Celsius. If you do not have a temperature gauge, you can check the temperature by dipping a wooden spoon handle in the oil. If the oil starts to steadily bubble, then it has reached the proper temperature.^{[7]
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- You can also use a deep fryer to fry your donuts.
9
Fry the donuts. Take 3 donuts at a time and lower them into the hot oil. Fry them for 2 to 3 minutes on the first side. Then carefully turn them over using a slotted spoon and fry for an additional 2 to 3 minutes on the second side. Place the fried donuts on the paper towel-lined baking sheet.
- The temperature of the oil may fluctuate during cooking, so you will need to use your thermometer to monitor it and adjust accordingly.
- The donuts should be golden brown when they are cooked.
10
Toss the donuts in the sugar. Once the donuts have cooled enough so that you can handle them without burning yourself, you will toss them in the bowl of sugar. Your goal is to coat each donut evenly. Once you have coated each donut, return it to the paper towel-lined baking sheet.
11
Allow the donuts to cool completely. After you have coated the warm donuts in sugar, let them cool completely. It is important that the donuts are completely cool before you fill them with chocolate. Let the donuts cool for at least 30 to 40 minutes.

Part 4

Part 4 of 4:

Filling the Donuts

1
Remove the chocolate filling from the refrigerator. Your chocolate filling should have been chilling for about 30-45 minutes. Once you have refrigerated the filling for this time period, remove it from the refrigerator.
2
Poke a hole in the side of the donut. In order to fill the donuts with chocolate, you will need to create a hole on the side of it. Use the tip attached to the piping or pastry bag. Gently poke a hole in the side of the donut.
3
Fill each donut with chocolate. Once you poke a hole in the side of the donut, firmly squeeze the piping or pastry bag. Keep squeezing until you have filled the center of the donut. Serve as soon as they are filled, as chocolate filled donuts are best enjoyed immediately!

Community Q&A

Question

How many donuts does this recipe serve?

Qamar

Top Answerer

This recipe makes about a dozen medium chocolate-filled donuts, or two dozen smaller donuts.