The Best Chocolate Donuts are moist, sweet, and very chocolatey. This recipe delivers the best texture and flavor for donuts that are addictive and delicious.
If you can’t get enough of these donuts, you have to try our old fashioned sour cream donuts and jelly-filled brioche donuts.
Chocolate Glazed Donuts
These Chocolate Donuts are the best because they are moist and dense, with a flavor that is sweet, but also a little tangy. That’s because these glazed donuts are made with sour cream to give a delicious contrast to the sweetness of the chocolate and the smooth glaze on top (it’s almost like a rich chocolate ganache). You’ll love the crisp, fried outside that covers the moist and chewy insides. This donut is perfect for the chocoholic in all of us! If you’re an extreme chocolate lover, you NEED to try our double chocolate cookies (VIDEO). They’re insanely delicious!
What you’ll use for this recipe
There are 2 parts to this recipe: the dough for the donuts and the chocolate glaze. For the donuts, you will need Unsalted butter, Granulated sugar, Golden brown sugar, an Egg, Vanilla extract, Sour cream, All-purpose flour, Cocoa powder, Baking powder, Baking soda, Cornstarch, and Salt. And for the glaze, you will use Semisweet chocolate chips, Heavy cream, and Unsalted butter. You will also need Corn oil for frying.
How to Make these Chocolate Donuts
(This is a quick rundown of the recipe. For the full recipe, scroll down to the recipe card.)
- Beat butter and sugars. With an electric hand mixer, beat together the softened butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar.
- Add the egg and vanilla. Now add the egg and vanilla extract, mixing until combined.
- Sift the dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, cornstarch, and salt together.
- Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients. Add 1/3 of the sifted flour mixture to the wet ingredients, working it in with a spatula.
- Mix in the sour cream. Add 1/3 of the sour cream and mix. Then add 1/3 of the flour mixture and mix. Continue doing this in an alternating pattern until everything is combined.
Chill and cut the dough
- Cover and chill. Place the donut dough onto a large sheet of plastic wrap and cover it tightly. Refrigerate it for 1 hour, or until firm.
- Roll the donut dough. Lightly dust your work surface with flour and roll out the dough until it’s about 1/2-inch thick.
- Cut out the chocolate donuts. Using a donut cutter or 2 different-sized biscuit cutters, cut out as many donuts as possible. Dust the cutters in flour to prevent sticking.
- Reshape the dough and cut more donuts. Roll the scraps out again and cut out the donuts, repeating this step until you use it all up. This should come out to be about 12 donuts.
Frying the donuts
- Heat the fry oil. Fill a heavy-bottomed pot with about 2 inches of corn oil and bring it to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Fry the chocolate donuts. Carefully fry them in batches, about 2 minutes on each side. Be careful not to overcook them or let the oil get too hot. Place the cooked donuts on a paper towel-lined plate to absorb any extra oil.
How to Make the Chocolate Glaze
- Make the chocolate glaze. Heat up the heavy cream to a light boil and then add the chocolate chips. Submerge them and whisk to mix them together. You may need to reheat this mixture for 10 seconds at a time in the microwave to keep it warm.
- Whisk in the butter. Once the glaze is smooth, whisk in the melted unsalted butter.
- Dip the chocolate donuts into the glaze. Dip the slightly cooled donuts into the glaze and then lay them on a cooling rack to set. Serve and enjoy.
Tips for Making the Best Chocolate Donuts
- Alternate the sour cream and flour mixture. When combining the sour cream and the flour with the other ingredients, alternating allows them to combine fully without excess mixing that will overwork the dough.
- Dust the donut cutters with flour. The donut dough can get a little sticky, so use a little bit of flour to keep them from sticking and stretching the dough out of shape while cutting.
- Fry the donuts carefully at 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Keep a close eye on the frying donuts to make sure they don’t burn. Check the temperature of the oil with a thermometer periodically as you fry them in batches because the temp can creep up as you go.
How to Store them
To store these Chocolate Donuts, place them in an airtight container. They can be kept at room temperature if the air is cool (avoid direct sunlight) or in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. You can also freeze them for 3 months in a ziplock freezer bag.
More Delicious Donuts to try!
- Glazed Air Fryer Donuts (VIDEO)
- Maple Donut Bars From Scratch
- Zeppoles (Italian Donuts)
- The BEST Mochi Donuts (VIDEO)
- Ponchiki (Russian Donut Holes)
- The Best Brioche Donuts
The Best Chocolate Donuts
These Chocolate Donuts are so delicious and moist. Sweet and tangy with a smooth glazed top, this recipe is too yummy not to try!
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Servings: 8 Donuts
Calories: 383kcal
Ingredients
For the donuts
- 2 Tablespoons unsalted butter softened
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup golden brown sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup sour cream
- 1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup + 1 tablespoon cocoa powder
- 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 Tablespoon cornstarch
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
For the chocolate glaze
- 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter melted
- Corn oil for frying
Instructions
Beat the butter, sugars, vanilla and eggs together
- In a large bowl add 2 tablespoons of unsalted softened butter along with 1/4 cup granulated sugar, and 1/4 golden brown sugar. Mix it well using an electric hand mixer.
- Then add 1 large egg and 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract. Mix it again once more.
- Now, in a separate bowl sift together these dry ingredients: 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, 1/4 cup + 1 tablespoon cocoa powder, 1/2 teaspoon baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon baking soda, 1/2 Tablespoon cornstarch, and 1/4 teaspoon salt,
Sift in the dry ingredients (1/3 at a time)
- Now add 1/3 of the flour mixture to the butter and sugar mixture and begin working it in with a spatula.
Add sour cream (1/3 at a time)
- Then add a third of your sour cream (so 1/3 cup at a time). Mix again.
- Then add the second third of the flour mixture, mix again, then add another 1/3 cup of sour cream, mix.
- Now add the last third of the flour, mix, then add the last 1/3 cup of sour cream.
Cover and chill the dough
- Place the donut dough into a large sheet of plastic wrap and cover it tightly. Refrigerate for 1 hour or until firm.
Roll, cut, and fry the donuts
- Now lightly dust your work surface with flour and begin rolling out the chocolate donut dough to about 1/2 inch thick. 
- Now use a donut cutter or 2 different sized biscuit cutters to cut out as many donuts as possible. It helps to dip the cutters in flour to prevent sticking.
- Now reshape the extra scraps, roll it out again to 1/2 inch thick, and cut as many donuts out once more. Repeat this step as needed. I got about 12 donuts.
- Fill a heavy-bottomed pot with about 2 inches of corn oil and bring the oil temperature to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Carefully fry the donuts in batches for about 2 minutes per side. Keep a close eye on them to avoid overcooking them. Also, make sure to adjust the heat according to the thermometer. If it brings to climb too high, bring the heat down a notch.
- Once the donuts are fried, place them on a plate lined with paper towels to absorb the extra oil.
Make the chocolate glaze and dip the donuts
- Now, for the glaze, heat 1/2 cup of heavy cream to a light boil, then pour it over 1 cup of semisweet chocolate chips. Make sure all the chocolate is fully submerged, then use a whisk to mix it well. You may need to place it in the microwave for about 10 seconds at a time to reheat it.
- Once the glaze is smooth, whisk in 2 tablespoons of unsalted melted butter.
- Now dip the slightly cooled donuts into the glaze and let them set on a cooling rack. Then enjoy with a cup of coffee or a glass of cold milk.
Notes
Nutrition
Calories: 383kcal | Carbohydrates: 47g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 19g | Saturated Fat: 11g | Cholesterol: 48mg | Sodium: 183mg | Potassium: 229mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 22g | Vitamin A: 350IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 61mg | Iron: 3mg
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Hi, I’m Dina, so glad you stopped by! I believe life is too short for bad coffee and boring meals. With my easy to follow step-by-step recipes, you’ll be surprised at how quickly a wholesome and delicious meal can come together. I hope you find something you enjoy!
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Anna Kovalev says
I love how chocolatey these are! Can’t wait to make them 😁
simplyhomecooked says
I hope you and your folks love the chocolate donuts Anna. They are so moist, chocolatey, and delicious!