Air fryer donuts are incredibly fast, easy, and delicious! Just 4 minutes in the air fryer and you’ll be devouring these donuts and donut holes!

Why this recipe works

Everyone loves donuts. They are one of those guilty pleasures that we don’t indulge in often. But these air fryer donuts carry a lot less guilt because you are not deep-frying them.

By using canned biscuits and your air fryer, you can have donuts and/or donut holes any time you want!

RELATED: you might also like this recipe – Lemon Baked Donuts or Peanut Butter & Jelly Donuts

stack of decorated donuts that were made in the air fryer

Ingredients you will need

Get all measurements, ingredients, and instructions in the printable version at the end of this post.

Ingredient Info and Substitute Suggestions

DONUT – We tried both flaky homestyle and buttermilk biscuits. The standard buttermilk biscuits are recommended here as they do not fall apart and taste much more like a donut vs a dressed up biscuit.

TOPPING – We have provided a recipe for chocolate glaze, peanut butter frosting, and cinnamon sugar topping in the recipe card at the end of this post. You can also top them with a lemon glaze which you can find on my lemon baked donuts post or opt for a store-bought frosting if you prefer.

How to Make Air Fryer Donuts

These step by step photos and instructions are here to help you visualize how to make this recipe. You can Jump to Recipe to get the printable version of this recipe, complete with measurements and instructions at the bottom.

Before baking the donuts, prepare your toppings as you will need them ready as soon as the donuts are done. (Please refer to the printable recipe at the end of this post for the topping instructions, or use your own!)
Spray the air fryer basket with cooking spray.
Open the canned biscuits and separate into 8 pieces.
Use a small cookie cutter or dough punch of about 1-½ inch in diameter to cut out the center of each biscuit. Keep the center for donut holes.
Bake biscuit donuts & holes 4 at a time for 4 minutes at 350F.
Immediately remove (be careful as they will be very hot) and roll in butter and cinnamon-sugar, dip in chocolate glaze, or spread with your favorite frosting. Add sprinkles before the frosting or glaze hardens.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use flaky canned biscuits?

We tried both flaky homestyle and buttermilk biscuits. The standard buttermilk biscuits are recommended here as they do not fall apart and taste much more like a donut vs a dressed up biscuit.

Any suggestions for a crowd?

Set up a donut bar for kids and friends to make their own. Have multiple topping options as shown and let them go to town. Have kids do this over a plate or over a sheet pan to catch all the crumbs and/or drippings.

stack of cinnamon sugar air fryer donuts

Making air fryer donuts is a super fun weekend idea that you and the kids will love. Heck, you don’t need kids around to make these donuts for yourself!

More Air Fryer Recipes

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This post originally appeared here on Feb 4, 2021.