Making air fryer jelly donuts at home is so easy, with just 4 ingredients! These take less time than hitting up the local donut shop and they turn out so warm and fluffy, filled with raspberry jelly, and tossed in sugar!
My family is full of donut lovers. It is almost a go-to snack or breakfast on the run for us during the week. However, on the weekends we like to make our own homemade donuts.
We don’t normally make the dough from scratch, but used canned biscuit dough instead. (If you’ve never tried these, you might be confused, but they taste JUST LIKE the sugar donuts you get from the Chinese buffet!)
Our maple bar donuts and our air fryer donuts are both favorites and seriously better than anything I buy at a national chain drive-thru. (Yes, Dunkin’, I’m looking at you!)
With those recipes turning out so well, when my son got a craving for a jelly donut, I used that idea as the base for this recipe.
We stuffed these babies full of raspberry jam and every single bite was delicious!
Ingredient Notes:
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Dough – We use canned biscuit dough for this recipe. We’ve tested this with both the flaky layers and the buttermilk variety. Both work well – flaky layers are what is pictured here.
Filling– We use raspberry jelly because it is our favorite. You could use any flavor of jelly here and it will work great! Just go for one without seeds or big chunks of fruit (think jelly and not jam!).
Coating– You will need some melted butter and sugar for the outer coating of the donuts.
How to Make Jelly Donuts in the Air Fryer:
Air Fry– Open your biscuits and arrange them in a single layer in your basket. Try not to let them touch even if it means cooking in batches. Spray an oil mist over each biscuit and air fry at 350 degrees F for 5-6 minutes.
Sugar- When the biscuits are done in the air fryer, remove them and immediately dunk in melted butter. Now toss the donuts in sugar to coat them.
Want a healthier version? Brush the donuts with melted butter and sprinkle with sugar rather than dipping! They are quite sugary when you roll them in the sugar, so if you like less, this is the better option!
Fill – While your donuts are in the air fryer add your jam to a piping bag, and use a long tip on the piping bag. The Bismarck tip is perfect for this. When the biscuits are coated with sugar, stick the tip of the piping bag into the center of the donut and squeeze the filling into the donut. Be careful not to overdo it or the jelly will leak out.
Bismarck Piping Tip
You’ll want to use a Bismarck piping tip fitted to a pastry bag (or ziploc bag) to fill your donuts. Just attach the tip, fill the bag with jelly, and insert the tip into the donut and squeeze! It’s so easy!
FAQ:
You can use any type of jelly you want. Strawberry or raspberry are very common. You can make some great jelly donuts with peach, apricot, or grape as well!
Absolutely! This air fryer recipe will work with any filling you want as long as it is injected in the donut the way we describe in this recipe.
Karly’s Recipe Tips!
We prefer the taste/texture of the flaky layers variety of biscuits, but they are a bit harder to fill as they want to split apart. The buttermilk variety is easier to work with.
Be sure to look for jelly and not jam. Jelly is made with fruit juice while jam is made with fruit pieces. Jelly will be smooth and easier for filling.
For a less sugary donut, brush the outside of the donut with butter using a pastry brush and sprinkle the sugar over the donuts. Dipping in butter and rolling in sugar creates a very sugary (but delicious) donut.
You’ll need a pastry bag (or zip top bag) fitted with a Bismarck piping tip (available on Amazon or at most stores that sell cake decorating supplies). It may look complicated, but it’s simple to use and you’ll have the hang of it in no time.
Comments & Reviews
Olivia says
These were okay. They tasted like biscuits rather than donuts. But the process was fun
B says
I Don’t recommend using the air fryer for this. My rolls (in my couple executions to get this right) would either get burnt or not be fully cooked in the middle. And when I pulled them out of airfryer they halved themselves so I couldn’t even inject the jelly. Also brush on butter, don’t dunk. The sugar clumps that way.
Brenda Dauner says
Put peanut butter frosting on them, for a PB&J doughnut. Yum!
Karly Campbell says
Oh, that sounds divine!
Janie says
Can I fill with cream filling?
Karly says
Yes, of course.
TIMOTHY COCHRAN says
These look amazing can’t wait to try
Karly says
Hope you love them!
Dawn says
My hubby says I will be making these all the time. Loved them
Karly says
That’s great to hear! Thanks, Dawn!
Doreen says
Cannot wait to try these!!!!
Karly says
Hope you love them!
Darlene says
Made two of these tonight for supper. They were sooo delicious. I used the flaky biscuits and they do fall apart. I didn’t need to pipe filling because I just spread it between the two layers! I will put the remaining unbaked biscuits in the fridge and make at a later date.
Karly says
So glad you enjoyed these, Darlene! 🙂
Ray Poynter says
Dunkins is not very popular here in England and I love Donuts. Try eating one without liking your lips 💋 its impossible.. going to try this. Thanks guys, love your posts.
Regards Ray x