This post may contain affiliate sales links. Please read my disclosure policy.
This French Cruller Donut recipe yields a crispy exterior with a soft and light interior all topped with a sweetened glaze. These are the best and easiest homemade French Crullers! My step-by-step guide will help you through frying up these delicious donuts! Do you love doughnuts? You must try my other doughnut recipes found on my site including my Homemade Glazed Donuts.
Fast + Easy Donuts (No waiting on rising dough!)
Sweet, crispy, tender, hot out of the grease Crullers. These are not the typical yeast-risen doughnut but are so delicious in their own way. If you’ve never had a cruller, go get yourself one. Or better yet, make your own! You’ll thank me later.
One thing I happen to love about these doughnuts is you can have the entire batch done in about an hour! No downtime waiting. SCORE. The short amount of time these require is what REALLY made me fall in love with these donuts.
Ingredients Needed
- butter– I like to use unsalted butter in baking
- water- liquid needed to create dough
- all purpose flour– or bread flour
- salt– balances flavors
- eggs– for texture and binding ingredients together
- vegetable oil– used for frying the crullers
for the glaze-
- powdered sugar– aka confectioners sugar, needed for sweetness and glaze consistency
- milk– liquid needed to create a glaze
- vanilla extract– adds flavor
- lemon extract- adds a little lemony flavoring, optional
How to Make French Crullers
Simple ingredients come together to make pâte à choux, a French pastry dough used to make things like cream puffs and eclairs. In this case, we are going to fry the dough to make crullers. For full details on how to make French Crullers from scratch, including ingredients and measurements, see the printable recipe card down below. Here is step by step directions on how to make these:
Prep Baking Sheet Pan
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
Make Choux Pastry Dough
In a small saucepan, bring butter and water to boil over medium heat. Once the mixture comes to a brisk boil, stir in flour and salt until combined. Remove from heat and cool for 3 minutes.
Crack eggs into a small bowl. Mix eggs into the warm mixture one by one until the batter is completely smooth.
Pipe Circles + Freeze
Transfer to a large pastry bag with large star tip or large fluted tip and pipe into ring shape on parchment paper-lined baking sheets.
Place into freezer for 30 minutes.
Make the Sweet Glaze
While the dough is freezing, stir powdered sugar, milk, vanilla and lemon extract together for glaze until smooth and runny…but not too runny!
Frying Cruller Donuts
While you can bake Crullers, they will come out more like cream puffs than crispy donuts. So I recommend frying! I promise it’s not as hard as it seems.
Fill + Preheat Oil
Pour vegetable oil into a large pot with high sides so there are at least 3 inches of oil. Heat oil to be between 325-350° F so these little guys can get crispy and delightful. Use a candy thermometer to help you know exactly what the temperature of the oil is and avoid overly greasy crullers. See my note below in the FAQ’s about using a candy thermometer.
Pro Tip: The ideal oil temperature for frying these French crullers is between 325-350° F (165-177° C). To use a candy thermometer, simply insert the thermometer into the oil and wait for it to stabilize at the correct temperature before adding the crullers.
Fry Crullers
Once your oil is hot and you can peel your frozen crullers off the parchment paper in one piece, give those babies a hot bath! Using a slotted spoon, drop frozen crullers one by one into hot oil and fry about 1 minute per side or until lightly golden brown.
Glaze + Cool
Using a pair of metal tongs, remove crullers from oil to layered paper towels to drain and remove excess oil. Then, immediately coat the top of each cruller in glaze. Place the freshly glazed cruller onto a wire rack with a sheet pan underneath to allow excess glaze drip off. After 40 minutes or so, the glaze should harden onto the crullers. Best served warm, immediately out of the glaze.
Storing Crullers
French crullers are best enjoyed the same day they are made. The texture being light and airy can become stale and less crispy over time. However, if you find yourself needing to store a few, place them in an airtight container at room temperature. Avoid putting them in the fridge. The humidity will make them soggy.
FAQ’s + Tips About Making French Cruller Donuts
A candy thermometer can be used to ensure that the oil used for frying French crullers is at the correct temperature. When the dough is placed into oil that is too cool, the crullers will absorb too much oil and become greasy. On the other hand, if the oil is too hot, the crullers will burn on the outside before the inside is cooked.
The ideal oil temperature for frying these French crullers is between 325-350° F (165-177° C). To use a candy thermometer, simply insert the thermometer into the oil and wait for it to stabilize at the correct temperature before adding the crullers.
It’s important to make sure the thermometer is clean before using it and also keep an eye on the thermometer during the frying process and adjust the heat accordingly to maintain the desired temperature. It’s a good idea to fry them in small batches to maintain the temperature of the oil and also to prevent overcrowding in the pan, which can cause the oil temperature to drop.
Yes! Allow the crullers to cool completely. Wrap them in plastic wrap or aluminum foil to prevent them from drying out. Crullers will stay fresh in the freezer for 2-3 months.
More Donut Recipes to Try!
- Carrot Cake Donuts
- Red Velvet Donuts
- Donut Holes
- Old Fashioned Pumpkin Donuts
- The Puddin Donut {Gourdough’s Copycat}
- S’mores Donut
- 3-Ingredient Nutella Donuts
- Pancake Mix Donuts
- Cranberry Orange Donuts
This French Cruller recipe is so good. I had approximately 42 of these before I stopped myself and dropped the rest off to neighbors.
The printable recipe card is below. Have a great day, friends! 🙂
If you make this recipe, I would really appreciate it if you would give it a star rating and leave your review in the comments! If you have a picture of your finished dish, post it on Instagram using the hashtag #laurenslatest and tagging me @laurens_latest.
French Cruller Donut Recipe
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup butter
- 1 cup water
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 4 eggs
- vegetable oil for frying
for the glaze-
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons milk
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
- 1/4 teaspoon lemon extract optional
Instructions
- Bring butter and water to boil in a small pot. Once mixture comes to boil, stir in flour and salt until combined. Remove from heat and cool 3 minutes.
- Crack eggs into a small bowl. Mix eggs into warm mixture one by one until completely batter is completely smooth.
- Transfer to piping bag with large fluted tip and pipe into circles on parchment paper lined baking sheets. Place into freezer for 30 minutes.
- Pour vegetable oil into large pot with high sides so there’s at least 3 inches of grease. Heat oil to be between 325-350 degrees. While oil is heating, stir all ingredients together for glaze until smooth and runny…but not too runny!
- Drop frozen crullers one by one into hot oil and fry about 1 minute per side or until lightly golden. Remove to paper towel to drain and then immediately coat in glaze. Place onto cooling rack to let excess glaze drip off. After 40 minutes or so, the glaze should harden onto the crullers. Best served warm, immediately out of the glaze.
Wow! The freezing makes them come out perfect. I used a larger star tip to pipe them. They were thicker but didn’t fry too dark since they were frozen first. PERFECT!
My crullers come out not crunchy. Oil is at proper temp, and I even tried cooking them longer to see if they would crisp up. Any ideas?
Crueller donuts are my absolute favorite kind of donut! I will definitely be giving these a try!
Can I make them and freeze raw to cook at another time?
Recipe sounds yummy, but for health reason I try not to deep frying anything You say you can bake them, if so, at what temp and for how long.
Hi Lauren,
I have not made these yet but I will. I will check my pate a choux recipe for baking temp and times. I have new dietary restrictions therefore the baking. Which is very sad because I love fried foods. Darn it. Voodoo doughnuts rock!
Thank you soooo much! I am looking forward to baking all that you show me here.Bravo to you and your tellent and enthusiasm.
Can you make these without the special piping attachment? WIll they be okay, if they are just a basic donut shape?
Can I leave some in the freezer in a bag to fry at another time? Really just want a small batch but would love to have a freezer stash.
They looked great, puffed up beautifully but are too eggy. Is there a a way to adjust for next time? I followed the recipe exactly.
[…] Homemade Crullers from Lauren’s Latest (for dessert!) […]
Hi, my name is Marty… correct me if I am wrong… I have always bought what I thought was the 6-8in long, about 1/2 diameter, brown sugar coated twisted cruller in Chicago, Philadelphia, and New Jersey (Shop Rite is the best store for this kind bakery goods for all cultures). Retired in South Carolina now, but chain stores here lack a good bakery department. The Publix chain did sell them and suddenly stopped. Asked a clerk from the Bi-Lo chain if they have any crullers and said ‘what is that? Oh well, I’ll have to keep asking around…let me know wrong.
[…] I mentioned I’m addicted to food? Crullers and tuna casseroles. That’s how I roll, […]
I really want to try these – they look so good!
My Husband loves sweets and I think this recipe will hit the spot with him! Can’t wait to have him try these!
I followed the recipe but the batter came out too drippy. should I only use 2-3eggs instead of 4?
Can they be baked?
butter in the recipe, salted or unsalted?
I’m thinking of ways to incorporate chocolate into these 🙂 you’re welcome
These are my absolute favorite donuts, and are almost impossible to find in small town Texas. Now I can make my own. Better yet, my son likes to cook, and he will do most of the work. The word cruller rhymes with color and is based on the Dutch, krulle, which is a twisted cake.
Could they be baked instead of fried ?
OMG these look divine. I need to try these asap. Thanks a bunch.
We also call these yummers,, tractor wheels,, I worked front of a Tim Horton’s, a little guy(4.5/5 years old) comes in and shly asked for ‘doughnut like a tractor wheel ‘
Yummy recipe good job thanks 4shareing this.stay blessed
Crullers are my favorite and I’ve never thought of making them at home. But yum! I’ll have to try these. Thanks for sharing.