Yield: About 10–12 doughnuts + holes
Dry ingredients
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2 ⅔ cups (about 320 g) all-purpose flour
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2 Tbsp cornstarch (helps keep them tender – optional but nice)
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2 ½ tsp baking powder
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1 tsp fine salt
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½ tsp ground nutmeg (classic old-fashioned flavor)
Fat & wet ingredients
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4 Tbsp (½ stick) cold butter, cut into small cubes
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¾ cup sugar
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2 large egg yolks
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¾ cup sour cream (full fat)
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1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
For frying
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Neutral oil (canola/veg/peanut) – enough for 2–3" depth in your pot
Simple glaze
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2 cups powdered sugar
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3–4 Tbsp milk (or half-and-half)
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1 tsp vanilla
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Pinch of salt
Instructions
1. Mix the dry ingredients
In a large bowl, whisk together:
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Flour
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Cornstarch
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Baking powder
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Salt
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Nutmeg
Set aside.
2. Cut in the cold butter (biscuit-style)
Add the cold butter cubes to the dry mixture.
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Use a pastry cutter, fork, or your fingers to cut the butter into the flour until you have small pea-sized bits.
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It shouldn’t be fully sandy; a few bigger bits are fine — those help with flaky, craggy texture.
You’re basically making the start of a biscuit dough here.
3. Mix the wet ingredients
In a separate bowl, whisk together:
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Sugar
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Egg yolks
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Sour cream
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Vanilla
It’ll be thick and creamy.
4. Bring it together (shaggy dough, not smooth)
Pour the wet mixture into the flour/butter mixture.
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Use a spatula or wooden spoon to fold and press the dough together.
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Stop as soon as it comes together into a thick, shaggy mass.
If it seems too dry and won’t come together at all, you can sprinkle in 1–2 tsp milk — but be conservative. The dough should be thick and slightly sticky, not dry.
Important: Don’t knead it like bread. Think “gently persuading it to stick together.”
5. Chill the dough
Scrape the dough onto a piece of plastic wrap:
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Pat into a thick disk (about 1–1½" thick).
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Wrap and chill in the fridge for at least 30–45 minutes (up to a few hours).
This:
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Firms the butter
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Makes it easier to handle
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Gives you better splits/edges when frying
6. Roll, fold (optional), and cut
Lightly flour your counter.
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Unwrap the chilled dough and place it on the flour.
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Sprinkle a little flour on top and gently pat/roll to about ¾ inch thick.
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For extra “biscuit” cragginess, you can do one gentle letter fold:
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Lift the bottom third up toward the center,
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Lift the top third down over that (like folding a letter),
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Turn 90°, pat back out to ¾ inch.
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Use a lightly floured doughnut cutter (or a 3" cutter + 1" cutter for the hole) to cut doughnuts.
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Do not twist the cutter; just press straight down and lift.
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Twisting seals edges and makes them smoother.
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Place cut doughnuts and holes on a lightly floured parchment or baking sheet.
Try not to re-roll scraps more than once; those will be a bit tougher and less craggy.
7. Rest the cut doughnuts
Let them sit at room temperature for 10–15 minutes while you heat the oil.
This little “drying” time:
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Lets the surface firm slightly
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Encourages those classic cracks and ridges when they hit the oil
8. Heat the oil
In a heavy pot or Dutch oven:
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Heat oil to 325°F (use a thermometer if you can).
Old-fashioned doughnuts like it a bit cooler than yeast doughnuts:
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Too hot (350–365°F) = smooth outside, undercooked inside
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Around 325°F = slow puffing, cracked tops, crispy ridges
9. Fry the doughnuts
Work in small batches (2–3 at a time):
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Carefully lower doughnuts into the oil.
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Fry about 1½–2 minutes per side, until:
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Deep golden brown
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Cracks and ridges are visible
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Let the oil return to ~325°F between batches.
Optional “extra craggy” move:
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Do a light par-fry: 45–60 seconds per side until pale.
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Pull them out for 5 minutes.
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Return to oil and fry another ~30–45 seconds per side until golden.
This is extra work but gives you serious texture.
Move fried doughnuts to a cooling rack set over paper towels or a sheet pan.
10. Make the glaze
In a bowl, whisk together:
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Powdered sugar
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Vanilla
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Pinch of salt
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Milk, a tablespoon at a time, until you get a thick but pourable glaze.
You want it to cling but still run into the cracks.
11. Glaze while warm
When doughnuts are warm but not screaming hot:
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Dip the top (or the whole thing) into the glaze.
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Let excess drip off, then place back on the rack.
The glaze will seep into the craggy edges and set into that classic old-fashioned shell.
