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A tray of golden doughnuts filled with jam and coated in sugar.

How to make jam doughnuts

Amy Treasure
Incredible homemade jam doughnut recipe. Irresistibly soft, melt-in-your-mouth delicious jam doughnuts tossed in sugar and filled with strawberry jam. This recipe is easy to follow and has loads of tips and tricks for making perfect doughnuts every time!
5 from 1 vote
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
proving and chilling time 1 day 6 hours
Total Time 50 minutes
Course Sweet treats
Cuisine British
Servings 15 doughnuts
Calories 260 kcal

Equipment

  • stand mixer
  • kitchen scales
  • 3 baking trays
  • large heavy-based pan
  • thermometer

Ingredients
 

  • 150 g water
  • 500 g strong white bread flour
  • 60 g golden caster sugar
  • 7 g fast-action dried yeast
  • 4 medium eggs
  • 2 tsp salt
  • 125 g unsalted butter
  • 2 litres sunflower oil for frying
  • caster sugar for tossing
  • 250 g strawberry jam for filling

Instructions
 

  • Put the water, flour, caster sugar, yeast, eggs and salt into a mixer bowl. Use the paddle attachment to mix on a medium speed for 8 minutes until the dough pulls away from the edges of the bowl and forms a ball.
  • Leave the mixer on a medium speed and slowly add the butter a little at a time, beating between each incorporation. When all the butter has been added let the mixer run for a further five minutes until you have a smooth and very elastic dough.
  • Cover the bowl with oiled clingfilm and leave to rise in a warm place for 2 hours – or until the dough has doubled in size.
  • Punch the air out of the dough then cover with oiled clingfilm. Leave to chill in the fridge for 24 hours.
  • After 24 hours remove the bowl from the fridge. Use kitchen scales to divide the dough into 15 pieces weighing 60 grams each.
  • Prepare three baking trays lined with floured baking paper.
  • Using your hands roll each piece of dough into a ball shape and place on a floured baking tray. Put 5 dough balls onto each tray leaving plenty of space between them. Cover each tray loosely with oiled clingfilm and leave to rise for 4 hours.
  • Prepare a large bowl filled with caster sugar (for tossing the hot doughnuts in).
  • Fill a heavy-based pan with sunflower oil. Use a thermometer to bring the oil to 180ºC.
  • Cut around the kitchen paper so that the dough balls are on individual pieces of paper (this makes it much easier to transfer them). Very carefully peel away the baking paper and place the dough into the hot oil taking care not to deflate it. You can use a floured spatula to lower the dough into the oil.
  • Depending on how big your pan is, fry in batches of three for two minutes on each side or until golden brown. You may need to use a spatula to hold the dough balls in the oil because they will bob about and float to the surface.
  • Remove from the pan and drain on a kitchen paper then immediately coat all over with caster sugar. Set aside to cool. Ensure the oil temperature is maintaining 180ºC before you fry the next batch.
  • Continue until all the doughnuts have been fried and tossed in caster sugar.
  • Fill a piping bag fitted with a doughnut nozzle (or similar) with the strawberry jam. Pierce the doughnut on the white line in between the fried top and bottom and squeeze the piping bag to fill each doughnut until plump. If you don't have a doughnut nozzle, make a small cut with a pair of scissors in the white line then slide the piping bag in and fill.

Notes

Please check the post above for information relating to making the dough by hand :)
  • Doughnut dough is very sticky. Don’t be tempted to add more flour – the proportions of the recipe are correct.
  • The dough has to be chilled for 24 hours or you will not be able to handle it. 
  • Lightly flour your hands before shaping the doughnut balls and don’t handle the dough too much. 
  • Leave plenty of space between each dough ball on the baking tray as they will double in size (at least)
  • Don’t forget to flour the baking trays and oil the clingfilm or the dough will get stuck. 
  • Cut the baking paper into individual squares before transferring the dough to the hot oil. 
  • Try not to deflate the dough before putting it into the oil. 
  • The doughnuts will bob about in the oil so use a spatula to hold them down while they are frying on each side. 
  • Check the temperature of the oil is staying at 180ºC. If it’s too hot your doughnuts will be raw in the middle. 
  • Please be very careful at the frying stage and use a thermometer. 
This recipe was adapted from Justin Gellatly you can buy his book Bread, Cake, Doughnut, Pudding: Sweet and Savoury Recipes. 
Keyword Homemade doughnuts, jam doughnuts