If you love donuts, then you're going to have to try this vegan mochi donut version! These vegan mochi donuts are addicting, sweet, chewy, and fun to eat! And also, quite fun to make! The perfect dessert to have for any occasion. If you want to try a different kind of donut, then this is the recipe for you. Try them now!
What are mochi donuts?
Compared to normal donuts, these vegan mochi donuts are chewy yet fluffy using two key ingredients: mochiko rice flour and silken tofu. One thing to note, do not mistake these as the Japanese Pon De Ring Donuts, they are quite different. The Pon De Ring donuts use tapioca flour and wheat flour, and the textures are also very different. Mochi donuts are a Japanese-American hybrid, and are not sold in Japan but sold more famously here in the U.S. While the pon de ring donuts are sold only in Japan.
Can you believe that I've only had mochi donuts once in my life? They were so delicious! Chewy, fluffy, and just so good. It's been so long since I had those mochi donuts, so I had to remember how to make those mochi donuts from how I remembered them. It took me a while, but I finally had the chance to recreate them. It takes a couple of tests to perfect this vegan mochi donut recipe. The first few times, the texture was all off, it was either too dense or too dry. But guys, I'm telling you, this vegan mochi donut recipe is almost like the ones that I had. It's so good that I can even eat these plain, without the glaze. Yeah, I might be a little vanilla, but that's just me. I hope you guys enjoy this vegan mochi donut recipe as much as I did!
Top tips for making vegan mochi donuts:
- Use a kitchen scale. Unfortunately, I will not be giving cup measurements for this recipe. The donuts need to be weighed to get the consistency of the donuts correct. The kitchen scale will give you the most accurate results. SORRY!
- Why a small batch? Well, these donuts do take a bit of time and labor to make. So to make it easier for me and you, I decided to make a small batch. You can double this recipe and have some friends and family help you make these!
- Use mochiko rice flour. It's more commonly seen in stores, and gives these donuts that chewy texture!
- Use cake flour. Cake flour gives the donuts that fluffy texture. Cake flour is way more delicate and has less gluten than all-purpose flour. Which is perfect for these donuts. Unfortunately, you cannot substitute this for any other flour.
- Use silken tofu. Silken tofu is the best kind of tofu to use for this donut. It has a softer and silky consistency, and also what gives these donuts it's dense chewy texture.
- Shaping. Shape the donuts by measuring out 10g of dough and shaping them into balls. Place 8 dough balls on a square piece of parchment paper and form them into a ring. Make sure they are sticking together well to avoid them separating when you fry them.
- Oil temperature. I would highly suggest using an instant-read thermometer or a candy thermometer. However, if you don't have one, take the wooden skewer or the end of a wooden spoon and stick it into the oil. If you see bubbles forming around the wood and they start to float up, then it is ready. If it’s bubbling vigorously, the oil is way too hot. Reduce the heat and allow the oil to cool and check the temperature again.
- Don't like to fry? Bake them! Bake the donuts at 350° Fahrenheit for 12-15 minutes, or until lightly golden brown.
- Storing mochi donuts. It's best to eat these on the same day, but if you can't, I would suggest only glazing the donuts you are going to eat and storing the naked donuts in an airtight container at room temperature for 1-2 days.
If you’d tried this recipe out let me know in the comments! Don’t forget to follow me on Instagram @flouredframe and don’t forget to tag me when you create my recipes! Happy cooking!
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📖 Recipe
Vegan Mochi Donuts
If you love donuts, then you're going to have to try this mochi version! These vegan mochi donuts are addicting, sweet, chewy, and fun to eat! And also, quite fun to make! The perfect dessert to have for any occasion. If you want to try a different kind of donut, then this is the recipe for you. Try them now!
Equipment
- Measuring spoons
- Mixing bowls
- Parchment Paper
- Whisk
- Food thermometer
- Large slotted spoon
- Tongs
- Wire cooling rack
- Rimmed baking sheet
Pro TipIf a recipe calls for it, use a food scale to weigh ingredients in grams for the best results! Use the options below to toggle between cups or grams.
Ingredients
Mochi Donuts:
- 250 g silken tofu
- 110 g mochiko rice flour (see notes)
- 110 g cake flour (see notes)
- 60 g sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- Oil for frying
Glaze:
For the base (you can add your flavors with this base)
- 75 g powdered sugar (sifted)
- 1-2 tablespoons non-dairy milk (add one tablespoon at a time)
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
For matcha glaze
- 2 teaspoon culinary grade matcha (sifted, I used Mizuba Tea)
For the chocolate glaze
- 2 tablespoons Dutch-processed cocoa powder (sifted)
- ½ teaspoon instant espresso powder
Instructions
Mochi Donuts:
- Before starting, cut parchment paper into (6) 4-inch squares. Set aside until ready to use.
- In a large bowl, sift the mochiko rice flour, cake flour, sugar, and baking powder together.
- In a separate bowl, press the silken tofu through a fine-mesh sieve. Make sure to scrape the bottom of the mesh to get every bit of the tofu.
- Combine the flour mixture with the tofu and with a spatula, mix to combine.
- Once the dough starts to take shape, you can lightly knead it together using your clean hands. Until it forms a smooth cohesive dough ball. It will be a sticky dough.
- To form the balls, with your kitchen scale, measure out 10 grams of dough. Shape them into the balls, and repeat until all the dough is used up. Since this is a sticky dough, I would suggest spreading a tiny bit onto your hands to avoid them sticking.
- To form the ring shape, place 8 dough balls onto a piece of parchment paper. Make sure they are sticking to one another so they don’t separate when they cook. Repeat until you get 6 donuts.
- Fill a heavy-bottomed pot with about 2 inches of vegetable oil and heat it to 375° Fahrenheit. See notes on how to tell if your oil is hot.
- When your oil is ready. Gently place the donut along with the parchment paper onto a large slotted spoon and slip it into the hot oil. Fry about 2 donuts into the pot at a time. Do not overcrowd the pot.
- After about a minute or so, use tongs to flip the mochi donut over. And carefully peel off the parchment paper and discard. It should come off easily. Once the donuts have browned on one side, flip them over and fry for another 1-2 minutes.
- Using a slotted spoon, carefully transfer the donuts to a wire cooling rack with a baking sheet underneath. Repeat for the rest of the donuts.
The Glaze:
- While you wait for your donuts to cool, it’s time to make the glaze. In a medium bowl, add the powdered sugar, non-dairy milk, vanilla extract, and whatever flavor you want to add either the matcha or chocolate. Whisk until fully combined.
- When your donuts are completely cooled, dip the donuts into the glaze and place them over a wire rack. Allow the excess glaze to drip off.
- Once the glaze has hardened, serve and enjoy!
Notes
- Measure your flour correctly. I test my recipes, 100% in grams. A common reason baked goods fail is incorrectly measured flour. I always recommend using a scale for accuracy when baking. This greatly improves your chance for success and lessens room for error.
- Why a small batch? Well, these donuts do take a bit of time and labor to make. So to make it easier for me and you, I decided to make a small batch. You can double this recipe and have some friends and family help you make these!
- If you can’t find the mochiko flour, you can also use glutinous rice flour.
- Do not substitute the cake flour for all-purpose. Cake flour is delicate and has less gluten than all-purpose flour. Which is perfect for these donuts.
- It’s best to use a candy/food thermometer to get the perfect oil temperature for donuts. Make sure the oil isn’t too hot or it will burn the donuts and leave them raw in the center. Having too low of heat will overcook them and make them dry.
- If you don’t have a thermometer, take the wooden skewer or the end of a wooden spoon and stick it into the oil. If you see bubbles forming around the wood and they start to float up, then it is ready. If it’s bubbling vigorously, the oil is way too hot. Reduce the heat and allow the oil to cool and check the temperature again.
- Don't like fry? Bake them! Bake the donuts at 350° Fahrenheit for 12-15 minutes, or until lightly golden brown.
- It's best to eat these on the same day, but if you can't, I would suggest only glazing the donuts you are going to eat and storing the naked donuts in an airtight container at room temperature for 1-2 days.
Tried this recipe?Leave a comment below & tag @flouredframe on social!
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