Asia Cambodia Nom kong (នំបុ័ងកង់), the traditional Cambodian doughnut, is named after its shape – the word 'កង់' (pronounced
kong in Khmer) literally means "wheel", whilst
nom ('នំបុ័ង') is the general word for pastry or any kind of starchy food. A very inexpensive treat for everyday Cambodians, this sweet pastry consists of a jasmine rice flour dough moulded into a classic ring shape and then deep fried in fat, then drizzled with a palm sugar toffee and sprinkled with sesame seeds. The rice flour gives it a chewy texture that Cambodians are fond of. This childhood snack is what inspired Cambodian-American entrepreneur
Ted Ngoy to build his doughnut empire, inspiring the film
The Donut King.
China A few sweet, doughnut-style pastries are regional in nature.
Cantonese cuisine features an oval-shaped pastry called
ngàuhleisōu (牛脷酥, lit. "
ox-tongue pastry", due to its tongue-like shape). A spherical food called
saa1 jung (沙翁), which is also similar to a
cream puff but denser with a doughnut-like texture and usually prepared with sugar sprinkled on top, is normally available in
dim sum Cantonese restaurants. An oilier
Beijing variant of this called 高力豆沙,
gaoli dousha, is filled with
red bean paste; originally, it was made with egg white instead of dough. Many Chinese cultures make a chewy doughnut known as
shuangbaotai (雙胞胎), which consists of two conjoined balls of dough.
Chinese restaurants in the United States sometimes serve small fried pastries similar to doughnut holes with condensed milk as a sauce.
Chinese cuisine features long, deep-fried doughnut sticks that are often quite oily, hence their name in
Mandarin,
yóutiáo (油條, "oil strips"); in
Cantonese, this doughnut-style pastry is called
yàuhjagwái (油炸鬼, "ghosts fried in oil"). These pastries are lightly salted and are often served with
congee, a traditional rice
porridge or
soy milk for breakfast.
India from India In India, an old-fashioned sweet called
gulgula is made of sweetened, deep-fried flour balls. A leavening agent may or may not be used. There are a couple of unrelated doughnut-shaped food items. A savory, fried, ring-shaped snack called a
vada is often referred to as the Indian doughnut. The
vada is made from
dal,
lentil or
potato flours rather than wheat flour. In North India, it is in the form of a bulging disc called
dahi-vada, and is soaked in
curd, sprinkled with spices and sliced vegetables, and topped with a sweet and sour
chutney. In South India, a vada is eaten with
sambar and a coconut
chutney. Sweet pastries similar to old-fashioned doughnuts called
badushahi and
jalebi are also popular.
Balushahi, also called
badushah, is made from flour, deep fried in clarified butter, and dipped in sugar syrup. Unlike a doughnut,
balushahi is dense. A
balushahi is ring-shaped, but the well in the center does not go all the way through to form a hole typical of a doughnut.
Jalebi, which is typically pretzel-shaped, is made by deep frying batter in oil and soaking it in sugar syrup. A variant of
jalebi, called
imarti, is shaped with a small ring in the center around which a geometric pattern is arranged. Along with these Indian variants, typical varieties of doughnuts are also available from U.S. chains such as
Krispy Kreme and
Dunkin' Donuts retail outlets, as well as local brands such as Mad Over Donuts and the Donut Baker.
Indonesia The
Indonesian,
donat kentang is a
potato doughnut, a ring-shaped fritter made from flour and mashed potatoes, coated in powder sugar or icing sugar.
Japan from
Mister Donut, made with
mochi filled with
red bean paste from Japan In Japan,
an-doughnut (あんドーナッツ, "
bean paste doughnut") is widely available at bakeries.
An-doughnut are similar to the German
Berliner, but contain red
azuki bean paste.
Mister Donut is one of the most popular doughnut chains in Japan. Native to
Okinawa is a spheroid pastry similar to doughnuts called
sata andagi.
Mochi donuts are "a cross between a traditional cake-like doughnut and chewy mochi dough similar to what's wrapped around ice cream". This hybrid confection was originally popularized in Japan by Mister Donut before spreading to the United States via Hawaii. The Mister Donut style, also known as "pon de ring", uses
tapioca flour and produces mochi donuts that are easy to pull apart. Another variation developed in the United States uses glutinous rice flour which produces a denser mochi donut akin to Hawaiian-style
butter mochi. Mochi donuts made from glutinous rice flour "typically contain half the amount of calories as the standard cake or yeast doughnut".
Malaysia Kuih keria is a hole doughnut made from boiled sweet potato that is mashed. The sweet potato mash is shaped into rings and fried. The hot doughnut is then rolled in granulated sugar. The result is a doughnut with a sugar-crusted skin.
Nepal Sel roti is a
Nepali homemade, ring-shaped, rice doughnut prepared during
Tihar, the widely celebrated Hindu festival in Nepal. A semiliquid dough is usually prepared by adding milk, water, sugar, butter, cardamom, and mashed banana to rice flour, which is often left to ferment for up to 24 hours. A
sel roti is traditionally fried in
ghee.
Pakistan Doughnuts are available at most bakeries across Pakistan. The Navaz Sharif variety, available mainly in the city of
Karachi, is covered in chocolate and filled with cream, similar to a
Boston cream. Doughnuts can readily be found at the many
Dunkin' Donuts branches spread across Pakistan.
Philippines s with
ube filling from the Philippines Local varieties of doughnuts sold by peddlers and street vendors throughout the Philippines are usually made of plain well-kneaded dough, deep-fried in refined coconut oil and sprinkled with refined (not powdered or confectioner's) sugar. Round versions of this doughnut are known as
buñuelos (also spelled
bunwelos, and sometimes confusingly known as "
bicho-bicho"), similar to the doughnuts in Spain and former Spanish colonies. Indigenous versions of the doughnut also exist, like the
cascaron, which is prepared similarly, but uses ground glutinous rice and coconut milk in place of wheat flour and milk.
(also known as lubid-lubid''), a doughnut variant from the
Visayas, in the Philippines Other native doughnut recipes include the
shakoy,
kumukunsi, and
binangkal.
Shakoy or
siyakoy from the
Visayas islands (also known as
lubid-lubid in the northern Philippines) uses a length of dough twisted into a distinctive rope-like shape before being fried. The preparation is almost exactly the same as doughnuts, though there are variants made from
glutinous rice flour. The texture can range from soft and fluffy, to sticky and chewy, to hard and crunchy (in the latter case, they are known as
pilipit). They are sprinkled with white sugar, but can also be topped with sesame seeds or caramelized sugar.
Kumukunsi is a
jalebi-like native doughnut from the
Maguindanao people. It is made with
rice flour, duck eggs, and sugar that is molded into rope-like strands and then fried in a loose spiral. It has the taste and consistency of a creamy pancake.
Binangkal are simple fried dough balls covered in
sesame seeds. Other fried dough desserts include the mesh-like
lokot-lokot, the fried rice cake
panyalam, and the banana fritter
maruya, among others.
Taiwan In
Taiwan,
shuāngbāotāi (雙胞胎, lit. "twins") is two pieces of dough wrapped together before frying.
Thailand In Thailand, a popular breakfast food is
pa thong ko, also known as Thai donuts, a version of the Chinese
yiu ja guoy/youtiao. Often sold from food stalls in markets or by the side of the road, these doughnuts are small, sometimes X-shaped, and sold by the bag full. They are often eaten in the morning with hot
Thai tea.
Vietnam Vietnamese varieties of doughnuts include
bánh tiêu,
bánh cam, and
bánh rán.
Bánh tiêu is a sesame-topped, deep-fried pastry that is hollow. It can be eaten alone or cut in half and served with
bánh bò, a gelatinous cake, placed inside the pastry.
Bánh cam is from Southern Vietnam and is a ball-shaped, deep-fried pastry coated entirely in sesame seeds and containing a
mung bean paste filling.
Bánh rán is from Northern Vietnam and is similar to
bánh cam; however, the difference is that
bánh rán is covered with a sugar glaze after being deep-fried and its mung bean paste filling includes a
jasmine essence.
Europe Armenia vanilla and
chocolate custard filled
fried dough sprinkled with
powdered sugar called
Ponchik Armenia –
Ponchik (, borrowed from the
Russian word пончик) is a deep-fried piece of dough shaped into a flattened sphere, that turns into a puffed-up sphere upon frying and then becomes a flattened sphere after it is opened. Ponchiks are filled with
custard (plain,
vanilla or
chocolate mostly), while nowadays, they also get filled with
Nutella,
caramel and
jam. In
Armenian cuisine, ponchik has evolved from its possibly
medieval Armenian (although under different name) and
Soviet roots into a beloved street and café dessert with a distinctly local character. While the
Russian ponchik is often unfilled, or filled with
jam and resembles a normal donut, the Armenian version is always filled with custard and puffy, collapsing after It is opened.
Tutalik () is another Armenian doughnut-like dessert similar to
doughnut holes, Armenian doughnuts are sometimes also referred to as
chickies. Austria In
Austria, doughnut equivalents are called
Krapfen. They are especially popular during Carnival season (
Fasching), and do not have the typical ring shape, but instead are solid and usually filled with apricot jam (traditional) or vanilla cream (
Vanillekrapfen). A second variant, called
Bauernkrapfen are also made of yeast dough, and have a thick outside ring, but are very thin in the middle.
Belgium In
Belgium, the
smoutebollen in Dutch, or
croustillons in French, are similar to the Dutch kind of
oliebollen, but they usually do not contain any fruit, except for apple chunks sometimes. They are typical carnival and fair snacks and are coated with powdered sugar.
Czech Republic U.S.-style doughnuts are available in the
Czech Republic, buit traditional ones have a solid shape and are filled with jelly (strawberry or apricot). The shape is similar to doughnuts in Germany or Poland. They are called
Koblihy (
Kobliha in singular). They may also be filled with
nougat or with vanilla custard. There are now many fillings; halved or non-filled knots with sugar and cinnamon on top.
Denmark In
Denmark, U.S.-style doughnuts may be found at various stores, e.g.
McDonald's and most
gas stations. The
Berliner, however, is also available in bakeries.
Finland '' in
Finland, a sweet doughnut is called a
munkki (the word also means
monk) and are commonly eaten in cafés and cafeteria restaurants. It is sold cold and sometimes filled with jam (like U.S. jelly donuts) or a vanilla sauce. A ring doughnut is also known as
donitsi. A savory form of doughnut is the
lihapiirakka (literally
meat pie). Made from a doughnut mixture and deep fried, the end product is more akin to a savory doughnut than any pie known in the English-speaking world.
Former Yugoslavia Doughnuts similar to the Berliner are prepared in the northern Balkans, particularly in
Bosnia and Herzegovina,
Croatia,
North Macedonia and
Serbia (
pokladnice or
krofne). They are also called
krofna,
krafna or
krafne, a name derived from the Austrian
Krapfen for this pastry. In Croatia, they are especially popular during
Carneval season and do not have the typical ring shape, but instead are solid. Traditionally, they are filled with jam (apricot or plum). However, they can be filled with vanilla or chocolate cream. Other types of doughnuts are
uštipci and
fritule.
France The French
beignet, literally "bump", is the French and New Orleans equivalent of a doughnut: a pastry made from
deep-fried choux pastry.
Germany In parts of
Germany, the doughnut equivalents are called
Berliner (sg. and pl.), but not in the capital city of
Berlin itself and neighboring areas, where they are called
Pfannkuchen (which is often found misleading by people in the rest of Germany, who use the word
Pfannkuchen to describe a
pancake, which is also the literal translation of it). Both
Berliner and
Pfannkuchen are abbreviations of the term
Berliner Pfannkuchen, however. In middle Germany, doughnuts are called
Kreppel or
Pfannkuchen. In southern Germany, they are also called
Krapfen and are especially popular during Carnival season (
Karneval/
Fasching) in southern and middle Germany and on New Year's Eve in northern Germany. A
Berliner does not have the typical ring shape of a doughnut, but instead is solid and usually filled with jam, while a ring-shaped variant called
Kameruner is common in Berlin and eastern Germany.
Bismarcks and
Berlin doughnuts are also found in Australia, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Switzerland and the United States. Today, U.S.-style doughnuts are also available in Germany, but are less popular than their native counterparts.
Greece In
Greece, a doughnut-like snack called
loukoumas (λουκουμάς), which is spherical and soaked in honey syrup, is available. It is often served with sprinkled cinnamon and grated walnuts or sesame seeds.
Lithuania In
Lithuania, a kind of doughnut called
spurgos is widely known. Some spurgos are similar to Polish
pączki, but some specific recipes, such as
cottage cheese doughnuts (
varškės spurgos), were invented independently.
Netherlands '': Dutch doughnuts In the
Netherlands,
oliebollen, referred to in cookbooks as "Dutch doughnuts", are a type of fritter, with or without raisins or
currants, and usually sprinkled with powdered sugar. Variations of the recipe contain slices of apple or other fruits. They are traditionally eaten as part of New Year celebrations.
Norway In Norway,
smultring is the prevailing type of doughnut traditionally sold in bakeries, shops, and stalls. However, U.S.-style doughnuts are widely available in larger supermarkets,
McDonald's restaurants,
7-elevens and bakeries. The
Berliner is more common than U.S.-style doughnut, and sold in most supermarkets and bakeries alongside
smultring doughnuts.
Poland '' In Poland and parts of the U.S. with a large
Polish community, like
Chicago and
Detroit, the round, jam-filled doughnuts eaten especially—though not exclusively—during
Carnival are called
pączki (). Pączki have been known in Poland at least since the Middle Ages.
Jędrzej Kitowicz has described that during the reign of the
Augustus III under influence of French cooks who came to Poland at that time, pączki dough fried in Poland has been improved, so that pączki became lighter, spongier, and more resilient.
Portugal The malasada is a common type of holeless donut created in Portugal. They are made of fried dough. In
Madeira and the
Azores they are eaten on
Fat Tuesday. It is also popular in
Hawaii and
Cape Cod. The malasada arrived after immigrants came in.
Slovenia In
Slovenia, a jam-filled doughnut known as
krofi, is very popular. It is the typical sweet during
Carnival time, but is to be found in most bakeries during the whole year. The most famous
krofi come from the village of
Trojane in central Slovenia, and are originally filled with
apricot jam filling.
Spain , Spain In
Spain, there are two different types of doughnuts. The first one, simply called
dónuts, or more traditionally
berlinas, is a U.S.-style doughnut, i.e., a deep-fried, sweet, soft, ring of flour dough. The Spanish term
berlinesas mainly refers to a type of pastry rather different from the classic doughnut (see ). The second type of doughnut is a traditional pastry called
rosquilla or
rosquete (the latter name is typical in the Canary Islands), made of fermented dough and fried or baked in an oven.
Rosquillas were purportedly introduced in Spain by the
Romans. In Spain, there are several variants of them depending on the region where they are prepared and the time of the year they are sold. In some regions they are considered a special pastry prepared only for Easter. Although overall they are more tightly textured and less sweet than U.S.-style doughnuts, they differ greatly in shape, size and taste from one region to another. The
churro is a sweet pastry of deep-fried dough similar to a doughnut but shaped as a long, thin, ribbed cylinder rather than a ring or sphere.
Churros are commonly served dusted in sugar as a snack or with a cup of hot chocolate.
Switzerland In
Switzerland, there are
Zigerkrapfen,
Berliner and
tortelli di San Giuseppe.
Sweden Similar to the Finnish
munkki, the
Swedish munk is a sweet doughnut commonly eaten as
fika along with coffee. It is sold cold and is sometimes filled with jam (U.S. jelly) or a vanilla sauce. A ring doughnut is also known as simply
munk.
Ukraine '' filled with sour cherries In
Ukraine doughnuts are called
pampushky ().
Pampushky are made of yeast dough containing wheat, rye or buckwheat flour. Traditionally they are baked, but may also be fried. According to
William Pokhlyobkin, the technology of making
pampushky points to German cuisine, and these buns were possibly created by German colonists in Ukraine.
United Kingdom In the United Kingdom, both filled and ring doughnuts are popular, with
jam doughnuts and other varieties readily available at supermarkets. In some parts of
Scotland, ring doughnuts are referred to as
doughrings, with the 'doughnut' name being reserved exclusively for the nut-shaped variety. Glazed, twisted rope-shaped doughnuts are known as
yum-yums. It is also possible to buy
fudge doughnuts in certain regions of Scotland. Fillings include jam,
custard, cream, sweet
mincemeat, chocolate and apple. Common ring toppings are sprinkle-iced and chocolate. In
Northern Ireland, ring doughnuts are known as
gravy rings,
gravy being an archaic term for hot cooking oil.
North America ' cream-filled doughnuts
Caribbean region A
kurma is a small, sweet, fried cube-shaped or rectangular doughnut which originated in Eastern India but is sold in Trinidad and Tobago.
Costa Rica A traditional
Puntarenas cream-filled doughnut is round and robust, managing to keep the cream inside liquified. They are popular in
Costa Rica.
Mexico The Mexican
donas are similar to doughnuts, including the name; the dona is a
fried-dough pastry-based
snack, commonly covered with powdered
brown sugar and
cinnamon, white sugar or chocolate.
United States and Canada Frosted, glazed, powdered,
Boston cream,
coconut,
sour cream, cinnamon, chocolate, and
jelly are some of the varieties eaten in the United States and Canada. There are also
potato doughnuts (sometimes referred to as
spudnuts). Doughnuts are ubiquitous in the United States and can be found in most grocery stores, as well as in specialty
doughnut shops. They are equally popular in Canada. A popular doughnut in
Hawaii is the
malassada. Malassadas were brought to the Hawaiian Islands by early Portuguese settlers, and are a variation on Portugal's
filhós. They are small, eggy balls of yeast dough deep-fried and coated in sugar. In southern
Louisiana, a popular variety of the doughnut is the
beignet, a fried, square doughnut served traditionally with powdered sugar. Perhaps the most well-known purveyor of beignets is
New Orleans restaurant
Cafe Du Monde. In
Quebec, homemade doughnuts called
beignes de Noël are traditional Christmas desserts. File:Krispy Kreme glazed donuts 2.JPG|
Krispy Kreme glazed doughnuts File:Entenmann's donut variety pack 1.jpg|Powdered, glazed and chocolate doughnuts from a variety pack sold at supermarkets File:4_donuts.jpg|Donuts with sprinkles File:Elegant donut in Miami Beach.jpg|Elegant doughnut served at a wedding breakfast in Miami Beach File:Dough-Donut-Chocolate-Earl-Grey.jpg|Chocolate-frosted doughnut File:Doughnuts on a plate.jpg|Doughnuts on a plate in Brooklyn, New York City, New York
Middle East and North Africa Iran The Persian
zoolbia and
bamiyeh are fritters of various shapes and sizes coated in a sugar syrup. in the recent era, as they are cooked in oil, associated with the holiday account of the miracle of the oil. Traditional
sufganiyot are filled with red jelly and topped with
icing sugar.
Tunisia In
Tunisia, traditional pastries similar to doughnuts are
yo-yos. They come in different versions both as balls and in shape of doughnuts. They are deep-fried and covered in a honey syrup or a kind of frosting.
Sesame seeds are also used for flavor and decoration along with orange juice and
vanilla.
Oceania Australia , Australia In Australia, the doughnut is a popular snack food.
Jam doughnuts are particularly popular, especially in
Melbourne,
Victoria and the
Queen Victoria Market, where they are a tradition. Jam doughnuts are similar to a
Berliner, but are served hot: red jam (raspberry or strawberry) is injected into the bun before it is deep-fried, and then it is coated with either sugar or sugar mixed with cinnamon as soon as it has been cooked. Jam doughnuts are sometimes also bought frozen. In
South Australia, they are known as Berliner or Kitchener and often served in cafes. Popular variants include custard-filled doughnuts, and more recently
Nutella-filled doughnuts. Mobile vans that serve doughnuts, traditional or jam, are often seen at spectator events, markets, carnivals and
fetes, and by the roadside near high-traffic areas like airports and the car parks of large shopping centres. Traditional cinnamon doughnuts are readily available in Australia from specialized retailers and convenience stores. Doughnuts are a popular choice for schools and other not-for-profit groups to cook and sell as a fundraiser.
New Zealand In New Zealand, the doughnut is a popular food snack available in corner
dairies. They are in the form of a long sweet bread roll with a deep cut down its long axis. In this cut is placed a long dollop of sweetened clotted cream and on top of this is a spot of strawberry jam. Doughnuts are of two varieties: fresh cream or mock cream. The rounded variety is widely available as well.
South America Brazil In Brazil, bakeries, grocery stores and pastry shops sell ball-shaped doughnuts popularly known as "sonhos" (lit. dreams). The dessert was brought to Brazil by Portuguese colonizers that had contact with Dutch and German traders. They are the equivalent of nowadays "bolas de Berlim" (lit. balls of Berlin) in Portugal, but the traditional Portuguese yellow cream was substituted by local dairy and fruit products. They are made of a special type of bread filled with "goiabada" (
guava jelly) or milk cream, and covered by white sugar.
Chile The
Berlin (plural
Berlines) doughnut is popular in Chile because of the large German community. It may be filled with jam or with
manjar, the Chilean version of
dulce de leche. A further variation is the
vetkoek, which is also dough deep fried in oil. It is served with mince, syrup, honey or jam. ==In popular culture==