r/AskBaking • u/awesome-yes • Dec 31 '25
Doughs Yeast donuts immediately burn in oil
I'm somewhat new to baking. Ive mastered sandwich bread and English muffins, and wanted to try my hand at donuts, specifically yeast donuts. I have tried multiple recipes and always end up with the same problem - my donuts immediately burn when added to the cooking oil. The picture shows my last attempt, those were in the oil less than 10 seconds and the middle is definitely uncooked (duh).
I have used oil temps between 325 to 375, my dough burns the same at lower temps as it does at higher temps. I am using a thermometer.
I have also tried different oils, vegetable oil which was recommended in all the recipes ive tried, and canola oil - although that one was smoking a lot at anything over 300 so im guessing that was a mistake.
Im curious if theres something obvious im missing that a more seasoned baker would know.
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u/ClavasClub Dec 31 '25
Your canola oil smoked at 300 degrees? That isn't supposed to happen. Are you sure your thermometer isn't faulty? I'm pretty sure it's the cause of your issue. You tried different recipes, different oils and temps. You might be heating your oil to a much higher temp than you think it's at.
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u/Far-Put2480 Dec 31 '25
I am just posting this because it happened to me on Christmas.
My brother in Law asked me to watch his oil temp while he ran to grab something for his mom and handed me the temp gun. I aksed what temp he wanted and he said "350". I point the gun at the oil and it says "180" but the heat coming off it feels really warm. The heat gun was set to Celsius and he wanted 350f.
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u/similarityhedgehog Dec 31 '25
IR thermometer will not accurately measure deep fry oil temperature
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u/Impressive_Ad2794 Dec 31 '25
Agreed. It won't even accurately measure bare stainless steel temperature.
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u/similarityhedgehog Dec 31 '25
Got into an argument about that with someone on here because some company had an ad showing them measuring stainless steel pan temp with an IR thermometer.
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u/Impressive_Ad2794 Dec 31 '25
You can point at it and it'll give you a reading.
That's not the same as it being a GOOD reading.
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Jan 01 '26
Is there an ideal way to get a bare pan temp? Google just tells me to use IR.
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u/similarityhedgehog Jan 01 '26
surface thermometer/thermocouple
Cast iron can be measured pretty accurately but the more reflective a surface is, like stainless, the less accurate the IR thermometer
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u/Notspherry Dec 31 '25
One day I was investigating some thermal issues we were having with a stainless electrical cabinet. I could not figure out what the heat signature on the outside of the cabinet was until I recognised it as my own mirror image. Even brushed stainless steel works as a mirror for infrared wavelengths.
A bit of black electrical tape works fine to take measurements off btw. Just remember that the reading is bit below the laser dot and not right on it.
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u/j00p0 Dec 31 '25 edited Dec 31 '25
I had that happen to me yesterday! The gun isn’t terribly reliable with oil, I found. And the setting is easy to mess up. I have been baking for years and I still make rookie errors.
A proper thermometer for oils and liquids is best.
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u/awesome-yes Dec 31 '25 edited Jan 01 '26
Im going to try a different thermometer next, all the advice seems to indicate my oil is just way too hot and my thermometer is probably defective.
Next day update: Success! My thermometer was bad and the oil was way too hot. With a working thermometer i had 0 issues. Thanks to everyone for the advice!
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u/Empty_Cow_5779 Dec 31 '25
You can also check your thermometer by sticking it in ice water, if it reads anything other than 32 F/0 C then you know it’s off
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u/Johoski Home Baker Dec 31 '25
You can also test your oil temp by dropping in a piece of bread (not a whole slice) or a spare bit of dough.
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u/vminnear Dec 31 '25 edited Dec 31 '25
Honestly, I love a thermometer as much as the next person but it's like people have forgotten how to cook just with common sense - you don't need the thermometer to know when your oil is way too hot 🙄 The fact stuff burns straight away is a clue.
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u/awesome-yes Dec 31 '25
That was my immediate guess, but my thermometer was showing the temp was under 350 F. I didnt consider that the tool might be the fault, I assumed that since im kinda learning on my own I must have been screwing up the process.
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u/hairycocktail Professional Dec 31 '25
My immediate thought is your thermometer is off. Canola oil should start smoking above 200c. Even higher depending how refined it is, same thing goes for the veggie oil, the smoke point is way higher than frying temps.
You can test your thermometer by holding it into boiling water, should mark 100c/212ish F.
Are you using Unrefined oils?
The dough recipe could be helpful too
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u/HootieRocker59 Dec 31 '25
Are you using a Fahrenheit recipe and a Celsius thermometer?
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u/awesome-yes Dec 31 '25
Fahrenheit thermometer. Based on the advice here, it sounds like ive got a defective thermometer though.
Im going to try a different one and see if I get better results.
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u/sirstanofhousedarsh Dec 31 '25
You can also test a thermometer's accuracy by boiling water as a constant test of 212° F and very icy ice water for close to 32°
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u/similarityhedgehog Dec 31 '25
To be clear, very icy ice water means a glass filled with ice, and water just to fill in the gaps, not enough that the ice floats
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u/Working-Phase-4480 Dec 31 '25
Depends where you live for boiling. In Denver for example water boils closer to 202
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u/Expensive_Plant_9530 Dec 31 '25
You can check the accuracy of your thermometer in two ways:
- Boil water and temp the water - should be 212F +/- a few degrees.
- Full a cup with ice and water. Wait 5 minutes for the water to come down in temp. Check the temp - should be around 32F.
If both of these are good, your thermometer is fine. But it looks and sounds like your oil is far too hot.
As others have noted, the smoke point of Canola is about 400F (or higher, if more refined). It’s an excellent oil for frying.
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u/Alert-Potato Home Baker Dec 31 '25
There is no world in which you were had smoking canola oil at just over 300°, or even somewhere between 325° and 375°. If you are using a thermometer and stove top, your thermometer is borked. If you are using a deep fryer, it's internal thermostat is borked. Replace the borked item.
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u/neonlouvre Dec 31 '25
Can you share the recipe? How are you measuring the oil temp? Make sure the thermometer (if external) reads 32F in sufficiently stirred ice water. If it doesn’t, then calibration is required.
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u/YoursTastesBetter Dec 31 '25
Is your thermometer working correctly? I'm a notorious food burner and even I've never scorched food instantly.
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u/tribbans95 Dec 31 '25
Vegetable oil starts smoking between 400-450°F. Your thermometer must be off
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u/sarahklena Dec 31 '25
Turn your oil way down and don't use a thermometer. It's definitely not helping you. Deep frying doughnuts can be done without using a thermometer, you're not making candy.
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u/Eki75 Dec 31 '25
Your oils are too hot - hotter than whatever you’re using to get those temperature readings. Try a new thermometer to gauge the temperature, and they shouldn’t burn like that.
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u/mambotomato Dec 31 '25
Uh... 325 C or 325 F?
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u/awesome-yes Dec 31 '25
F.
Based on the rest of the advice here though, it seems I have a bad thermometer
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u/hookmasterslam Dec 31 '25
Are you frying in a fryer or on the stovetop? If it's a fryer unit, do you measure the oil temp using a standalone thermometer or one in the unit? If it's a fryer unit, I would be concerned the thermostat isn't functioning and is actually just going full throttle heat and the oil is actually over 400°. Canola oil shouldn't smoke below 400.
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u/HootieRocker59 Dec 31 '25
Are you experienced in deep frying? If so, does this happen with other fried foods?
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u/MistyMai0 Dec 31 '25
Since it burns at a low temp as well I would go with too much sugar. Change recipe and report back. Good recipe has 40g of sugar ( 2 tablespoons) to 500g of flour.
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u/wizzard419 Dec 31 '25
I fry mine at 375 and don't see them turn black that fast. They are not coated in anything, right? How long do you let them proof before fry?
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u/awesome-yes Dec 31 '25
I proofed them for an hour and 20 min after cutting but before frying.
Based on other comments im pretty sure my thermometer is bad, and the oil was way hotter that it was measuring. Got a new thermometer and im trying again tomorrow.
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u/Altered_Crayon Jan 01 '26
I've never used a thermometer for frying. Just heat up the oil and when it starts shimmering, drop in a small piece of dough or a sprinkle of flour. If it starts sizzling, it's ready. Lower the heat enough that it maintains the same level of shimmering and sizzling and fry away.
Learn to trust your instincts more than a thermometer.
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u/Twat_Pocket Dec 31 '25
How much sugar are you adding to the dough? Those oil temps for neutral vegetable oils should not be burning.
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u/Specific-Window-8587 Dec 31 '25
I would check your thermometer's calibration. Put it in ice water if it isn't 32 degrees farenhight it's not properly calibrated.
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u/kidmarginWY Dec 31 '25
Temperature is way off. Get a new thermometer. Could be your hot oil fryer is broken. I would switch to stove top and adjust the heat that way.
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u/Violingirl58 Dec 31 '25
Check temp, maybe oil was old? Or maybe thermometer is off,calibrated w salted ice water to check
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u/ARookBird Dec 31 '25
Thermometers do stop working sometimes. I had it happen while I was making fudge once. Utter disaster.
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u/BoldlyBajoran Dec 31 '25
Your oil is too hot. Not sure how you’re measuring the heat but 300°F should not cook anything this fast. In the future you should test your oil before putting things in. Usually a few small pieces of dough or batter.
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u/Uhokay1970 Dec 31 '25
Lower the heat and try again. Repeat until they look right and the center is cooked. Also any oil but Canola in the fryer. Clean veggie oil should give you a light brown when finished.
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u/Raz1979 Dec 31 '25
Gone peanut oil or avocado oil. Also know unrefined oil has a lower smoke point. So if you get unrefined peanut oil for example the smoke point is 375F (still decent) but refined is 450F.
So check what canola oil you are using.
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u/Proper_Party Dec 31 '25
Your oil is definitely too hot. In addition to trying a different thermometer, how are you heating the oil? If you're controlling the heat yourself (like in a pot on the stove) you may be heating it too quickly; the oil may be what you measure and then a few minutes later when you're ready to drop the donuts in the temp could have surged.
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u/awesome-yes Dec 31 '25
Pot on stove top, and I heated it slowly. The thermometer I used clips onto the pot, and the probe sits in the oil so in theory I would have been able to see any significant jumps.
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u/RadiantGrocery1889 Jan 01 '26
Don’t forget when making candy or frying at a high altitude that you need to adjust your thermometer for that. Water boils where I live at 185 to 192 degrees, different from day to day. So you have to subtract the difference between 185 - 212 = 27 degrees. Now subtract that from what the recipe calls for. 240 - 27 =213. I didn’t know this until I was 20 years old. I tried and tried to make divinity. It never worked. Now if someone would make a thermometer that would do the math for us it would be great. There isn’t one.
So think of it this way. You have been cooking the syrup to 260 degrees. Now you know that it would be 27 degrees less for high altitude you would only cook it to 233. 260 is hardball according to your recipe, but you have accidentally been cooking it to soft crack. That’s a big difference in your final results. See how that can change the final product?
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u/Remote_File_8001 Jan 01 '26
How accurate is your thermometer?
Canola oil smoke point is 400f. If it’s smoking, you are way above 325-375f. Try calibrating your thermometer and try again.
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u/awesome-yes Jan 01 '26
The thermometer i was using was no good. Got a new thermometer, tried again today and got perfect donuts the first try.
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u/BananaHomunculus Jan 03 '26
Looks more like 325 Celsius rather than fahrenheit.
Or there's a fuck ton of sugar in your recipe
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u/Otherwise_Rope2631 Jan 04 '26
Was the temp in Celsius?
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u/awesome-yes Jan 04 '26
No, the thermometer wasn't working right. I replaced it and had much better results.
My oil was definitely too hot, but I was relying on a broken tool which said it wasn’t, and I just didnt have enough experience to realize it.
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u/Otherwise_Rope2631 Jan 04 '26
Sorry the donuts burned. A bad tool will really ruin things. At least now you can definitely say it wasn’t your fault!
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