If you made the donuts days ago and they're now hard, they've probably started to go stale. You might have simply waited too long to finish them off. Most people will still eat the donuts so long as they taste good. You can revive them a bit by putting them in the microwave.
The best way to store a yeast-based doughnut is in an airtight container like a Ziplock bag. You can use aluminum foil, but it isn't as effective for preventing air from getting into the container.
If your doughnuts have gotten stale, the best way to soften them is to put them in the microwave. Greif recommends nuking them at 15 second intervals. And though it's not a fancy solution, microwaving your doughnut to reheat it or revive it is kind of the industry standard.
Proofing for a longer period is always better than under proofing. If the dough isn't proofed well or under proofed, your doughnuts may not puff up and will not have the softness and texture you desire. The longer you knead the dough, the better the texture and softness you get.
Instead, you will need to place the donuts inside an airtight, resealable container to protect them from exposure to air. Some may choose to wrap donuts in cling wrap, but an airtight container or bag should be enough to keep the donuts moist with a light and airy texture.
Frying at too low a temperature will result in greasy doughnuts with a tough crust. Try this: Watch the oil's temperature carefully as you fry and adjust the heat as needed to maintain a temperature between 350°F and 360°F.
You can also opt to store your donut in the fridge after you have wrapped it well, sealing it away from any air. This will make the donut a little more firm than if you were to simply store it at room temperature, however, it will still stay fresh!
Use bread flour – the key ingredient in this recipe, for soft doughnuts, is bread flour. Using bread flour guarantees that your doughnut will come out fluffy. Know your yeast – Follow the steps in the recipe notes if using active dry yeast.
Doughnuts all begin with dough. If you're making yeast-raised doughnuts (pictured) you'll want to make the dough the night before and chill it overnight first. When you're ready to begin, remove the dough from the fridge, dust with flour, and press the dough out flat on a floured surface.
How do You Get Donut Glaze to Harden? Because we're heating the milk, the sugar will melt when it is added. Sugar becomes hard again when cooled. And because the glaze is in a thin layer on the donuts, the melted sugar will harden quickly once it cools.
Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Lay the donuts out on a cookie sheet. Put donuts into the oven to heat for 10 minutes, or until very warm.
To maintain your Krispy Kreme doughnuts in optimum condition, we recommend that you store them in a temperature under 18 degrees and out of direct sunlight. To keep Krispy Kreme doughnuts at their freshest after their first day at home, you can freeze the doughnuts and reheat in the microwave.
Donuts are best when hot, so you'll want to serve them as soon as you can, But donuts are also best when glazed, or otherwise frosted.
Mixing and Extruding
A batch of original glazed starts with Krispy Kreme doughnut mix, water and yeast, the same single-cell fungi used to make bread rise. The yeast is what makes the original glazed so light -- it puffs the dough up with air, so it's not dense like a cake doughnut (more on this later).
Stiff/Dense Donuts: Under proofed dough. Poke the dough, if it springs back too quickly they are under proofed and need more time. Cracked Donuts: The donuts could be under-proofed, you didn't get a clean cut on the donuts when cutting them out, or the dough was too cold.
Milk. The majority of yeasted doughnut recipes include milk. This liquid helps bind the dry ingredients together while also adding richness to the dough.
Apparently too it is all in the proving - the time you allow the dough to rest and increase in size. Prove too long and the dough will fall apart in the fryer, underprove and the doughnut will turn out dense and chewy.
Why did the sugar liquify in the plastic bag? Donuts contain a lot of water. Normally, if you just let a donut sit out, the water will evaporate into the air and the donut will get dried out (stale). But when you sealed the donut in the plastic bag, you sealed the moisture in too.
Don't Refrigerate or Freeze Donuts
The good news is that storing doughnuts for optimal freshness is pretty straightforward. You don't have to make space in your fridge for a box. In fact, Jen Greif, pastry chef at Dough in Tampa, Florida, recommends against it.
Of course you can. Make sure you refrigerate your donuts overnight. Donuts will stay fresh for about a week if stored properly.
Should I Store Doughnuts In the Fridge? As noted above, you should absolutely store any filled doughnuts in the refrigerator to prevent the filling from going bad or growing mold. Unfilled doughnuts can also go in the fridge — it's not required, but it may add a few days to their lifespan.
Controlling temperature
If that happens, your temperature is too high. On the other hand, you don't want the center to cook long before your donut has a nice brown colour. If that happens, your temperature is too low and your donut may turn out dry or soaked full of oil.