A donut maker is a kitchen appliance specifically designed for making donuts. A number of different types of donut makers can be found on the market, ranging from entirely automated systems which do all of the work from beginning to end to gadgets designed to make the donut making process easier. Several companies sell donut makers which are aimed at home users, to make the process of creating donuts fun and quick.
A fully automated donut maker includes a mixing chamber for making the dough, nozzles or molds for forming donuts, a deep fryer, a turning rack, and a cooling rack. This type of donut maker is usually intended for use in a large bakery or donut factory, and it can be extremely expensive. Most versions offer the capability of making a number of types of dough, including yeast based donut doughs, and may have a separate attachment for making glazes and frosting.
A more modest model for home use, sometimes called an automatic donut maker, typically includes a deep frying vat with a rack which flips the donuts halfway through so that they will cook evenly on both sides. The donuts are moved to a cooling rack when they are done, and can be glazed or topped to taste. A more health conscious variety works like a waffle iron, allowing cooks to pour batter into the donut maker, which is lined with non-stick material, and then close it to cook the donuts.
The term “donut maker” is also sometimes used to refer to a device which cuts donuts. When making donuts in large volumes, a standardized donut size is very important, and makes the process much easier. To use this type of donut maker, dough is inserted into a cylinder which can generate perfectly found donuts with even donut holes. The system can be used to dispense batter directly over hot oil, or it can deposit yeast donuts onto a greased surface for the second rising.
For someone who makes donuts a lot, an automatic donut maker can be a useful kitchen appliance. Cleanup will still be extensive, however, as frying in oil is messy. Also, unless the cook wants to spend a lot of money on a more automated system, he or she will still have to mix the dough before putting it into the donut maker. For yeast donuts, a cook with a bread machine could cheat and use the bread machine to make dough and take it through the first rising.