Paczki are traditional Polish doughnuts that are made from a rich brioche-style dough, filled with your favorite fruit preserves and rolled in sugar. These are served on Paczki Day (i.e. Fat Tuesday) here in the U.S. and on Fat Thursday in other parts of the world!

Overhead photo of paczki lined up on a parchment-lined baking sheet with a jar of milk, bowl of preserves, and powdered sugar surrounding it.

I first heard of pączki nearly a dozen years ago, when I noticed them at the grocery store right before Lent. I did a little digging and found that they are Polish pastries similar to jelly donuts. They are traditionally made and eaten on Fat Tuesday and Fat Thursday (I had never heard of Fat Thursday before researching these!).

As it turns out, Fat Thursday (called Tłusty Czwartek in Poland) is a Christian feast marking the last Thursday before Ash Wednesday. Traditionally, it is a day dedicated to gathering with friends and family to eat large quantities of sweets, cakes, and other meals often given up during Lent. I couldn't find anything that spelled out a discernible difference between Fat Tuesday and Fat Thursday, except that certain regions and religions tend to celebrate one or the other. The concept is definitely the same - indulge as much as possible right before Lent!

Now, back to the paczki… The difference between these and a basic doughnut is that paczki is made with a very rich, sweet yeast dough consisting of eggs, butter, and milk. Sort of like a brioche doughnut, only better, if you can imagine!

When I started to poke around for recipes, I called my grandma (whose father was from Poland) to see if she had a recipe for paczki. Sadly, she did not but said that her mom used to make them.

So, I started Googling "paczki recipe" and then revised it to "grandma's paczki recipe". I wanted something authentic, and I found more than a handful of recipes that originated with someone's grandma. While all the ingredients were the same, the quantities and methods varied from recipe to recipe, so I pieced together what I thought sounded delicious and started on my way.

Close up photo of paczki lined up close together with the fruit preserves peeking out of the filled doughnuts.

The most traditional paczki recipes call for filling the doughnuts with fruit preserves, jam, or prune butter, while others said their grandma never used a filling. Some say they must be rolled in powdered sugar, while others say they have always been rolled in granulated sugar. If you don’t prefer either, go your own way and do a simple glaze!

So, I did a test batch of each: filled/powdered, filled/granulated, unfilled/powdered, and unfilled/granulated. For the filled ones, I did half raspberry and half apricot preserves for the initial testing.

My husband and I taste-tested all of them, and both came to the conclusion that the unfilled ones rolled in granulated sugar were hands down our favorite. Jelly doughnuts were never my thing, so I wasn't surprised that I preferred the unfilled ones. As for the sugar coating, both tasted good, but I love the crunch of granulated sugar on the outside of a doughnut. So hard to beat it!

How Paczki Are Made

These doughnuts start by making a brioche-style yeasted dough that includes milk, butter, an egg, and egg yolks. Once the dough is made, it is placed in a bowl in a draft-free area until it doubles in size.

Three photo collage of mixing the dough for paczki doughnuts.
Before and after photos of paczki dough doubling in size after rise.

Once doubled in size, the dough is turned out onto a floured surface (I love my silicone dough mat for jobs like this!) and rolled a ½-inch thick. Then, use a 3-inch round biscuit cutter or cookie cutter to cut out rounds of dough. Transfer those rounds to parchment-lined baking sheets. Gather scraps and re-roll to use up all of the dough. Cover those baking sheets loosely with plastic wrap and allow to rest until nearly doubled in size (about 30 minutes).

Paczki dough rolled out and cut into rounds with a biscuit cutter, then placed on a parchment-lined baking sheet.

While the doughnuts are rising, begin heating the oil. You can use peanut oil, vegetable oil, lard, or any other oil or fat you prefer for frying. Heat at least 1½ inches of oil, using a large cast iron skillet or Dutch oven, until the oil reaches 350 degrees F (use a thermometer for accuracy).

Lower about five or six paczki at a time into the oil (do not crowd the pan), and deep-fry until the bottom is golden brown, then carefully flip over and fry until the other side is golden brown. Remove to a baking sheet covered with a double layer of paper towels to drain. Let the oil come back to temperature and continue frying the remaining doughnuts.

Paczki doughnuts being fried, then filled with fruit preserves and rolled in powdered sugar.

Once the paczki can be handled comfortably, use a piping tip to fill the doughnuts, if desired, then roll in sugar or glaze them as desired.

More Filling Ideas

While you can leave these unfilled, if you prefer a filled doughnut, use your favorite filling! Here are some ideas to get you started:

  • Fruit preserves
  • Strawberry jam, raspberry jam, or plum jam
  • Prune butter
  • Lemon curd
  • Bavarian cream
  • Pastry cream (the recipe linked there is for vanilla pastry cream, but it includes a note on how to make it chocolate, too!)
Paczki doughnut broken in half and stacked on top of each other.

Storage Instructions

Paczki are definitely best eaten the same day that they are made. 

However, if you have leftovers, you can store them in an airtight container for up to 2 days.

Watch How to Make Paczki:

More Homemade Doughnut Recipes

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A stack of three paczki with fruit filling.

Paczki (Polish Doughnuts)

Yield: 20 to 24 paczki
Prep Time: 2 hours
Cook Time: 20 minutes
restinng time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 2 hours 30 minutes
Traditional Polish paczki – yeasted doughnuts filled with fruit preserves and rolled in sugar, popular on Fat Thursday and Fat Tuesday.
4.64 (68 ratings)
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Ingredients

  • 2 cups (480 ml) whole milk, warmed to 110 degrees F
  • 4½ teaspoons (4.5 teaspoons) active dry yeast, 2 packages
  • ¾ cup (149 g) + 1 pinch granulated sugar, divided
  • 5 to 6 cups (709 to 850 g) all-purpose flour, divided
  • 1 egg
  • 4 egg yolks
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1¼ teaspoons (1.25 teaspoons) salt
  • 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
  • Peanut oil, canola oil or lard, for frying
  • Fruit preserves, for filling
  • Powdered and granulated sugars, for coating

Instructions 

  • Pour warm milk into bowl of a stand mixer. Stir in the yeast and a pinch of granulated sugar. Let stand for 5 to 10 minutes, or until it has become bubbly.
  • Add 2 cups of flour to the mixture and stir with a wooden spoon until a smooth batter forms. Cover with plastic wrap and set in a warm spot for 30 minutes. The mixture should have risen and be very bubbly.
  • In a medium bowl, whisk the egg and egg yolks until pale yellow and frothy, about 3 minutes. Add the sugar, vanilla extract and salt, and whisk until combined and smooth.
  • Attach the dough hook to the mixer, add the egg mixture to the dough and mix on medium-low speed until mostly combined. Add the melted butter and mix to combine. Gradually add 3 more cups of flour to the mixture and continue to knead until a very soft dough comes together. (It will not clean the sides of the bowl or form a ball; it will be rather slack and a bit sticky.) If necessary, add up to another 1 cup of flour, a spoonful at a time, until the dough forms.
  • Transfer the dough to a lightly greased bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and set in a warm spot until it has doubled in size.
  • Remove the dough from the bowl and turn out onto a floured work surface. With your fingers, push down the dough into an even layer. Sprinkle flour on the dough and roll it out to ½-inch thickness. If the dough doesn’t hold its shape and springs back, cover with a damp towel and let rest for a few minutes and try again.
  • Use a 3-inch biscuit cutter to cut out rounds of dough. Transfer the dough rounds to parchment-lined baking sheets. Gather scraps of dough and again roll out and cut until you have used up all of the dough. Cover the baking sheets loosely with plastic wrap and place in a warm, draft-free spot until almost doubled in size, about 30 minutes.
  • Meanwhile, heat at least 1½ inches of oil in a heavy-bottomed pot or deep skillet (I used a 12-inch cast iron skillet) over medium heat to 350 degrees F. Carefully lower about six paczki into the oil at a time (be sure not to over-crowd the pan) and fry until the bottom is golden brown. Carefully turn them over and continue to fry until the other side is golden brown. Use a spider strainer or slotted spoon to remove them to a paper towel-lined baking sheet to drain. Allow the oil to come back to temperature, then repeat until all of the paczki have been fried.
  • Allow the paczki to cool until you are able to handle them easily. Using a filling tip, pipe fruit preserves into the sides of the paczki, then roll in sugar. The paczki are best the same day they are made, but can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days.

Notes

Nutritional values are based on one serving
Calories: 235kcal, Carbohydrates: 36g, Protein: 5g, Fat: 7g, Saturated Fat: 2g, Cholesterol: 55mg, Sodium: 163mg, Potassium: 100mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 10g, Vitamin A: 175IU, Vitamin C: 0.2mg, Calcium: 40mg, Iron: 1.7mg

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Author: Michelle Lettrich
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American, Polish

Photography by Dee Frances

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This recipe was originally published on February 26, 2014.