If you have a sweet spot for donuts, you must try these heavenly Matcha Donuts covered with a semi-sweet chocolate glaze! Sprinkles are optional, but they make the kids smile. These donuts are baked, so you can have more than one without guilt.

Have you seen or tasted Matcha Donuts (抹茶ドーナツ) before? They are actually pretty popular in Japan. From matcha latte, and matcha tiramisu, to green tea KitKat and Pocky, the Japanese like to make sweets and desserts with matcha (green tea powder).
Well, I’m definitely not an exception; I’ve made cookies, ice cream, Crème Brûlée, and steamed cake with matcha on Just One Cookbook so far. And guess what, there will be more green tea dessert recipes coming up soon (call me matcha lady!).

We only eat donuts once in a while, like when there is a fundraising bake sale at my children’s school. We like good donuts but we haven’t quite found one that we love around where we live. In Japan, we love it when seasonal matcha donuts are available at Mr. Donuts!
I bought my donut pan a few months ago thinking that baked donuts are an easier alternative to make at home. Since there is no deep-frying, they are a little healthier too. Have you had baked donuts? They are pretty awesome! I actually didn’t think it was going to be so easy to make; otherwise, I would have tried baking these a long time ago.

Baked Donuts vs. Deep Fried Donuts
Since some of you might have not tried “baked” donuts yet, I thought I should quickly compare how different they are.
First of all, baked donuts will NOT taste the same as donuts right out of the deep fryer. Like how deep-fried fries are different from baked fries… but they are both good in their own ways.
The texture is more cake-like and moist. And you can skip the chocolate glaze if you prefer less sweet. I’m happy with just plain matcha donuts. Of course, my children have to have chocolate on theirs!
We needed to buy a donut pan (about $10) to make these donuts, but I think it’s a good small investment. Compared to fried donuts, it’s much easier and quicker to make baked donuts, not to mention they are fewer calories! The recipe is for 6 donuts so don’t worry about over-consuming! You can double or triple the amount you want to prepare easily with this recipe.

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Matcha Donuts
Video
Ingredients
- ¾ cup cake flour (You can make your homemade cake flour with all-purpose flour and cornstarch. To make 1 cup of cake flour, measure 1 cup of all-purpose flour, remove 2 Tbsp, and add 2 Tbsp of cornstarch. Be sure to sift the flour to distribute the cornstarch well before using it; If you use a measuring cup, follow this method: fluff your flour with a spoon, sprinkle it into your measuring cup, and use a knife to level it off. Otherwise, 1 cup of flour ends up with more than 120 g.)
- 2 Tbsp sugar
- ½ tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt
- 1 Tbsp matcha (green tea powder)
- 1 large egg (50 g each w/o shell) (beaten)
- ⅓ cup whole milk
- 2 Tbsp unsalted butter (melted)
- 1 Tbsp honey
For the Chocolate Glaze:
- ¼ cup chocolate chips (I use semi sweet chocolate chips, but white chocolate goes well too!)
- sprinkles of your choice
Instructions
- Gather all the ingredients.
- Preheat oven to 425ºF (220ºC). For a convection oven, reduce cooking temperature by 25ºF (15ºC). Lightly coat your donut pan with cooking spray.
- In a large mixing bowl add all the dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and matcha) and whisk to combine.
- Add the beaten egg, milk, melted butter, and honey to the mixing bowl, and whisk until just incorporated. Don't overmix.
- Use a pastry bag fitted with a round tip (or a large Ziploc bag with one corner snipped off) to pipe the batter into the donut mold. Fill each mold about ¾ full.
- Bake donuts for 8 minutes, or until an inserted skewer comes out clean and the donuts spring back when you lightly press your finger into them. Let cool in the pan for a few minutes before transferring them to a wire rack.
- To make the chocolate glaze, melt the chocolate in a double boiler. Alternatively, you can microwave chocolate chips. Place the chocolate chips in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave for 30 seconds, stir, and repeat. Microwave the chocolate in 3 (30-second) intervals, stirring between each. When the chocolate is mostly melted and only a few tiny pieces remain, stop microwaving and mix at room temperature; the last few pieces will melt.
- Dip the cooled donuts into the melted chocolate and top with sprinkles of your choice. Enjoy!
To Store
- You can keep the leftovers in an airtight container and keep it in the refrigerator for a day or two.
I made these for desert tonight. My pan is square shaped and so it only made 4 doughnuts. I used agave syrup instead of sugar and honey. And since I had buttermilk, I used that (when I’ve got it, I want to use it up or I find it hangs out in the back of the fridge creating new and interesting species of critters) and 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda. Then, right before I was about to pop them in the oven, I realized I forgot to add the butter. Gah! So, back they went to the bowl where I mixed in the butter, and they seem to come out alright. My husband referred to them as Frankendonuts, but they looked better once they had chocolate on them. They’re seriously yummy, and I’m looking forward to making them again for St. Patrick’s Day. Thanks so much for posting this recipe! I really love your cookbook. 🙂
Hi Merideth! I’m glad you liked the recipe and thank you so much for trying! I’m happy to hear that you enjoy reading my recipes and thank you for following! 🙂
I would love to make these but is it possible to make them into cupcakes or a mini cake instead because I don’t own a donut mold.
Hi Mabel! I’ve never tried using cupcake mold to make these donuts. If you give it a try, would you please let us know? Hope it will come out well. 🙂
Hi nami,I try with cocoa powder instead of green tea.i put the same amount as green tea powder in your recipe.is awesome.
can I check if I want to make more do I need to increase double for every ingredient?(95g of cake powder x2)?
Hi Shirley! Thank you so much for letting me and others who’re interested know about the amount of cocoa! I assume you do need to double it to keep it consistent. 🙂
Hi Nami,if I don’t want to use green tea powder,what can I use.pls advise me.thank you
Hi Shirley! Hmm good question. I have only tried with green tea powder so far, so I am not sure what else would work. Hope you find a good alternative! 🙂
Hiya was wondering what’s the calorie intake per donut please
Hi Debbie! I’m sorry, but I’m not sure how to calculate that… maybe there is online tool you can check? Without green tea powder (which is pretty much no calorie), it’s a typical baked donuts. 🙂
Nami, to make a dozen at one time (use two pans at once) can we simply double the recipe? Thank you!
Hi Donna! Yes, you can! 🙂 Hope you like these! 🙂
Hi Nami! Thank you for your response! I’m going to try them VERY soon and will let you know how they turn out–can’t wait!
Made these tonight. Love them! I’ve tried a few of your recipes. All turned out to be excellent. Best cooking website ever!!!!!
Hi Brianna! Aww so happy to hear that. THANK YOU!! 🙂 I’m so glad all the recipes worked out for you. Thank you for following my site. xoxo
Hi Nami, these donuts look delicious indeed, I have to bake them! But as donuts pan are difficult to find in Europe, I was wondering if you had any suggestions for any other baking pan that would work, like individual pastry case? thanking you for sharing all your delicious recipes!
Hi Aurelia! Ahh too bad it’s difficult to find the donut pan. I think you can use regular small pastry case you’re talking about. Please watch the baking time. As long as you don’t put too much batter (more than what you see in each donut mold), it should work. But since the middle is not open, maybe it takes a little longer to fully baked in the center. Hope this helps. 🙂
Oh my gosh…these are so good. I made them tonight to take to my inlaws house. I changed the “frosting” though because I’m not a big fan of chocolate…I know, I know…what kind of woman doesn’t like chocolate?? Anyway, I melted 3 Tbls real butter in a glass bowl in the microwave for 58 seconds, when I removed it, I added a teaspoon of almond extract, a dash of Saigon Cinnamon, about a 1/3 tsp of green tea powder mixed well then added enough powdered sugar to make very thick…once that was done I added Lactose free milk until a smooth consistency (aprox 1/4 cup). After drizzling it over the donuts, I added sliced almonds on top…it got rave reviews from my Japanese inlaws…in fact, pop ate 3 after dinner! Oh, and I should mention, that I had enough for 18 donuts. I’m so glad I found your site!! I also just checked out the red bean paste…can’t wait to try that for some yummy anpan.
Hi Mimi! Yay! I’m so glad you and your in-laws enjoyed these. Haha 3 donuts after dinner. That describe everything. 😀 Your glaze sounds delicious! I’m glad you found my site, and thank you so much for trying this recipe. 🙂
I will need to buy a donut pan at Amazon n matcha tea I ran out. Will definitely try them it looks delish and my son will love them for sure! Hi Nami how are you and the family <3
Thank you Tina! Hope you and your son will enjoy these donuts. 🙂 I’m good, just being very busy these days and always trying to catch up. =P Hope all is well with you and your family!
Really good recipe! I’ve done it but in a gluten free version, putting 1/3 of cornstarch and 2/3 of rice flour, and it was delicious. Thanks!
Hi Tatiana! Wow, gluten free version! Your information will be very valuable for those who need GF version. Thank you SO much for sharing here! 🙂
Hi Nami,
I wanted to comment on your email from yesterday on “happiness” and kindness. I don’t use a lot of social media, but I thought it was such a wonderful thing to focus attention to after all the negative and catastrophic news that has happened over the last few months. You may also want to google the commencement address that George Sanders gave at Syracuse University regarding the value of kindness a few months ago. It is very good, and addresses the importance of kindness and how we often overlook it and the profound impact it has on our everyday lives. I wish we could all pass a little more kindness while reaching out and doing simple acts of kindness everyday. Thanks for yesterday’s e-mail and today’s doughnut recipe.
Hi Randy! I just saw the video. What a great speech! In our busy life it’s easy to overlook the importance of kindness, but thanks to you, I had a moment to think about it again. Thank you for stopping by!
Oh my! That is way too easy! And much healthier than deep fried donuts. Thank you for sharing this wonderful recipe! Love your video, too!
Thank you for watching the video Donna! Don’t we love green tea flavor… 🙂
What a great treat! I adore the flavor of matcha as well, and a green tea donut would satisfy my horrible sweet tooth too. I didn’t know there were donut pans out there — thanks for introducing the baking alternative for donuts to us! It might be a good thing that the pan limits to six… =)
Thank you Kimmi! I didn’t know about donut pans too. I can’t wait to make different kinds of donuts. 🙂 I almost bought 2 pans, but I just bought one and that was a wise choice. 😀
Very interesting. I do have two comments/inquiries though. 1) where can you purchase the green tea powder? and 2) I would love to know the “green tea recipe for the Cream Brule. Also does it change the taste of the Cream Brule? Thanks in advance. enjoy your postings.
Rose Marie
Hi Rose Marie! Here are my answers to your questions.
1) I buy my green tea powder at a Japanese supermarket but you can purchase online too. The shop link is in this post.
https://www.justonecookbook.com/pantry/green-tea-powder-matcha/
2) Green Tea Cream Brulee recipe is here: https://www.justonecookbook.com/recipes/green-tea-creme-brulee/. Yes, it does, with a hint of green tea. My friend told me Green Tea Cream Brulee is already popular in Paris (not only in Japan). If you like matcha/green tea, you may enjoy this variation. 🙂
Thank you for your comment!
I made these tonight (with the chocolate and sprinkles) and they were so yummy and easy too! Thanks!
Hi Kylie! Ohhh that sounds wonderful! Thanks so much for trying this recipe! 🙂