Homemade Funnel Cake Recipe
This easy homemade funnel cake recipe tastes just like the classic fair favorite. Top these with some powdered sugar or your favorite topping for a simple treat that everyone will love!
Aside from all of the rides, one of my favorite things about the fair is the huge funnel cakes. Since the fair only comes around once a year, I decided to recreate this classic fair favorite right at home. And let me tell you, these are SO easy to make and they taste just like the ones at the fair!
So what is a funnel cake? Funnel cakes are made by pouring batter through a funnel into hot oil and swirling in a circular motion. The batter is fried until it’s lightly golden brown then topped with a sprinkle of powdered sugar or your favorite topping.
These funnel cakes also taste kind of similar to donuts, but the batter is thinner and crispier. This recipe will make 10-12 funnel cakes, but you can easily cut the recipe in half to just make 5-6!
How To Make This Funnel Cake Recipe
To make these funnel cakes, you’ll start out by heating some oil in a large skillet or pot. I suggest sticking with a neutral oil like canola or vegetable oil to fry these funnel cakes, I used canola oil in this recipe since it’s what I always have on hand.
Then, whisk together your dry ingredients:
- All-purpose flour: Be sure to spoon your flour into your measuring cup and level it off with the back of a knife. If there’s too much flour in your funnel cake batter it can be too thick to pour through a funnel (or whatever you prefer to use).
- Baking Powder & Salt: These are two common ingredients for funnel cakes, the baking powder helps them puff up a little as they’re frying.
- Cinnamon & Nutmeg: These two spices are optional, but I suggest using them. They both add a little spice to these cakes that make them taste just like the fair version.
Then, you’ll whisk together the wet ingredients:
- Milk: I use whole milk in this recipe, but 2%, 1%, or even skim milk would be fine.
- Granulated Sugar: Since these are topped with powdered sugar, they’re just lightly sweetened with 1/4 cup of sugar.
- Eggs & Vanilla: You’ll also be using two large eggs and some pure vanilla extract.
Once you’ve mixed up the dry and wet ingredients, you’ll whisk them together until just combined. The batter will be a little thin, but this is exactly what you want!
The next step is to carefully pour about 1/4-1/3 cup of the batter into some hot oil. You’ll want to heat the oil to about 350°F (177°C) before you pour in the batter. If the oil is not hot enough then the funnel cakes can absorb too much of the oil and turn out a little greasy. I suggest using a thermometer if you have one, this is the one that I like to use.
Traditionally funnel cake batter is also poured through a funnel into the oil, but you can use a squeeze bottle or just pour it into a liquid measuring cup and pour it into the oil that way. As you’re pouring it, you’ll want to make circular motions to get that classic funnel cake look. These don’t have to be perfect either, which is the beauty of this recipe!
Make sure to keep an eye on the funnel cakes and carefully flip them with tongs or a flat spatula once they’re lightly golden brown on the bottom. This could take anywhere from 1-2 minutes depending on the temperature of the oil. I also suggest transferring them to a plate or baking sheet lined with paper towels to absorb any excess oil.
Then, just top them with your favorite toppings! For these funnel cakes, I sifted some powdered sugar on top then added some sliced strawberries and homemade whipped cream.
Baking Tips
- When measuring your flour, avoid scooping it from the container. Instead, stir the flour around, spoon it into your measuring cup, and level it off with the back of a knife.
- I suggest using a thermometer to make sure the oil is heated to the correct temperature. If the oil is too hot it can overcook the batter and if it’s not hot enough the cakes can turn out greasy.
- Funnel cakes are traditionally made by pouring the batter through a funnel into the oil. If you don’t have a funnel, then you can use a plastic squeeze bottle or a liquid measuring cup to carefully pour the batter into the hot oil.
- Once you remove the funnel cakes from the oil, I suggest placing them on a plate or baking sheet lined with paper towels. This will help absorb any excess oil and keep them from becoming soggy.
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Recipe Video
Homemade Funnel Cake Recipe
Ingredients
- Canola or vegetable oil for frying
- 2 cups (250 grams) all-purpose flour spooned & leveled
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 and 1/2 cups (360 ml) milk
- 1/4 cup (50 grams) granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Place a large skillet or large pot over medium heat and fill halfway with oil. Allow oil to heat to 350°F (177°C) while you prepare the funnel cake batter.
- In a medium-sized mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Set aside.
- In a separate large mixing bowl, whisk together the milk, granulated sugar, eggs, and vanilla extract until fully combined. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until just combined.
- Once the oil has reached 350°F (177°C) pour the funnel cake batter into a funnel, using your finger to close off the end of the funnel, (or pour the batter into a plastic squeeze bottle or liquid measuring cup).
- Carefully pour about 1/4 - 1/3 cup of the batter into the oil in a circular motion overlapping itself. Allow to cook until lightly golden brown on the bottom (about 1-2 minutes), then carefully flip with tongs or a flat spatula and allow to cook for an additional 1-2 minutes or until cooked through.
- Carefully remove the cooked funnel cakes with tongs or a flat spatula and transfer to a baking sheet or plate lined with paper towels. Allow to cool slightly, then top with powdered sugar or your favorite toppings, and enjoy!
Notes
*Please use caution when working with hot oil.
Love the recipes
If you use an electric skillet you can set it for the temp you want the oil for frying the Funnel Cakes !
This recipe is amazing! So tasty
Question…how I save/store leftovers? Thanks
You can store them in an airtight container at room temperature for a couple of days. If you’re stacking them, I would place some paper towels or parchment paper between the layers. You can reheat them in the oven at 350°F for a few minutes.
Good morning from loa Angeles maybe i didn’t read it correctly. But i feel like the measurements are not in the recipe like how much milk . can u please email it to me :’) i want to make them for the kids this thanks giving:-)
There’s a full recipe card with ingredient measurements and instructions towards the bottom of the post. If you can’t find it, there’s a jump to recipe button at the top of each blog post on my site.
I have not made these yet but I Am planning on it. Just wondering if I can use a cake mix, cause my family loves lemon cakes so just wondering if I could use a lemon cake mix
I honestly haven’t tried it, so I’m not sure. You could definitely add some lemon zest to the batter in this recipe though.
I made these a few months ago and they were delicious! I am wondering if these could be made with pumpkin puree, to make pumpkin spice funnel cakes for the fall? What adjustments to the recipe would be needed?
So glad you enjoyed the funnel cakes, Rita! I haven’t tried these with pumpkin yet, so I’m not quite sure. Sometimes pumpkin can be used to replace eggs in recipes, so you may be able to replace one of the eggs with 1/4 – 1/3 cup of pumpkin puree. I hope that helps!
Two words: SO GOOD. The first words my daughter said when she tried these one-of-a-kind funnel cakes. Hope your family enjoys them, too!
Made these for the kids. I was actually trying to uses up some apples that was in the fridge for a while. Then I thought they would be a great topping for funnel cakes. I prepared the apples just like I would for a pie filling. Then I found your recipe and WE LOVED THEM! I will make them again!
Can I use soymilk for this recipe???
I think that would be fine.
My daughter had been asking for a funnel cake for a few weeks and with everything closed I decided to give it a try. The whole family loved them. They even asked me to make more the next day. The cinnamon (I can’t remember if I added nutmeg or not) gave it a delicious taste.
So happy to hear that, Joanna!
I haven’t yet tried the recipe, but I love your lacy plates! Or are they shallow bowls? In either case, where did you find them?
Thank you, Tammy! They’re actually plates, I found them at Pier 1 🙂
I decided to try the recipe today. I didn’t have nutmeg, so I used extra cinnamon instead. I also cut the recipe in half. I was really surprised and it came out delicious. Thank you for sharing your recipe.
Sooo made these tonight but didn’t have all purpose flour used self rising instead took out the baking and salt, they came out really well. Hubby liked them said to add more cinnamon so gonna try that next time thanks.
Great recipe, my family and friends loved it. Easy to follow
Made as instructed. My husband didn’t care for the nutmeg taste. I will make again and leave out the nutmeg and may reduce the cinnamon too.
Exactly how much canola oil would I use?
It just depends on how many funnel cakes you make and the pan that you use. I would fill your pan about halfway full with oil to start.
Would it work to fry in olive oil?
It would probably be okay, but I do suggest sticking with a neutral-flavored oil.
These funnel cake taste delicious! Mine how ever come out very greasy and soft, sort of mushy. Rather than how a funnel cake should come out. I followed the temperature instructions, and tried making it a second time with the temperature quite a bit hotter yet they still came out greasy and mushy, the bits I did taste taste great! So I really think if I can get them to come out right they’d be amazing. Any suggestions?
Hi Cassidy! It sounds like they may not have been fully cooked. If you make them again, you can try cooking them longer or reducing the temperature slightly so the inside can finish cooking.
My oil is at 350 F. When I put the batter in, it fries right away in tiny pieces…try lower temp oil? It’s delicious but it’s for a carnival theme party so I wanted them to be funnel cakes not funnel pieces. Thanks!
If your oil is at the right temperature, it sounds like you may need to drop the batter a little quicker or closer to the pan. Have you tried using something like a squeeze bottle?
I absolutely love the funnel cake recipe. My daughter was home for summer break we really enjoyed it.
So glad you both liked the funnel cakes, Cherisse!
Loved this recipe! Much more simple to make than I thought. Also, I already had all the ingredients I needed. They tasted better than ones you get at amusement parks. Thanks so much
So glad you enjoyed the recipe, Nancy!
I love the recipe but half of my funnel cake cooks into little pieces and not all one whole piece. What am I doing wrong?
Are you making sure to pour the batter continuously into the oil? If you pour it too slowly and your oil is too hot, it may cause that to happen.
Can the batter be made ahead of time and be refrigerated?
I haven’t tried it, but the baking powder is activated once you combine the wet and dry ingredients. You can prep the wet and dry ingredients separately, refrigerate the wet ingredients, then just mix them together right before you plan to make the funnel cakes.
I kept the batter over 2 days in the fridge and used it as needed and found it worked just fine.
Finally made these. They were very delicious, “better than the ones we’ve bought at venues” and nothing tricky needed to make them. I’m curious if anyone saves their oil, and if so, are there any special instructions for that. Thanks!
So glad you liked the funnel cakes, Mary! I don’t personally save the oil so I don’t have any tips for that. You can always start with less oil though, then use more as needed so you don’t use too much.
I used to save frying oil all the time. Let it cool and strain the bits out, then save it in the refrigerator so it doesn’t get rancid. Works perfectly the next time.
Thankyou so much,I just made these funnel cakes for my family they absolutely loved them. My family said they were better than the ones from the fair. Much love and thankyou again can not wait to try more recipes. Larisa
Can you leave this overnight in the fridge?
I honestly haven’t tried it. I think it may be okay, but they may not puff up quite as much in the oil if the batter sits overnight.