The One-Ingredient Secret To Even Better-Tasting Glazed Donuts

Few treats are quite as decadent as a warm, freshly baked glazed donut. Even if you can't always make it to a bakery or Krispy Kreme to grab them right off the line, you can recreate the experience at home. Just a few seconds in the microwave can perk up any glazed donut and make it taste fresh again. If you want to take the experience to the next level, try spreading a tiny bit of butter on top of your donut before warming it up.

The microwave is widely considered the best way to revive stale donuts. Krispy Kreme recommends doing it for just 8 seconds. That's all it takes to make the dough soft and chewy while melting the glaze without making it so hot that it can burn you. To improve the experience, you just need a few small dollops of salted butter on top of the donut before reheating. Then 8 to 10 seconds in the microwave is enough time for the butter to melt, mix with the glaze, and soak into the donut.

The butter adds a silky, rich new dimension to the already delicious donut, making it a little more moist and adding a hint of complementary saltiness. You don't have to use salted butter, but it definitely adds to the experience. If you want to elevate the donut even further, try sprinkling a little nutmeg on top before heating.

While there is a lot to love about Krispy Kreme's many other flavors, this trick works best on glazed donuts. Getting your butter-to-donut ratio perfected takes some skill. Ideally, use softened butter and smear three equally spaced small pats on the donut's surface, but don't try to spread it on the donut. Let it rest on top. You don't want full pats or thick chunks of butter. If the butter is too cold and firm or too thick, it will just slide right off the donut and may not melt fully. The end product will sit in a pool of butter, which is messy. You also won't get the full butter and glaze mixture you want. Be cautious about adding more time to the microwave to melt the butter, as the donut and glaze could become dangerously hot.

The butter hack works best with donuts that are a day or two old at most. If your donuts have gone too stale, the microwave may not fully revive them. But all hope is not lost. Take your donut and butter to the frying pan instead. Cut the donut in half like a bagel and pan fry it in salted butter for just a minute or two. Fry it cut side down and the donut will cook up like brioche, developing caramelization and crispy edges, while the top glaze melts and keeps the rest of the donut soft and moist.