Who knew a funnel cake could make a person nervous? It’s not that I have a frying phobia, but I wondered how drizzling gluten-free batter into hot oil would work. Without gluten holding things together, would the cakes fry up into the classic lacy funnel cake shape? Or would I end up with solid disks of fried batter? Turns out, they work really well gluten-free. They key is to get the batter right.
Similar to a pancake batter, funnel cake batter needs to flow easily from a funnel. My first few attempts were far too thick. The batter plopped, rather than flowed. After thinning the batter, it drizzled easily into the hot oil. This is key to create the ribbons of fried batter that make up a funnel cake. It’s also what makes creating one a bit tricky.
With the batter running freely from the funnel, my first few cakes were funnel duds. Instead of cute, circular cakes, these were misshapen dough blobs. Funnel amoeba, if you will. Even after practice, I found making funnel cakes with a funnel to be a bit unwieldy. Don’t get me wrong, it works. But I wanted to play around with other tools to see if there was an easier way to make these treats.
Before attempting a funnel-less funnel cake, I swapped my large funnel for a small one. This helped a lot! The smaller funnel opening, about 3/8-inch, gave me more control over the batter as it ran into the pot. With more control, I created funnel cakes that were actually circular!
Since a small opening seemed key to a successful funnel cake, I wondered how a pastry bag would work. I popped a number eight (small) tip into a bag and heated up my oil. It worked well. However, when I handed the bag to a friend, who’d never used a pastry bag before or made a funnel cake, she found the bag troublesome to control, even after several attempts.
But the batter almost escaped from the top of her bag… Enter the squeeze bottle!
Most of my squeeze bottles have very small tip openings. One or two have a more generous opening, about 3/16-inch—an opening that’s still smaller than a funnel. I grabbed one, filled it with batter, and made a funnel cake. It was perfect. I handed it to my friend. She, too, made a perfect funnel cake! The squeeze bottles offered the control of a pastry bag while being much easier to handle—and refill.
Squeeze bottles turned out to be my favorite tool to make funnel cakes, yet all three tools did work to create funnel cakes. No matter which tool you use, keep these three things in mind:
- Heat your oil to 375°F. Hotter oil fries the funnel cakes too quickly–the center is done before the edges. Cooler oil creates greasy funnel cakes.
- Swirl. As soon as the batter hits the oil, begin swirling it in tight circles to make one cake. I found starting from the inside and going out was the best method.
- Know when to stop. Big funnel cakes might be popular at the fair but at home, smaller is better. Keep your cakes about four to five inches across.
The Best Gluten-Free Funnel Cakes
Ingredients
- 1 cup finely ground white rice flour* (4 ounces; 113 grams)
- ½ cup cornstarch or tapioca starch* (2 ounces; 56 grams)
- ¼ cup sweet rice flour* (1 ounce; 28 grams)
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar (1 ounce; 28 grams)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon xanthan gum*
- 1 cup milk (8 ounces; 226 grams)
- 2 large eggs (3 1/2 ounces; 100 grams)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Vegetable oil for frying about one quart
- Powdered sugar for dusting
Instructions
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In medium mixing bowl, whisk together white rice flour, sweet rice flour, cornstarch, granulated sugar, baking powder, salt, and xanthan gum. Add milk, eggs, and vanilla extract. Allow to stand for ten minutes. (Begin preheating oil while batter rests.)
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In either a deep fryer or deep, heavy pot with four-inch sides, heat oil to 375°F i. Pour batter into either funnel, pastry bag fitted with a #4 tip or plastic squeeze bottle with a large opening. Don't overfill. Cover funnel opening and place over deep fryer. Allow the batter to flow into the fryer. Starting in the center of the oil, swirl the batter to make a four-inch disk. Fry disk for about two minutes. Carefully turn and fry until golden brown.
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Remove funnel cakes and place on paper towels to drain. Sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve warm.
Recipe Notes
*Using All-Purpose Gluten-Free Flour
This recipe was tested with individual flours. If you want to try the recipe with a gluten-free flour blend, omit the rice flour, cornstarch, sweet rice flour, and xanthan gum. Replace it with 1 3/4 cups of your favorite gluten-free flour blend.
If your gluten-free flour blend doesn't include xanthan gum, don't leave it out. Use the amount called for in the recipe.
Marco deOliveira says
Thanks so much for the great gluten free funnel cake recipe, but shame on you for suggesting vegetable oil. Why are so many gluten free recipes not also combined with healthy eating? It’s the same thing, going gluten free or reducing gluten is a healthy choice, it’s not just for people with IBS or leaky gut or gluten intolerance. Thanks.
Elizabeth says
“Shame on you.” No. This recipe is perfectly fine for someone who needs to avoid gluten. If you need/want to avoid vegetable oil, that’s fine. But it is not okay to shame me.
Becca says
What an idiot. No matter what you do, a funnel cake is not going to be “healthy” and that is perfectly fine. Why? Because it’s delicious. Get off this site and go eat an apple.
Pat says
Shame on Marco for thinking the powered sugar on top of a funnel cake is any more healthy than the oil in which you use to fry it in, gluten or not carbs are carbs.
J.C. says
Marco, obviously you can use any oil you want, but telling Elizabeth ‘shame on you’ is unacceptable. This recipe is fantastic Elizabeth – thank you for your continued efforts in making gluten free baking incredible!!! We love you. MARCO – please visit other sites and leave Elizabeth alone.
Sabrina Rocco says
Shame on you. Disrespectful. If you don’t like her method of cooking, use another recipe. Be more respectful. Use coconut oil or avocado oil. Respectfully, take your attitude elsewhere to a different website. If you’re so great, make your own recipes hun.
Castlecorbeau says
Thank you, Marcos, for this excellent example of entitlement. You have chosen to ignore the facts, those being
1. That the creator of this recipe created this recipe for a specific group of people who have a very specific nutritional need, a group of people which you do not appear to be part of. In this case, this recipe was NOT meant to be tailored to you, as a member of the I-avoid-gluten-because-I-think-it’s-healthy-not-because-it-makes-me-horribly-ill-to-eat-standard-funnel-cake group.
2. That this recipe makes zero claims to meeting the requirements you laid out in your comments. In this case, this recipe was NOT meant to be tailored to you as part of the I-only-eat-healthy-foods group.
3. That the creator of this recipe did not know you, or your requirements, when she made this recipe. In this case, this recipe was NOT meant to be tailored to you since you and your specific requirements were an unknown to the author.
In short, this recipe was never meant to and made no claims to meet your specific requirements, so you have no valid grievance, even if there were ever an appropriate time to speak to someone like that (there isn’t).
But kudos for showing us exactly what it looks like when someone gets offended and inexcusably rude because something not meant specifically to suit them isn’t made specifically to suit them. I can definitely use this on Instagram. 🙂
Darien says
So delicious. Thank you!!
Rina says
First time making funnel cakes. They were delicious. I used water instead of milk because didn’t have any and still turned out great. My husband and kids loved them.
Beth says
Had a craving for funnel cakes tonight. I knew your recipe wouldn’t let me down. My 17 year old devoured his and didn’t realize until after I told him that it was GF. I would say that was a sign to total success. We got 4 nice sized cakes out of our recipe.
anna says
Great recipe! Used 1:1 GF flour instead of rice flour, xanthan gum, tapioca starch and followed your tips re: hot oil and you’re absolutely right! Fried in sunflower oil. Excellent! Thank you! PS: Drizzled with honey!