Krispy Kreme, the American doughnut cafe has mushroomed across the world in over a thousand locations. This is owed to their incomparably delicious donuts. Such a big food enterprise is expected to be thoughtful about all types of consumers. So if you are expecting something sweet and asking ‘are Krispy Kreme donuts vegan?’ Unfortunately, the answer is no.
> Read more: Are donuts vegan?
The company has repeatedly specified that their donuts may be suitable for only those vegetarians who follow an ovo-lacto diet. This includes all the people who rely on an essentially plant based diet with inclusion of dairy and eggs.
All the major ingredients in Krispy Kreme donuts are non vegan
Although eggs (whites and yolks) are the only animal based ingredient in their donuts, the presence of dairy products like milk, yoghurt, whey, butter, and also non-fat milk and nonfat whey make them unsuitable for vegans.
The Krispy Kreme company has specified that the mono and di-glycerides utilized in the preparation of their donuts are obtained from plant based sources. Well this still doesn’t leave vegans with a choice, it may even be more unfortunate to mention that they use palm oil in their preparations.
Some vegans were of the view that a few varieties of Krispy Kreme donuts might still be vegan if we exclude ethically non-vegan ingredients like palm oil and filtered sugar.
Drumrolls! All forty-five varieties of Krispy Kreme donuts are non vegan
Many vegans have been of the view that the plain Krispy Kreme donuts are probably vegan since they look comparatively undecorated. Well, Krispy Kreme’s Original Glazed donut has egg and milk based ingredients in addition to the dried milk powder and egg yolk permeating the major portion of the donut.
Numerous online and offline queries with the makers have revealed that none of the donut varieties are eggless. And it is almost a fact that all their donuts at least contain dried milk powder.
Although lard is not an ingredient in Krispy Kreme donuts
It has been discovered through numerous researches that all forty-five flavours of Krispy Kreme donuts contain egg and milk derivatives in their ingredients for adequate flavour and consistency. So are Krispy Kreme donuts vegan? Not even a bit. Even the three mini donut varieties and the four varieties of donut holes are not vegan.
So how does a vegan hangout at Krispy Kreme’s?
If you ‘have to’ visit Krispy Kreme along with your other friends who aren’t vegan, you bet they are good friends because you need good company when there ain’t much to eat.
Like many big brands, Krispy Kremes never thought about stocking up non-dairy milk for their vegan customers. As all their fancy drinks and donuts contain milk or milk products, vegans are left with these options in the menu:
Juice, Frozen lemon or strawberry slush, Soda, Black Coffee, Tea.
Not much thought for kind people right?
Hold up! We won’t let any good vegans suffer the loss of delicious donuts. We have brought you eight alternative spots for hanging out or taking away your heart warming cruelty free donuts. Eight because we want you to have two donuts when you get there!
Look around, good vegan donuts are closer than you think
You heard right. You don’t have to wait for the Krispy Kreme company to release a vegan donut in order to spark joy in your life with sweetness. Although the Krispy Kreme and Dunkin Donut vegan donut war has been on for quite some time, let’s get to the places that have it.
Voodoo Doughnut
Voodoo Doughnut are an unusual and quirky donut shop that began a few years ago in Portland and has now spread a chain throughout America. Their special voodoo doll shaped donuts are as delicious as they are attractive. People love the assortment of colors and shapes on their shelves and spend hours at the counter unable to choose. Vegans hail this place as a boon with their large variety of vegan friendly donuts available in every city. Your new favourite donut will probably be from this place.
Peaceful Provisions
Popularly described as ‘the New-York pop up bakery’ Peaceful Provisions has trended numerous unusual shapes and styles of donuts that are exceptionally raised and often square instead of circular. Although here are a number of vegan options to indulge in, we personally recommend the Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough which is filled with cookie dough on the inside and is topped with vanilla glaze
Donut Friend
The wait in the line will be worth it. This Highland Park vegan donut shop is well known for a permanent line of donut lovers in front of the counter. You’ll have to stand in the line for an hour if it’s festival season. There are innumerable tempting donuts to choose from and each flavour is mind blowing. Their most popular flavour is Youth Brûlée and they even have the provision of customizing your own donut. Yay!
Erin Mckenna’s Bakery
These vegan and gluten free donuts are sunshine in this pathetic world of cruelty. Erin Mckenna’s cake donuts are eye-catching and fulfilling and keep you fixated on the glass case as long as you’re around. We recommend you the cinnamon sugar and the pretty pink glazed donut although their large variety of adorable vegan donuts will be a heart felt treat for you. Their outlets are located in New York, Los Angeles, and Orlando.
Karma Baker
With Karma Baker donut, you don’t have to choose between cakes and donuts while getting two in one. Their ultimate popularity arrived when they produced a unicorn donut with allergen free constituents. Built with vegan buttermilk vanilla, these chocolate donuts are covered in milk chocolate or vegan white and decorated with large magical sprinkles, and obviously, a unicorn horn. Because these treats are baked, their texture is soft unlike fried donuts.
Dun-Well Doughnuts
Popularly known as The Brooklyn Doughnut Shop. This all vegan donut outlet was recognized by the Food and Wine Magazine as one the America’s best donut shops. Their extensive range of vegan sweets, cakes, and raised varieties are hard to choose from because it is indeed true that they all are extremely delicious. Visit this place with a group of friends and order the baker’s dozen because trust us, it is so hard to choose!
Beet Box Bakery
This donut shop goes with the saying that simple things are the best things. The Beet Box Bakery in Denver offers four simple flavours of donuts that are just humble because they are indeed extraordinary. Their four simple flavours are apple, pumpkin, chocolate, and vanilla and there are innumerable non vegan fans of these donuts too. They were also crowned the Best Donuts by Westword’s Best of Denver in 2016.
Tandem Donuts
Tandem Donuts is a blessing for rural Montana. This wholesale bakery is responsible for supplying donuts to quite a number of cafes and markets and occasionally hosts pop-up for the numerous fan customers. There is a special method of flavouring and glazing all the different caked donuts well above the average blueberry or maple donuts. We recommend their Turkish Coffee flavour in which a cardamom donut is topped with a luxurious coffee glaze in addition to chocolate ganache.
We understand that veganism is a lifestyle. You do not have to go hard on yourself. If Krispy Kremes are your childhood favourite donut, as they are for the whole of America and you do want them to remain a part of your life, it is okay to have exceptions. Your primal focus as a vegan should be to reduce your dependence as much as possible on non vegan substances and ingredients.
If you choose to include Krispy Kreme donuts in your small list of exceptions, be aware that both peanut and tree nut allergens are found in their store bought donuts. Although the cafes may have donuts without nut allergens, the ones in the store may definitely have them. The company says that some of their suppliers make some products with nuts.
Dunkin donuts will probably launch vegan donuts soon enough
This has been on the list of possibilities for a long time now. Vegans all over America look forward to either Dunkin or Krispy Kremes to launch their first vegan donuts and let them have more options to choose from. The Dunkin Donuts company has mentioned their plans to launch vegan products in some time but Krispy Kreme makers have remained silent on the subject. The donut war is ongoing.
> Read more: Dunkin Donuts vegan options.
So are Krispy Kreme donuts vegan?
The answer is undoubtedly ‘no’! They contain egg and milk-based products in all varieties And flavors which disqualifies them way early and without further investigation.
We have mentioned several other delicious donut options for you that are promised to not let you down. Let’s hope that all major donut outlets will someday look forward to vegan choices and ways, even if to a small extent.
Until then, indulge in every donut baker’s creations who chooses to go cruelty free.
