For homemade oliebollen, buy flour and yeast as specified in an oliebol recipe; egg cakes and digestive biscuits are not proven one-to-one substitutes for these basic ingredients. You can serve a biscuit separately, but check the ingredients and allergens of your chosen variety. Albert Heijn’s classic and vegan oliebol recipes both use flour, yeast and liquid to make the batter.
You need ingredients for batter that can rise, not a biscuit to replace the flour or yeast. Albert Heijn’s classic and vegan oliebol recipes use flour, yeast and liquid; the method and other ingredients differ between recipes.
An egg cake or digestive can be served as a separate biscuit with dessert. Choose based on what you want to serve, and compare the packaging if ingredients, nutritional value or portion size matter to you.
The regular egg cakes and digestives mentioned contain wheat or gluten-containing cereals; eggs, milk and soya may also be relevant in egg cakes. Read the label on the pack you choose. If you have coeliac disease, it is also important to avoid contact with regular flour and biscuits, according to the Voedingscentrum.
First decide whether you’re making batter for oliebollen or want to serve a biscuit alongside them. Use an oliebol recipe for the batter; only choose between an egg cake and a digestive if you’re looking for a separate snack or a topping of your own that won’t be deep-fried.
Choose this if: you want to make oliebollen yourself using a classic or vegan Albert Heijn recipe.
Bear in mind: flour, yeast, liquid and rising time are all part of these recipes; a biscuit is not a substitute for them.
Choose this if: you want to offer an egg cake as a separate biscuit alongside the oliebollen.
Bear in mind: the egg cakes mentioned contain wheat and egg; check the packaging of each variety for milk and soya too.
Choose this if: you’d rather serve a wheat biscuit separately or experiment with your own crumbs without deep-frying them.
Bear in mind: the regular digestives mentioned contain wheat and are not a substitute for flour or yeast in the batter.
| What to consider | What to check when buying | Who is this relevant to? |
|---|---|---|
| Rising batter | Choose flour and dried yeast as specified in your recipe; check which liquid and rising time it calls for. | I want to make oliebollen with batter that can rise as directed in the recipe, rather than trying to use a biscuit as a basic ingredient. For around 43% of consumers, this batter comes first. |
| Deep-frying | Choose suitable frying oil and keep an eye on the temperature with a thermometer; follow your recipe’s instructions to check they are cooked through. | If I’m deep-frying, I want to avoid the oliebollen becoming too dark. Around 29% of consumers give this cooking consideration the highest priority. |
| Ingredients and allergens | Read the label on the biscuit you choose. If you need a gluten-free option, also check for a gluten-free statement and possible contact with regular flour. | Before serving, I need to know whether a biscuit meets my requirements around gluten or other allergens. For around 28% of consumers, this check is their main concern. |
Albert Heijn’s classic and vegan oliebol recipes are based on flour, yeast and liquid. Using an egg cake or digestive as a one-to-one substitute is not supported by these recipes.
Buy the basic ingredients for the recipe you’re making. Serve a biscuit separately, or try your own topping on a small scale first, without deep-frying it.
The Verkade and Jumbo digestives mentioned contain wheat. Contact with regular flour or biscuit crumbs can also matter if you have coeliac disease, according to the Voedingscentrum.
If you need a gluten-free option, check the current packaging for an explicit gluten-free statement, and keep regular flour, biscuits and used kitchen utensils separate.
Choosing a biscuit to serve alongside your oliebollen doesn’t change how you prepare the batter. The Voedingscentrum recommends frying oliebollen at around 175 °C and avoiding browning them more than necessary.
Use a thermometer and follow the temperature and cooking time in your chosen recipe; remove the oliebollen when they’re cooked through and golden brown.
Ingredients and allergens can vary between products and varieties. A digestive without a chocolate coating is not the same product as one with chocolate.
Read the packaging of the exact variety you’ve bought just before using it, especially if allergens or dietary requirements influenced your purchase.
Compare a specific biscuit product, not just the brand: egg cakes and digestives differ in their ingredients and packaging, and none of the examples below is a proven substitute for oliebol batter.
A relevant option if you want to serve a packaged, crisp egg cake separately.
A relevant option if you’re considering a regular digestive biscuit to serve separately.
Relevant for oliebol recipes and for comparing AH Eierkoeken separately.
A relevant option if you want to compare a supermarket own-brand digestive with another wheat biscuit.
These Joybuy products are digestive biscuits to consider serving as a separate biscuit alongside oliebollen. For baking, choose the ingredients in an oliebol recipe; check the current label of each biscuit variety if its ingredients or allergens matter to you.
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A digestive to serve separately alongside oliebollen, not as a substitute for flour or yeast in the batter.
Original variety, 400 g pack. Read the packaging if ingredients or allergens are important to your choice.
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A milk chocolate digestive to serve as a separate biscuit; don’t use it as a one-to-one substitute for the basic ingredients in oliebollen.
Milk Chocolate variety, 266 g pack. Check the current packaging for ingredients and allergens.
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A dark chocolate digestive for anyone who wants to serve a separate biscuit alongside their oliebollen, not an ingredient for batter that needs to rise.
Dark Chocolate variety, 266 g pack. Read the packaging before use to check the ingredients and allergens.
Not as a proven one-to-one substitute in Albert Heijn’s classic and vegan oliebol recipes: both use flour and dried yeast to make batter that needs to rise. If you like, serve a biscuit separately rather than treating it as a substitute for these basic ingredients.
The Voedingscentrum recommends around 175 °C, and frying oliebollen until they’re golden brown rather than too dark. Albert Heijn’s classic recipe specifies 180 °C; use a thermometer and follow your chosen recipe for cooking instructions.
Don’t assume they are: the regular examples mentioned contain wheat or gluten-containing cereals. According to the Voedingscentrum, if you need a gluten-free option, look for an explicit gluten-free statement on the current packaging and avoid contact with regular flour and biscuits.
Check the ingredients list for the exact variety and look for any allergens relevant to you. The examples mentioned mean it’s important to check for wheat or gluten; eggs, milk or soya may also be relevant in some egg cakes and chocolate varieties. The Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority explains how allergens are listed on the labels of prepacked foods.
