what is a persian donut

A Persian donut (often called a Persian roll or Pershing) is a fried sweet roll that looks and tastes a lot like a cinnamon bun, usually topped with a pink berry icing, and it’s famously from Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada rather than Iran.

Quick Scoop

• It’s a spiral-shaped, deep-fried dough similar to a cinnamon roll, with swirls of cinnamon and sugar in the dough.

• The classic version is topped with a pale pink icing made from strawberries, raspberries, or a mix of both, giving it a fruity, slightly tangy finish.

• The original recipe is a closely guarded secret from Bennett’s Bakery in Thunder Bay, where it was created in the 1940s.

• Despite the name, it has no real connection to Persian (Iranian) cuisine; the name is usually linked to U.S. World War I General John J. Pershing and was likely chosen as a playful tribute.

Why people talk about it

• Locals see it as a regional icon and a nostalgic treat, especially the pink-iced version sold around Thunder Bay.

• Food sites and forums now highlight it as a “donut–cinnamon roll hybrid,” so it pops up in trending food discussions whenever quirky regional pastries are in the spotlight.

In short, if you imagine a rich cinnamon roll that’s been deep-fried like a donut and then slathered with pink berry icing, you’ve basically pictured a Persian donut.

TL;DR: A Persian donut is a Canadian, Thunder Bay–born fried cinnamon roll-style pastry with signature pink berry icing, named “Persian” but not actually Persian at all.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.