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Home Collections Thanksgiving Recipes

Churros Recipe

By:Nagi
Published:5 Jun '20Updated:7 Sep '21
329 Comments
Recipe v Video v Dozer v

This churros recipe is astonishingly easy, and makes a truly great churros that’s hot and crisp on the outside, fluffy on the inside. The molten chocolate dipping sauce is mandatory, and you’ll have an entire batch on the table in a mere 20 minutes!

BONUS: Churros are great for making ahead, making it a great party dessert.

Plate of Churros recipe with chocolate dipping sauce

Churros recipe

Up until several years ago, this churros obsessed food blogger thought Churros was native to Mexico. Thus on her first (but certianly not last) trip to Mexico, she was expecting to be in churro heaven. Churros, churros, churros everywhere.

But no. I barely saw churro at all.

Duh. Churro isn’t native to Mexico. It’s Spanish!🤦🏻‍♀️

So just as tourists here in Australia wonder why there aren’t kangaroos bounding around on the streets of Sydney and koalas snuggled in trees everywhere, I guess I totally missed the Churro memo.

Having said that though, it is actually very popular in the touristy areas of Mexico!!

Spanish Churros - Surprisingly easy to make, the batter is made with just flour, baking powder, olive oil and water. 20 minutes, start to finish! recipetineats.com

Dipping churros into chocolate sauce

We don’t break out the deep fryer very often around here. But with the promise of hot crispy churros waiting on the other side, and also because we only need to shallow fry rather than deep fry like when making things like Fried Chicken, we deem churros to be Fry-Worthy.

Also, it’s FRY-day today.😂 (FRIday) Admit it, you laughed!!


What goes in churros

All you need is flour, baking powder, oil and boiling water to make the batter, then cinnamon and sugar for coating.

Boiling water is key here – it makes the batter a unique “gummy” texture so when piped and cooked, it retains the signature ridges. There’s no sugar in the batter – with the cinnamon sugar coating plus mandatory dipping sauce, you absolutely don’t need it.

 

Ingredients in churros

What does churros taste like?

They taste like cinnamon doughnuts – but BETTER because you’ve got crispy ridges. The inside is fluffy like a doughnut and they are at their prime freshly made, but they reheat exceptionally well too making them a great make ahead for parties!


How to make churros

The batter is a mere dump-and-mix job, and it’s got a unique thick “gummy” texture so the churros holds its form when it’s piped, even before it hits the oil.

The safest and easiest way to cook churros is to use scissors. Because the batter is so thick, you can pipe the batter out and it will hang from the piping bag as you lower it into the oil (as opposed to dropping out, causing the oil to splash), then just snip with scissors.

How to make churros

How long to make them

They come in varying lengths, with longer ones (ie 30cm / 1 foot) being more of a novelty type at carnivals and tourist hot spots. Around 15cm / 6″ is a more practical length – still long enough to look impressive, but short enough to cook in a standard size household pot.

You could also make shorter ones for small bite size options, and if you don’t have a piping bag, just drop balls of dough into the oil and make churros doughnuts!

Close up of chutoss being coated with cinnamon and sugar

How to serve churros

I know this might sound like an odd section to include for those of you with extensive churros eating experience – but actually, churros is not so common here in Australia so let me describe how to eat it!

It’s traditionally a street snack, so you buy one long one or a little paper cup with a few shorter ones in it, then eat it while walking around on the street. Managing a dipping sauce while on the move can become a bit tricky, but where there’s a will, there’s a way.

At home, I just pile them up on a platter with a little cup of the dipping sauce, then you just dunk and eat!

Don’t count the churros and compare to what the recipe says it will make. I’ll just tell you now – there’s two missing!

Plate of Churros

How to REHEAT Churros!

As with anything deep fried, churros are at their prime when they’re freshly made. They stay warm and crisp for around 20 minutes once they come out of the oil, which is ample time to cook a whole batch, coat in cinnamon sugar then serve.

After 30 minutes or so, they soften. And though, like doughnuts, they are still delicious when cold and soft, it’s definitely worth popping them in the oven to reheat and more importantly, crisp up again.

And if you are making these ahead intentionally (as opposed to just reheating leftovers), store the churros WITHOUT the sugar coating – this will make them reheat to near freshly cooked perfection, then just roll in the cinnamon sugar and serve! – Nagi x

PS BONUS: Churros impresses people. “You MADE these??!”  *She beams with pride, making a weak attempt to hide her glee*😂


Watch how to make it

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Churros Recipe

Author: Nagi | RecipeTin Eats
Prep: 5 mins
Cook: 15 mins
Total: 20 mins
Sweet
Mexican, Spanish
4.99 from 75 votes
Servings12 - 20 churros
Tap or hover to scale
Print
  • 879
Recipe video above. I am obsessed with Churro!! Great party food because they reheat well in the oven. If you don't have a piping bag, just drop little dollops of dough in the oil and make churros doughnut balls!

Ingredients

Cinnamon Sugar Coating

  • 1/4 cup caster / superfine sugar
  • 2 tsp ground cinnamon

Churros

  • 1 cup flour, plain / all purpose (Note 1)
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • Pinch of salt
  • 1 tbsp vegetable, canola or olive oil (not extra virgin olive oil)
  • 1 cup boiling water
  • 2 cups+ vegetable or canola oil , for frying

Chocolate Sauce

  • 1/2 cup dark chocolate or semi sweet chocolate chips (Note 2)
  • 1/2 cup thickened / heavy cream (heavy cream)

Instructions

  • Cinnamon sugar coating: Combine sugar and cinnamon in a shallow bowl, set aside.
  • Batter: Mix flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl. Add oil and water and mix until just combined - it should be a thick, gummy batter, like a wet sticky dough, not thin and watery.
  • Piping bag: Transfer dough into a piping bag with a 8mm / 1/3" star tip nozzle. Set aside while oil heats.
  • Heat oil: Heat 5cm / 2" oil over medium high in a small pot, wok or small but deep skillet (Note 3) to 170°C/340°F, or until it takes 20 seconds for a small cube of bread to turn golden.
  • Pipe & snip: Pipe 15cm / 6" lengths of dough into the oil, snipping with scissors (snip close to oil surface to avoid splash). Do 3 to 4 per batch, makes 10 to 12 in total.
  • Cook: Cook for 2-3 minutes or until golden and crisp, rolling occasionally.
  • Drain: Remove onto paper towel lined plate to drain. Then roll in sugar. Serve hot with Chocolate Sauce!

Chocolate Sauce:

  • Place in a heatproof bowl and microwave in 30 second bursts, stirring in between, until smooth. Set aside for 5 minutes to cool and thicken slightly.

Recipe Notes:

Makes about 12 x 15cm/6" long ones, or 20 shorter ones. 
1. Flour - Use plain / all purpose flour, not self raising flour.
2. Chocolate - Make sure you get chocolate for cooking (ie from baking aisle), not chocolate for eating! It melts properly.
3. Deep frying - In the video, I use a smallish pot which is large enough to make churros around 17 cm / 7" long. To use minimal oil, the best is to a wok (because the shape means you can use less oil for the same surface area for frying). A deep small skillet also works great.
4. MAKE AHEAD: Do not roll in sugar. Allow to cool completely, then store in airtight container (not in fridge). It will go soft. Reheat in 180C/350F oven for 5 minutes or until crisp, then roll in sugar.
5. GENERAL NOTE: Some people have commented about the absence of sugar in the batter. It isn't needed - the coating adds loads of sweetness, not to mention the dipping sauce!
6. Recipe source - This is a recipe by Nigella Lawson that I found online but no longer seems to be available. There is a version on Food Network but the ingredient measurements are slightly different and I found it does not work as well, (dough too sloppy) so I have stuck to the original recipe that I am grateful I printed out to save in my recipe folder!
6. Different Measures in Different Countries - Measuring spoons and cups differ slightly between some countries. The difference is quite small so it does not affect most recipes, but for baking recipes, it usually does matter. For all recipes on my site, where the difference does matter, I specifically provide different measures depending on where you are located, like for my Oatmeal Raisin Cookies. For this Spanish Churros, the measures specified in the ingredients will work whichever country you are in.
If you are in a high altitude or very humid tropical area, you may find the dough is sloppier than what you see in the video. In which case, just adjust by adding a touch more flour. And vice versa if your dough looks too dry.
7. No nutrition today. Because it's deep fried and I don't know how to calculate it. But I do know the calorie count is higher than a celery stick. 😉
Keywords: churros, churros recipe
Did you make this recipe?I love hearing how you went with my recipes! Tag me on Instagram at @RecipeTinEats.

Originally published 2016. Long overdue for fresh new photos, brand new process steps and video!

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Life of Dozer

He’s not allowed in the shoot room when I deep fry – and he ain’t happy about it!

Dozer churros

And from the original publication date in 2016:

Caved. ☺️

Dozer-Churros

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329 Comments

  1. Carol says

    January 21, 2023 at 12:24 am

    How long can they be left in airtight container before reheating

    Reply
  2. Hannah says

    January 8, 2023 at 11:12 pm

    5 stars
    This was a fantastic recipe. First time making churros and was quite nervous after reading the comments and people were saying their piping bags were exploding! But I had no trouble with mine. The batter was quite thick so I added a touch more water. The cinnamon sugar made it sweet enough and with the chocolate sauce it was delicious!

    Reply
  3. Lisa says

    November 28, 2022 at 10:17 pm

    Could you do these in an air fryer?

    Reply
  4. Korina says

    September 9, 2022 at 7:26 am

    Can I use sunflower oil instead of vegetable/canola oil?

    Reply
  5. Jo says

    June 19, 2022 at 5:36 pm

    5 stars
    A huge hit and so easy to make! The first time I made them I burst my piping bag so now I just do little churro balls – so quick and delicious 🥰 Love the chocolate sauce too and I serve with fresh strawberries. Beautiful!

    Reply
  6. Gabby says

    June 12, 2022 at 12:18 pm

    5 stars
    Can I just use granulated sugar instead of caster sugar for the cinnamon-sugar topping??

    Reply
  7. Gabby says

    June 11, 2022 at 2:22 pm

    Can I just use regular granulated sugar instead of caster sugar for the cinnamon-sugar coating??

    Reply
  8. Jenna says

    May 16, 2022 at 6:20 am

    Looking to make these, can you make the dough and pipe onto a baking tray and pop in the fridge ahead of time then fry when ready?

    Reply
    • Nagi says

      May 16, 2022 at 6:37 pm

      No but you can fry them then reheat as per my instructions in the recipe and they are yummy!! N x

      Reply
  9. Victoria says

    April 28, 2022 at 2:24 pm

    5 stars
    These turned out delicious and the chocolate sauce was sooo good! I also burst a piping bag or two, lol. Should’ve read those comments first, but taking some of the dough out of the piping bag helped. My only concern was that I had to double the batch to get the right yield 🤔

    Reply
    • Nagi says

      April 28, 2022 at 4:15 pm

      Maybe you were piping yours a bit thicker Victoria? That can affect the yield! N x

      Reply
  10. Joely says

    April 11, 2022 at 6:36 pm

    Would this work using GF flour ??

    Reply
    • Nagi says

      April 11, 2022 at 7:15 pm

      I haven’t tried that Joely! N x

      Reply
  11. Jan says

    March 20, 2022 at 4:50 am

    5 stars
    My piping bag burst too, lol, Tried the little ball and rolled the dough too.. worked out great.

    Reply
  12. Unknown says

    March 13, 2022 at 7:28 am

    Amazing! Turned out great but wished I had a bigger nozzle!

    Reply
  13. Helena Flanagan says

    January 24, 2022 at 6:56 am

    Hi.. I made these, or should I say attempted, and I burst four piping bags 😭 I thinned out the dough but it still made no difference. Any suggestions? Besides get a better piping bag 😁

    Reply
    • Nagi says

      January 25, 2022 at 7:12 pm

      I think maybe a better piping bag and don’t overfill it! N x

      Reply
      • Helena Flanagan says

        January 26, 2022 at 11:46 pm

        5 stars
        Thanks, will do! I forgot to mention that the few I was able to make were fabulous, they were little bites of heaven. Great recipe!

        Reply
      • Rutendo says

        February 28, 2022 at 7:38 am

        Is there anything I can substitute cinnamon with.

        Reply
        • Denise K. says

          May 17, 2022 at 2:10 am

          Cinnamon is traditional, but cardamom might be nice.

          Reply
  14. Sandra says

    December 7, 2021 at 12:35 am

    Great recipe! Just bear in mind that the word “churros” is plural not singular.

    Reply
  15. Helle says

    November 19, 2021 at 8:07 pm

    5 stars
    Super easy! First attempt and nailed it.

    Reply
  16. emilyn says

    October 30, 2021 at 6:38 pm

    5 stars
    I tried this recipe and it is great. Thank you so much. Keep safe.

    Reply
  17. Ally says

    October 6, 2021 at 3:57 pm

    These look fantastic, would they work in a churros maker or only on the fry?

    Reply
    • Nagi says

      October 6, 2021 at 7:05 pm

      Hi…I haven’t tested a churros maker but if it is specifically designed to cook churros and you have used it before then maybe…let me know how you go!

      Reply
      • Juju says

        October 22, 2021 at 7:30 pm

        5 stars
        I just made these using my churro maker and they turned out great!

        Reply
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Hi, I'm Nagi!

I believe you can make great food with everyday ingredients even if you’re short on time and cost conscious. You just need to cook clever and get creative! Read More

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