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Light, fluffy, and ever so delicately crispy, my churros recipe is surprisingly simple to make. With just a few ingredients, you can treat kids, friends, and loved ones to a big plate of one of Spain’s most yearned-for treats, served with a side of something indulgent and dip-worthy!
Churros Recipe
What are Churros?
Put simply, churros are strips of dough cooked in hot oil until airy, puffy, and slightly crispy.
Churros are a staple dessert of Spanish cuisine and Portuguese cuisine, and by extension, have become popular dishes in many Spanish-speaking and Portuguese-speaking regions, such as Latin American cuisine and Filipino cuisine.
Without a doubt, one of the things that makes a churro so recognizable from other fried pastries is its iconic star-shaped ridge. This is made either with a star-shaped nozzle/tip attached to the piping bag or a churrera (churro maker), as I have used in this recipe.
Typically enjoyed for breakfast or as a snack, traditionally, Spanish churros are eaten with a rich hot chocolate dipping sauce or with a café con leche (coffee with milk). However, that really is just the beginning of the sweet, savory, and delicious toppings and coatings you can enjoy your churros with.
Variations
Porras – Thicker than churros, porras are very similar to churros but typically include baking soda or yeast.
Toppings – Traditional Spanish churros are typically served as they are. However, you will find many variations of churro that are either sprinkled with or rolled in the likes of sugar, cinnamon, and other ingredients. Many have different names and can be found in other cuisines, e.g., churros de canela are typically rolled in cinnamon and are common in the likes of Mexican cuisine.
Fillings – Another way churros differ in various cuisines is that some will have fillings, in a similar vein to a doughnut. Brazilian churros, for example, often have a dulce de leche/doce de leite filling.
Additional ingredients can also be added to the batter before frying. For example, potato and milk are added to the batter to make churros de papas.
Recipe Ingredients
To make my churros recipe, you’ll need the following ingredients:
For the Churro Dough:
- Flour – 1 cup all-purpose (plain) flour
- Water – 1 cup water
- Salt – 1/2 tsp fine salt
For Frying:
- Oil – 2 cups of a frying, neutral-tasting oil (sunflower oil, vegetable oil, or light olive oil)
For the Warm, Thick, Dipping Chocolate Sauce
- Dark Chocolate – 1 bar of dark chocolate (100 grams or 3.5 oz)
- Heavy Cream (Double Cream) – 1/2 cup heavy cream or milk
Equipment
You can absolutely use a piping bag and star-shaped tip to squeeze out your churros. However, I wanted to show you this nifty churro maker, or churrera, I used for this recipe because it really does make it so much easier.
As you can see, it comes with several differently shaped nozzles to pipe a variety of churro shapes. Once you have chosen your nozzle, all you have to do is load your dough inside the tube, then slide the lever in. There is no pushing – all you have to do is twist.
Because of this, if you’re making churros for your kids and family, it’s so easy to get your kids involved. They can easily twist the handle once you have loaded the device and can watch with their own eyes the magic of the churros being shaped. You can get it on Amazon here.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step 1 – Add the water and salt to a pot, and bring the water to a boil.
Step 2 – Once the water is boiling, turn the heat off, and add the flour to the pot, stirring with a wooden spoon.
Make sure to add the flour to the pot (and not the water over the flour) as the residual heat in the warm pot helps pull this dough together.
Step 3 – Once the dough has come together, pull it onto a cutting board and leave it to rest just for a minute or two until it’s cool enough to handle.
Step 4 – Knead the dough for about 15-20 seconds and then shape it into a log about the size of the churro maker (churrera).
Step 5 – Transfer the dough to the churro maker (churrera). If you don’t have a churro maker, you could also use a piping bag with a star-shaped nozzle, although they won’t be as good as when you make them with the churrera. The churrera increases the outer surface of the churros so that they’re crispier on the outside!
Step 6 – To a pot or pan with high sides, add the oil, and bring it to a temperature of 360°F (180°C).
Step 7 – Shape the churros, pushing them through the churrera, and when they’re the right size, cut them with a knife or a pair of scissors.
You could pipe them straight into the oil. However, if you want any special shapes (like a horseshoe or a heart), it’s better to pipe them and shape them on a plate with some baking (non-stick) paper on it and then gently transfer them to the hot oil.
Step 8 – Fry the churros in the oil until golden and cooked through, turning them every minute or two to ensure they’re cooked on all sides. This will depend on many things, including the thickness of your churros. For us, it takes about 5-6 minutes. Remove from the oil to a plate with paper towels on.
Step 9 – Remove them onto a plate covered with paper towels or a wire rack.
What to Serve with Churros
Step 10 – Chop the chocolate bar and add the cream or milk to it in a medium bowl. Put the bowl in the microwave, and microwave for 15 seconds at a time, stirring after each time, until the chocolate is perfectly melted.
Alternatively, you could also heat up the heavy cream or milk on the stove until it’s almost boiling and then pour it over the chocolate.
Or, you can put the heatproof bowl with chocolate and milk/cream over a bain marie/a pot with boiling water and melt the chocolate over the steam.
If you’re eager to keep things authentically Spanish, this is all you need for a dish full of fun, indulgence, and chocolate-coated yumminess!
If you want to get creative, you could also try:
Shapes – Give the horseshoe shape a try, and even get creative with your piping bag or churrera to create other shapes (like a heart, see below). Let me know in the comments what shapes you made.
Toppings – Here, I made some thinner churros by using a different nozzle on the churrera. I rolled these in cinnamon and sprinkled them with sugar for some Mexican-inspired churros.
You can really get creative. How about sprinkling them with some hundreds and thousands? Or you could drizzle honey over for a sticky, sweet treat.
Sides – Want some other options instead of dipping chocolate? How about a side of dulce de leche or melted caramel, fruit jam/jelly, or melted white chocolate? All of these, and so many more, can be the perfect side for your sweet and fluffy churros!
Have fun, get creative, and let me know in the comments what you think of these glorious fried dough treats.
Churros Recipe Card
Equipment
Ingredients
Churros Dough
- 1 cup all-purpose plain flour
- 1 cup water
- 1/2 tsp fine salt
For Frying
- 2 cups neutral-tasting oil sunflower, vegetable, or light olive oil
For the Dipping Chocolate Sauce
- 1 bar of dark chocolate 100 grams or 3.5 oz
- 1/2 cup heavy cream or milk
Instructions
- Add the water and salt to a pot, and bring the water to a boil.
- Once the water is boiling, turn the heat off, and add the flour to the pot, stirring with a wooden spoon (note 1).
- Once the dough has come together, pull it onto a cutting board and leave it to rest just for a minute or two until it’s cool enough to handle.
- Knead the dough lightly for about 15-20 seconds and then shape it into a log about the size of the churro maker (churrera).
- Transfer the dough to the churro maker (churrera). If you don’t have a churro maker, you could also use a piping bag with a star-shaped nozzle, although they won’t be as good as when you make them with the churrera. The churrera increases the outer surface of the churros so that they’re crispier on the outside!
- To a pot or pan with high sides, add the oil, and bring it to a temperature of 360°F (180°C) (note 2).
- Shape the churros, pushing them through the churrera, and when they’re the right size, cut them with a knife or a pair of scissors. You could pipe them straight into the oil. However, if you want any special shapes (like a horseshoe or a heart), it’s better to pipe them and shape them on a plate with some baking (non-stick) paper on it and then gently transfer them to the hot oil.
- Fry the churros in the oil until golden and cooked through, turning them every minute or two to ensure they’re cooked on all sides. This will depend on many things, including the thickness of your churros. For us, it takes about 5-6 minutes.
- Remove them onto a plate covered with paper towels or a wire rack.
- For the warm, dipping chocolate sauce, chop the chocolate bar and add the cream or milk to it in a medium bowl. Put the bowl in the microwave, and microwave for 15 seconds at a time, stirring after each time, until the chocolate is perfectly melted (note 3).
- Serve the churros with the dipping chocolate sauce or alternative toppings/sauces (see our toppings and sides suggestions in the article).
Recipe Notes
- Make sure to add the flour to the pot (and not the water over the
flour) as the residual heat in the warm pot helps pull this dough
together. - Make sure to follow the rules for safe frying. If you have a deep fryer, use that as it's safer. If not, remember that when adding the foods to the oil, it will bubble up, so you want to make sure you have enough space in the pot for the oil and bubbles and that the oil will not overflow.
- For the warm chocolate sauce, alternatively, you could also heat up the heavy cream or milk on the stove until it’s almost boiling and then pour it over the chocolate. Or, you can put the heatproof bowl with chocolate and milk/cream over a bain marie/a pot with boiling water and melt the chocolate over the steam.
You Might Also Like to Read
- Most Popular Spanish Desserts with Recipes
- Papanasi Recipe (Sweet Cheese Doughnuts from Romania with Love)
Save and Pin for Later
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