Churros are a family favorite! It’s hard NOT to love this treat when it reminds you of the Happiest Place on Earth!
Churros are a favorite Mexican Dessert! If you love them too, you’ll love this Churros Recipe, and our Churro Cheesecake Bars, Sopapilla Cheesecake and Angel Food Cake Churro Bites.
What is a Churro?
It’s hard to believe that some of you may NOT know what a Churro is, but for those that don’t, it’s a fried Mexican pastry dough that is dipped in cinnamon and sugar.
Churro dough is similar to choux pastry, but it is typically thicker and more hearty.
Many have come to love this treat because they are made and sold at the Happiest Place on Earth – Disneyland (and Walt Disney World!) They have become one of our favorite snacks to pick up while at the parks.
Today’s recipe happens to be FROM Disney, which means we HAD to try it. We are such huge fans of the real deal, and were so excited to try this Churros Recipe at home.
The treat was beyond delicious and will become a new staple for go-to desserts in our home. Serve them up warm and with Hot Fudge Sauce or White Chocolate Fudge Sauce!
How to Make Churros
PREP. Begin by filling a heavy bottomed pot with 1½-2 inches of oil. Heat the oil to 360°F over medium-high heat. In a shallow dish or bowl, prepare cinnamon topping by combining the two.
DOUGH. While the oil is heating up, add the water, butter, ¼ tsp cinnamon and salt to a medium saucepan. Bring the mixture to a rolling boil over medium heat.
Reduce the heat to low, add the flour and stir to form a ball. Remove from heat and let cool for 5 minutes or so. Add eggs, one at a time, and stir with a wooden spoon until combined. Add vanilla. Set aside.
PIPE. Add a large star tip to a piping bag and spoon dough into the piping bag. Pipe dough over the hot oil and cut at 2-3 inches long. Repeat until churros fill the pan, but make sure there is enough room to fry until golden brown (about 2-3 minutes on each side).
SEASON. Remove Churros from oil with slotted spoon and place on a paper towel-lined plate or cooling rack. While still warm, roll in cinnamon sugar mixture. Serve warm!
Recipe Notes
Best oil. You’ll need an oil that has a high smoking point. Vegetable or canola oil are both great choices. Peanut and corn oil are also good choices.
Oil temperature. Try to keep the oil temperature at 360°-365°F. Using a candy thermometer will help you regulate it.
- Lower temperature – the churros can get soggy.
- High temperature – the churros will burn before the inside cooks.
- If you don’t have a thermometer, set the stove to medium-medium high heat. Only cook 3-4 churros at a time, so you can watch each one.
Drain. Let the churros drain on a paper towel for a bit before coating them in the sugar, but be sure they do not get dry, otherwise the sugar will not stick.
Shape. Using a closed star piping tip will help give the classic churro shape and aid in a crisp texture. If you don’t have a piping set, simply trim the end of a Ziploc bag. You will get a smooth churro, but it will still taste great.
Classically, Mexican Churros are made in a straight shape, but you can make these in other fun shapes. If you can manage it, kids love when they get the first letter of their name.
Doneness. They fry for 2-3 minutes, but pay attention to the color. They need to be a nice golden brown. This ensures the center is cooked as well. If the churros are browning, but the center is still doughy, then the oil temperature is too high.
Dips Make them even better!
Churros are perfect with only their cinnamon sugar coating, but you can really amp up this dessert with an assortment of dips.
Here are a few favorites:
Storing Info
Make ahead of time. You can make the dough a day beforehand. Store it in an airtight container in the fridge. Bring the dough back to room temperature before frying.
STORE. Churros are best eaten fresh, but if you do end up with leftovers, store them in an airtight container for about 2 days.
FREEZE. Place Churros on a baking sheet, and freeze. Once solid, transfer them to a freezer bag.
To reheat, allow the Churros to thaw a bit and bake at 400°F for about 5-10 minutes, until warm.
For more desserts from Mexico, check out:
Churros Recipe
Ingredients
Churros
- 1½-2 vegetable oil for frying
- 1 cup water
- ½ cup unsalted butter cut into pieces
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1¼ cups all-purpose flour
- 3 large eggs
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Topping
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon divided
Instructions
- Fill a heavy-bottomed pot with 1½–2 inches of oil and heat over medium-high heat to about 360 degrees F.
- To make the topping, whisk together sugar and cinnamon in a shallow dish and set aside.
- To make the churros, combine water, butter, cinnamon and salt in a small saucepan. Bring the mixture to a rolling boil over medium heat, then reduce the heat to low.
- Add flour and stir to form a ball. Remove from the heat and let cool for 5 minutes.
- Add eggs one at a time, stirring until combined after each addition. Add vanilla.
- Add a large star tip to a piping bag and spoon dough into the piping bag. Pipe dough over the hot oil and cut at 1–3 inches long. Repeat until churros fill the pan, making sure to leave room between churros. Fry until golden brown, 2–3 minutes on each side.
- Remove churros from oil with a slotted spoon and place on a paper towel–lined plate.
- While still warm, roll in cinnamon/sugar mixture. Repeat with remaining dough. Serve warm.
We had been dying to try making churros! We all loved them! Thank you!
We are so excited to make these at home! They are our favorite to get at disneyland!
My family loves churros but I’ve never tried to make them before. This recipe makes them look much easier to make than I thought. I am going to give it a try and impress my family. Thanks!
My family just loved these. so yummy! We tried the white chocolate fudge sauce with it and it was delectable!
I love churros and this recipe is so much simpler than I would have imagined!
Churros aRe my husbands favorite to get at fairs, parks etc… i love that I can make this at home for him.
A sweet little treat covered in cinnamon sugar. Fun to make!
its gay
My churro obsessed teenager devours these!!
WOW! These are so amazing! The family loved them, thank you!
You are so welcome! I’m so glad you and your family loved them so much.
These are amazing and so delicious! We love putting the chocolate and strawberry sauce with them! So addicting and easy! I’m definitely making these again!
Homemade churros are the BEST! We couldn’t stop eating these!
I’m glad they were such a hit. Thanks for trying it!
Delicious! Made these to go with a Sunday dinner with my family and my parents. My Dad who isn’t a big desserts or sweet things guy loved them. He asks for them now every time we have Mexican food for our Sunday dinner.
i think it was interesting i just wish u could personally cotact us
Making homemade churros always seemed too daunting. I’m going to try them now!! I love the step-by-step directions and the tips seem especially helpful. My kids are going to be thrilled!
These are a family favorite! My kids can’t get enough!!
Nothing is better than a warm churro & this recipe takes me right back to the cart at Disneyland! Delish!
Yay! So glad you love the churros!
We love this churro recipe! Our favorite dip to use is the chocolate sauce. So yummy!
These are so fun to make and taste just like the churros at Disneyland (but it’s so nice you don’t have to go there to get them). My whole family loves them!