Ingredients
Their consistency: slightly crispy on the outside, beautifully soft on the inside. Their appearance: golden yellow. Some alternatives have a zigzag pattern similar to shortbread biscuits. Elsewhere they are known more smooth, like a very thick string.
The choux pastry is similar to that of cream puffs. However, churros are not baked in the oven but deep-fried like doughnuts and then rolled in cinnamon sugar.
How to make the Churros
First of all, make the churros: For the choux pastry, place the milk, butter, salt, and sugar in a small saucepan and heat over medium heat, stirring, until the butter has melted. Pour the flour into the hot liquid all at once. Stir vigorously with a wooden spoon until a thin white layer forms on the bottom of the saucepan and a giant ball of dough forms. Remove the saucepan from the heat and let the dough cool for a few minutes.
Now, beat the lukewarm eggs. Using a hand mixer, gradually (never all at once) stir some of the egg mixture into the lukewarm dough ball. The dough may initially seem a bit "crumbly" but will become smooth. It should be creamy and have the consistency of a sponge, i.e., it should not flow from the spoon. Finally, stir the baking powder into the choux pastry. Then, heat the frying fat or oil in a wide pot or deep fryer to 170 degrees. You need so much that due churros can swim in it. Determine the right temperature with a kitchen/fryer thermometer or dip the wooden cooking spoon into it. If tiny bubbles form on the stem, the temperature is appropriate.
After this, place some of the dough in a large piping bag fitted with a large star nozzle (3.5-5.5 in / 9-15 cm depending on desired thickness) and carefully pipe a long sausage (4-6 in / 10-15 cm depending on desired length) directly into the hot fat. Cut off each snake of dough with a sharp knife. Directly in the hot fat, cut the churros with heat-resistant scissors into pieces of the desired length and deep-fry them on both sides until golden brown. Alternatively, immediately put short snakes into the fat instead of cutting through the long ones. The fat should maintain its temperature throughout the frying process so that the churros do not become too dark outside but are not cooked through on the inside. Do the same with the remaining dough.
After that, remove the finished churros from the fat with a skimmer or similar, place them on paper towels, let them drain briefly, and then roll them in (cinnamon) sugar while still hot on a deep plate or similar.
Then, it is time for preparing the chocolate sauce: For this, chop the couverture. Put the cream in a saucepan and heat it with the chocolate sauce until it melts. Stir in some more baking cocoa if desired. Stir everything vigorously until you have a smooth ganache. Serve together with the churros dipped in it.
Top Tip
To top it off, churros are eaten with a chocolate sauce - a particularly thick one reminiscent of ganache or chocolate pudding. The original name for this combination is chocolate con churros - or the other way around. Super delicious, but as you can guess quite a lush affair 😉 .
Recipe Card
Churros
Ingredients
For the choux pastry
- 250 milliliters (1 cup) milk, or water
- 50 grams (3 ⅔ tablespoons) butter
- 1 pinch salt
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 130 grams (1 cups) all-purpose flour
- 3 eggs, medium
- 1 pinch baking powder
To finish
- 1 liter (4 ⅕ cups) sunflower oil, or canola oil, coarse
- cinnamon sugar, to taste
For the chocolate sauce
- 40 grams (2 ¾ tablespoons) dark chocolate
- 40 grams (2 ¾ tablespoons) whole milk couverture
- 150 grams (⅔ cup) cream
- 1 tablespoon baking cocoa, optional
Instructions
For the churros
- For the choux pastry, place the milk, butter, salt, and sugar in a small saucepan and heat over medium heat, stirring, until the butter has melted. Pour the flour into the hot liquid all at once. Stir vigorously with a wooden spoon until a thin white layer forms on the bottom of the saucepan and a giant ball of dough forms. Remove the saucepan from the heat and let the dough cool for a few minutes.
- Beat the lukewarm eggs. Using a hand mixer, gradually (never all at once) stir some of the egg mixture into the lukewarm dough ball. The dough may initially seem a bit "crumbly" but will become smooth. It should be creamy and have the consistency of a sponge, i.e., it should not flow from the spoon. Finally, stir the baking powder into the choux pastry.
- Heat the frying fat or oil in a wide pot or deep fryer to 170 degrees. You need so much that due churros can swim in it. Determine the right temperature with a kitchen/fryer thermometer or dip the wooden cooking spoon into it. If tiny bubbles form on the stem, the temperature is appropriate.
- Place some of the dough in a large piping bag fitted with a large star nozzle (3.5-5.5 in / 9-15 cm depending on desired thickness) and carefully pipe a long sausage (4-6 in / 10-15 cm depending on desired length) directly into the hot fat. Cut off each snake of dough with a sharp knife.
- Directly in the hot fat, cut the churros with heat-resistant scissors into pieces of the desired length and deep-fry them on both sides until golden brown. Alternatively, immediately put short snakes into the fat instead of cutting through the long ones.
- The fat should maintain its temperature throughout the frying process so that the churros do not become too dark outside but are not cooked through on the inside. Do the same with the remaining dough.
- Remove the finished churros from the fat with a skimmer or similar, place them on paper towels, let them drain briefly, and then roll them in (cinnamon) sugar while still hot on a deep plate or similar.
For the chocolate sauce
- For the chocolate sauce, chop the couverture. Put the cream in a saucepan and heat it with the chocolate sauce until it melts. Stir in some more baking cocoa if desired. Stir everything vigorously until you have a smooth ganache. Serve together with the churros dipped in it.
Notes
- The eggs should be at the same temperature as the dumpling so you are not cold.
- Since eggs are never the same size (I use M), don't add them entirely to the dough immediately, but a little at a time. It must not become too liquid. If you notice after the first few that the dough is too firm, it's easy to stir some milk into the rest.
- The recipe's number of churros depends on how long and thick you want them to be. The dough rises well when fried.
- You can also make the chocolate sauce as plain or milk for dipping. If you have some leftovers, it's easy to refrigerate the rest and use it to fill pancakes, for example.
- The churros should be eaten freshly baked and warm.
Ingredient substitutions
Variations
By the way, there's the whole thing, like times for breakfast (and the rest of the chocolate afterward as a drink). I personally find it slightly violent… Among our brunch recipes, you will find "more normal" 😉 treats like classic pancakes.
About Kathrin & Jan
It's like a little miracle to me every time. Seemingly simple ingredients are made into something that can brighten up your life. Butter, sugar, eggs, and flour melt into an airy biscuit, a fine tart, a juicy cake, or a crispy biscuit. Baking simply makes you happy. Welcome and enjoy our blog!
Kathrin & Jan
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