Sourdough Churros

You can make Sourdough Churros in 30 minutes with this easy sourdough discard recipe!

The fried treats are crispy on the outside with a custardy interior, rolled in cinnamon sugar, and excellent dipped in a Mexican hot chocolate sauce I include or other drizzles.

They may seem intimidating to make at first, but the sourdough pâte à choux dough (or choux pastry) is quite simple and requires minimal ingredients. Plus, I include variations and ideas for dipping sauces so you can make them your own!

Be sure to follow my detailed instructions and tips below for making these sourdough discard churros, including frying tips.

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What are Churros?

Churros are a fried dough often made with choux pastry (pâte à choux, pronounced PAT-uh-chew) and piped into hot oil. Some churros are made with eggs as the primary leavener, whereas some remain eggless and may use mechanical leaveners like baking powder or baking soda.

They come in many lengths and vary in thickness but are generally piped in star-shapes with a crunchy exterior and custardy, soft interior. The ridges and crevices from the star shape help hold the cinnamon sugar topping. They’re often served with dipping sauces like chocolate, sweetened condensed milk, or berry dipping sauces.

Churros originate in Spain and Portugal, but are served around the world, including in Mexico and other Latin American countries for breakfast or as a dessert treat. Even Disney World has popular churros!

They are a popular street food and dessert in Mexico (like Sourdough Conchas), where vendors fry the churros so they are hot and crispy for customers.

On a recent visit to Puerto Vallarta, a very popular churro street vendor had this stainless steel churro maker machine that allowed him to expedite the process. Then, he tossed in lots of cinnamon sugar.

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👍 Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• Light and crispy with a soft, custardy interior.
• Come together in 30 minutes!
• Can toss in cinnamon sugar and dip in chocolate sauce or other drizzles and toppings.
• Fun and festive treat to make for guests, parties, and get-togethers.
• Can easily double the recipe to make more and can even let the batter rest in the refrigerator overnight.

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🔍 Tips for Making Sourdough Churros

• Use a candy thermometer or instant-read thermometer for frying so you can keep your frying oil at the right temperature.
• Whenever you’re frying, never walk away from the hot oil and wear gloves to prevent burning.
• Roll in the cinnamon sugar mixture right after frying so the sugar sticks to the hot oil.
• I recommend using a closed star tip for churros like the Ateco 847 tip. This way, the ridges are visible when piped.
• Use scissors or a knife to cut the churros when piping in hot oil. For straight, uniform churros, you can pipe onto small pieces of parchment paper and drop those directly into the oil.
• I found two eggs to be the perfect balance of crispy and custardy. However, you can add another egg if you want them even puffier or use just one egg if you prefer crispier churros.

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🛠 Tools Needed

You only need a few basic tools to make these sourdough discard churros.

• Baking scale:
  • Flour and sourdough starter can weigh differently from person to person, so weighing your ingredients is the best option! Weighing your ingredients by weight will make your baking more consistent and accurate.
• Piping Bag and Star Tip
  • If you don’t have a piping bag, you can use a large plastic bag and cut a corner off.
  • I recommend a large closed star tip for the best ridges like the Ateco 847 tip.
• Large pot for frying
  • I use a Dutch oven for frying, but you can use any large stainless steel pot as well.
• Stand mixer (optional)
  • I find mixing the eggs in the choux pastry to be a little easier with a stand mixer or electric hand mixer with the paddle attchment, but you can also mix the eggs into the pastry by hand with a spatula.

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🛒 Ingredients Needed

See below for my ingredient recommendations and possible substitutions.

• All-purpose flour
  • The all-purpose flour gives the best results with a sturdy churro that can be fried and is also soft on the inside. Use cake flour if you want a lighter churro and bread flour if you want a sturdier one.
• Salt
• Water
  • If you want to add a little more more richness to the churros, you can substitute half of the water with whole milk.
• Unsalted butter
  • I like using butter for a little richness and more flavor in the batter, but you could substitute with a neutral oil like coconut oil or vegetable oil.
  • The fat helps the choux pastry crisp and contributes to the puffing in the fryer.
• Granulated sugar
  • Churros are a dessert treat, but you only need a couple of tablespoons of sugar in the dough since they’re also tossed in cinnamon sugar.
• Eggs:
  • Adds structure to help bind the ingredients together and helps the choux pastry steam and puff in the fryer.
  • Since there is no baking powder or baking soda in this recipe, the eggs are the primary leavening agent.
• Vanilla extract
• Sourdough Discard
  • If you don’t have an active sourdough starter, learn how to make one in a week following my how-to guide. See my top sourdough starter tips.
• Oil for frying
  • I typically use a neutral frying oil, such as vegetable or canola oil for churros. You can use peanut oil, avocado oil, sunflower oil, corn oil, or another high smoke point frying oil.
• Cinnamon
  • The classic topping to toss churros in after frying is cinnamon sugar. However, you could switch it up and use another warming spice like cardamom or even crushed coriander for a lemony touch!

Chocolate Dipping Sauce and Other Variations

• Classic chocolate dipping sauce: Use semi-sweet chocolate and heavy cream to make a quick ganache for dipping.
• Mexican hot chocolate: Add ¼ tsp of cayenne to the chocolate sauce.
• Strawberry dipping sauce (or other berry fruit like raspberry or blueberry).
• Dulce de Leche or caramel sauce
• “Natas” or other creams are popular drizzles or dipping sauces in Mexico, Spain, Portugal, and other countries.

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👨‍🍳 How to Make Sourdough Churros

Follow this detailed recipe guide as you make the best sourdough churros.

This recipe makes about 16 churros.

1. Make the Panade

In a small saucepan, boil the water, unsalted butter, sugar, salt, and vanilla extract.

Add the flour and sourdough discard and turn down to low heat. Constantly stir with a spatula or wooden spoon for a minute or two until the dough comes together to a thick paste and leaves a slight film on the bottom of the saucepan (this is called the panade in French).

Transfer to the bowl of stand mixer (or a mixing bowl if mixing by hand) to cool for a few minutes.

2. Add the Eggs and Mix

In the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment (or a mixing bowl using an electric hand mixer or a spatula), beat one egg in at a time until completely incorporated into the dough.

At first, the eggs will be loose/slimy and separate in the dough, but should slowly incorporate into the batter.

Add the second egg and beat until the dough becomes glossy, thick, and sticky. The pâte à choux, or sourdough choux pastry, should be smooth and thick enough to pipe.

3. Fry the Sourdough Churros

Transfer the sourdough churro dough to a piping bag fitted with a large closed star attachment.

Heat three inches of frying oil in a large pot to 365-370ºF (188ºC) and set a plate with paper towels beside the oil.

As the oil heats, mix the granulated sugar and cinnamon together in bowl and set aside.

When the oil is at frying temperature, pipe 4-5 inch churros into the hot oil and use scissors or a knife to cut the ends. Wear heat-proof gloves to protect yourself while frying.

Fry in a couple of batches, with about 8 or 9 churros in a pot at a time.

The sourdough churros should take 3-4 minutes to fry until crispy golden brown. Use tongs to turn over if they’re not frying on all sides.

Carefully removed the fried churros from the hot oil and set on the plate lined with paper towels to let any excess oil drip off.

4. Toss in Cinnamon Sugar

While hot, toss the sourdough churros in a bowl with cinnamon sugar to coat on all sides.

5. Make Mexican Hot Chocolate Dipping Sauce (optional)

Chop a semi-sweet chocolate bar or use chocolate chips and set in a heat-proof bowl with cayenne powder.

Heat heavy cream in a saucepan over medium heat just until it’s about to boil and pour it over the chocolate.

Let sit undisturbed for a minute and then use a spatula to stir the chocolate to melt completely.

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How to Store and Serve

Sourdough churros are best served while warm and crispy shortly after they’re made.

However, you can make in advance by a few hours and store at room temperature. You may need to dust again with cinnamon sugar or you can reheat them and toss in sugar before serving.

While possible, I don’t recommend freezing churros as they lose their crunch as they thaw.

The chocolate dipping sauce can be made a week ahead and stored in the refrigerator. Simply reheat slowly and stir to melt before serving.

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❓ FAQs:

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