These Mexican Buñuelos are deliciously crispy, crumbly, and sweetened with lots of cinnamon sugar or piloncillo syrup. They’re one of those treats that are both nostalgic and so much fun to eat!
Mexican Buñuelos are made from a thin dough that’s deep-fried until it achieves a golden-brown perfection. Then they’re flavored with cinnamon and sugar or piloncillo syrup.
This is an authentic recipe for buñuelos. After having one bite, it truly transports me back to Mexico when I used to tons of them during the holiday season. They’re so moreish and addictive that you’ll want to make a big batch next time. These crispy flatbread are the perfect vessel to serve with a variety of dips and spreads.
A Mexican Christmas feast would not be complete without a big pile of these perfectly crunchy buñuelos. Designed for people to break off in shards.
*** Make sure to read the entire blog post. Every step matters since I provide helpful tips along the way!
Ingredients
- All purpose flour
- Baking powder
- Ground cinnamon
- Table salt
- Unsalted butter, margarine or vegetable shortening at room temperature
- Sugar
- Vanilla extract
- Canola or vegetable oil to fry
- A mix of cinnamon with sugar for dusting. They also taste amazing with Piloncillo Syrup.
Equipment needed:
- Frying pan
- Rolling Pin
- Large mixing bowl
Did you know? There are 3 types of Buñuelos: 1) De Viento, 2) De Queso & 3) De Rodilla. Today we’re going to make Buñuelos De Rodilla.
How to Make Buñuelos (step by step)
Here are the photos of each step in case you’re a visual learner like me. With this guide, you’ll be a pro in no time!
- In a large mixing bowl, add the flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon and mix to integrate.
- Add the butter to the flour mixture and combine with your fingers until the mixture is crumbly.
Add the sugar, vanilla extract and mix.
- Add water. Using your clean hands, mix well, until all dry ingredients are incorporated.
- Using your clean hands, mix well, until all dry ingredients are incorporated and the dough begins to come together and form a smooth ball.
- Turn dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead for 5-6 minutes until the dough is nice and smooth.
- Place the dough back into the large bowl, cover with plastic wrap or a clean kitchen towel and allow to rest for at least 15 minutes before proceeding.
- Form the dough int 14 to 15 equal in size balls, then roll into a smooth ball.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll each dough piece into a rough circle, about 6-7 inches in diameter, until thin and almost transparent. To prevent the disk sticking to the rolling pin, keep the work surface and rolling pin lightly floured.
This is how thin the dough looks once it’s rolled with the pin.
- On a hot skillet or comal, pre-cook the disks for about 10 seconds each side. Set aside and get ready to fry them.
- Heat oil to 350ºF (175ºC) in a deep frying pan (medium-high heat). About 1 inch high.
- When the oil is hot, carefully place each rolled dough into the hot oil. Fry until both sides are golden brown. Use a spatula to flatten the center as you cook them. This will help for them to stay flat.
- Fry until both sides are golden brown. Remove the fried buñuelos and let them drain the excess oil on paper towels.
While they’re still warm, coat them in a mixture of sugar and cinnamon.
Tips and Notes
- I like to pre-cook them on a hot skillet or comal first for easy frying. They’re easier to place in the hot oil this way.
Make sure the oil is very hot to fry the dough. If it’s not hot enough, the dough will absorb more oil than necessary. - Fry one buñuelo at the time to keep an eye on it easily. They cook quickly and you don’t want to burn them. Carefully remove them with tongs or two spatulas.
- Always sprinkle them with cinnamon sugar while they’re still warm. It’ll settle on the buñuelos better than if cold.
Serving Suggestions
Buñuelos are often eaten plain, rolled in cinnamon sugar or served with piloncillo syrup. A new trend that is evolving in Mexico, is to eat them with sweetened condensed milk. I tried them with this and they are amazing!
You can also enjoy them with drizzled cajeta or nutella. No matter what toppings you use, this are best enjoyed fresh and warm. Simply take a bite or use your hands to tear off a piece. They’re fantastic with a side of Cafe De Olla.
How to Store
Once cooled, lightly wrap them in plastic wrap, storage bags or large cookie bags.
They last up to 3 days and there’s no need to refrigerate. Just keep them wrapped or covered at room temperature.
Reheating
I love to eat mine warm so if you like them like this too, reheat in the microwave for about 10 to 15 seconds for one. If you reheat them too long, they will become soggy and chewy.
More Mexican Desserts
Thank you for stopping by!
I hope you like this recipe! Do you have any questions I can help you with? Or if you made it, I would love it if you leave a comment or rating below.
Gracias!!!! xx, Ana
Print Recipe:
Authentic Mexican Buñuelos
Equipment
- Frying pan
- Rolling Pin
- Large mixing bowl
Ingredients
- 2 cups all purpose flour (250 grams) + ½ cup to extend the disks.
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon table salt
- 3 Tablespoons unsalted butter, margarine or vegetable shortening (45 grams) at room temperature
- 2 Tablespoons sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup hot water
- canola or vegetable oil to fry
- cinnamon sugar (4 tablespoons sugar + 1 ground cinnamon)
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, add the flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon and mix to integrate.2 cups all purpose flour (250 grams) + ½ cup to extend the disks., ¼ teaspoon baking powder, ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon, ¼ teaspoon table salt
- Add the butter to the flour mixture and combine with your fingers until the mixture comes is crumbly.3 Tablespoons unsalted butter, margarine or vegetable shortening (45 grams)
- Add the sugar, vanilla extract and water. Using your clean hands, mix well, until all dry ingredients are incorporated and the dough begins to come together.2 Tablespoons sugar, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, ½ cup hot water
- Turn dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead for 5-6 minutes until the dough is nice and smooth. Place the dough back into the large bowl, cover with plastic wrap or a clean kitchen towel and allow to rest for at least 15 minutes before proceeding.
- Form the dough int 14 to 15 equal in size balls, then roll into a smooth ball.
- On a clean surface, roll each dough ball piece into a rough circle, about 6-7 inches in diameter, until thin and almost transparent. To prevent the disk sticking to the rolling pin, keep the work surface and rolling pin lightly floured.
- On a hot skillet, pre-cook the disks for about 10 seconds each side. Set aside and get ready to fry them.
- Heat oil to 350ºF (175ºC) in a deep frying pan. About 1 inch high.
- When the oil is hot, carefully place each rolled dough into the hot oil. Fry until both sides are golden brown. Note: Use a spatula to flatten the center as you cook them. This will help for them to stay flat.
- Remove the fried buñuelos and let them drain on paper towels. While still warm, coat them in a mixture of sugar and cinnamon.
- Store in an airtight container or wrapped in plastic bags.
Muy Delish Notes:
- I like to pre-cook them on a hot skillet or comal first for easy frying. They’re easier to place in the hot oil this way.
Make sure the oil is very hot to fry the dough. If it’s not hot enough, the dough will absorb more oil than necessary. - Fry one buñuelo at the time to keep an eye on it easily. They cook quickly and you don’t want to burn them. Carefully remove them with tongs or two spatulas.
- Always sprinkle them with cinnamon sugar while they’re still warm. It’ll settle on the buñuelos better than if cold.
Add Your Own Private Notes
Whenever you come back to this recipe, you’ll be able to see your notes.
Nutrition
The nutritional information and US conversions are calculated automatically. I cannot guarantee the accuracy of this data. If this is important to you, please verify with your favourite nutrition calculator and/or unit conversion tool.
History
Buñuelos are a fried food that has a great cultural and culinary tradition in Mexico, it is common to see the pile of this dessert in fair stands, consume them as a snack or make them for posadas or Christmas and New Year dinners.
Its origin dates back about two thousand years ago in countries such as Turkey, Morocco or Egypt, where balls made of fried dough with honey were eaten. This combination emigrated to Spain and became the buñuelos de viento.
Thanks to the cultural exchange that existed during the conquest, this type of preparation reached Mexico and other parts of latin America.
Unlike buñuelos de viento, which are dough balls made of wheat flour, butter and eggs, filled with sweet cream, chocolate or chantilly; Buñuelos in Mexico came only with a base of fried dough, emulating a tortilla.
There is no corner of Mexico that escapes buñuelos: in Baja California Sur, for example, they are prepared with piloncillo honey and guava, in Chihuahua they are eaten with cheese, in Oaxaca they are sprinkled with red sugar, in Chiapas they have a strong flavor orange, in Jalisco they are made from curd and in the shape of a bagel; In Tabasco and southern Veracruz, they are called torrejas, and they are characterized by being rectangular in shape, about 20 cm long and 8 cm wide. And this is how each state gives the buñuelos its special touch.
During these Christmas holidays, don’t forget to eat buñuelos accompanied by a good punch or hot chocolate or coffee. No matter where in Mexico you eat them, buñuelos are undoubtedly a mix of tradition, culture and history, with basic ingredients from the Mexican countryside.
These are so delicious! And incredibly easy to make – it’s hard not to eat them all at once!
These buenuelos were perfect! Will be making these for my family again.
Thank you, Ali!! so glad you enjoy them.
We all loved these so much! They were so easy to make and so so delicious. Thanks for such a great recipe!
Thank you, Dana!!! so happy you liked them.
Oh, wow. These look so good! I love Mexican food, but I have never had these before. I never even heard of them. They look amazing, and I can’t wait to try them.
Thank you, Beth!! hope you liked them and let me know what you think when you try them.
I hope you like these buñuelos as much as I do! Please leave me a comment or question and I’ll get back to you asap. Stay well! xo, Ana