Dulce de Leche Churros

About This Recipe

While churros are Spanish in origin, Argentina has made them its own with one crucial upgrade: they are filled with dulce de leche, the rich, milk-based caramel that Argentines consider a birthright. Piped through a star-tipped nozzle, fried to a crisp, sugared, and injected with luscious dulce de leche, they are the definitive Argentine street treat.

Ingredients

Serves 16

• 250 mlwater
• 50 gbutter
• 1 tspsugar (for dough)
• 0.5 tspsalt
• 150 gplain flour
• 2 pcseggs
• 1 Lvegetable oil, for deep frying
• 100 gsugar (for coating)
• 1 tspground cinnamon
• 300 gdulce de leche (store-bought or homemade)

Instructions

1. 1

   Make choux dough

   Combine water, butter, sugar, and salt in a saucepan. Bring to a boil. Add flour all at once and beat vigorously with a wooden spoon until the dough pulls away from the pan sides. Cook over low heat 2 minutes. Remove from heat and beat in eggs one at a time until smooth and glossy.

2. 2

   Pipe and fry

   Transfer dough to a piping bag fitted with a large star nozzle. Heat oil to 175°C. Pipe 12–15 cm lengths of dough into the oil, snipping with scissors. Fry for 3–4 minutes, turning, until deep golden. Drain on kitchen paper.

3. 3

   Sugar and cinnamon coating

   Mix sugar and cinnamon in a shallow bowl. Roll hot churros in the mixture to coat.

4. 4

   Fill with dulce de leche

   Transfer dulce de leche to a piping bag fitted with a thin, long nozzle. Insert the nozzle into one end of each churro and pipe dulce de leche into the centre.

5. 5

   Serve

   Serve immediately while warm, with extra dulce de leche on the side for dipping.

Variations

• •

  Dip in dark chocolate sauce instead of filling for classic churros.

• •

  Fill with vanilla pastry cream for a French-Argentine fusion.

• •

  Vegetarian: swap the protein for roasted king oyster mushrooms, smoked tofu or cooked chickpeas — adjust seasoning slightly upward to compensate.

• •

  Spicier: add a finely chopped fresh chile or a teaspoon of crushed Aleppo/Urfa pepper to the aromatics for warm, layered heat instead of a single sharp hit.

Storage

Best eaten fresh. Unfilled churros can be stored airtight at room temperature for 1 day; re-crisp in the oven.

Frequently Asked Questions