Authentic Mexican Buñuelos (Buñuelos Mexicanos)
Lightly sweetened and perfectly golden brown, this homemade authentic Mexican Buñuelos recipe is a must during the holiday season, but is lovely all year round. Each of these buñuelos mexicanos is essentially a crispy fried tortilla with cinnamon and sugar, perfect for drizzling with a touch of honey.
This traditional Mexican treat is a favorite at our house, especially around Christmas. Served with cafe de olla or champurrado, they’re a bundle full of warm, cozy feel-good-edness. Give this simple, 30-minute crispy fritter recipe a try – I’m sure you’ll love it!
What Are Buñuelos?
Buñuelos Mexicanos (pronounced “boon-WELL-ohs meh-HE-KHAN-ohs”) are a yummy type of dough-based Mexican fritters. Unlike other Latin American versions of this dessert that are thick and puffy like donuts, buñuelos are light and crispy.
My grandma used to make them, but never called them “buñuelos.” Her recipe was essentially the same as her flour tortilla recipe, which she then fried to golden, crispy perfection and drizzled with miel virgen (honey). I still remember licking my sticky fingers wanting more.
This is my mom’s recipe and is so special that it is also published in the first, Muy Bueno cookbook, In my latest cookbook, Muy Bueno Fiestas, there is also a variation of these buñuelos drizzled with a gingerbread piloncillo syrup.
Technically speaking, these are buñuelos de rodilla, or “knee fritters.” The other type of Mexican buñuelos are buñuelos de viento, or “wind fritters.” This rodilla version is much simpler, requiring just a rolling pin. Making the viento version requires a piece of equipment known as a buñalera, or rosette-shaped buñuelo mold.
Ingredients & Substitutions
You only need a handful of pantry ingredients and a few kitchen staples to make this simple recipe for buñuelos Mexicanos.
- All-Purpose Flour: Plain flour is all you need.
- Baking Powder: Not to be confused with baking soda, this leavening agent is what helps the tortillas rise slightly without poofing up like a donut.
- Salt: A little bit of salt helps to balance the sweetness.
- Ground Cinnamon: This warming spice is central to a lot of Mexican desserts. Feel free to experiment with other warming spices like star anise, cardamom, nutmeg, or even pumpkin pie spice. While they won’t be traditional, they’ll be delicious!
- Milk: I prefer using whole milk for a little extra richness, but you can swap in the dairy or plant-based milk of your choice.
- Butter: I used unsalted butter here, but feel free to use salted and slightly decrease the amount of added salt by a pinch or two if needed.
- Vanilla Extract: For aromatic warmth. You can also use an equal amount of vanilla paste or vanilla powder, or half as much ground vanilla bean.
- Eggs: I generally use large eggs, so if you’re swapping in liquid eggs from a carton, use a scant ½ cup.
- Neutral Oil: For frying the fritters. I typically reach for canola oil, but vegetable, avocado, or grapeseed oil will also work.
- Sugar: Granulated sugar is the best for making cinnamon sugar that will stick. Don’t use brown sugar as the added moisture could make your buñuelos a little soft.
How to Make Buñuelos Mexicanos
Only about 30 minutes stand between you and a pile of this easy buñuelos recipe. Make sure to check the recipe card for a full list of ingredients and quantities and watch this video to see how simple it is to make these authentic Mexican buñuelos!
Mix dry ingredients: In a large bowl combine flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon.
Heat dairy: In a saucepan heat milk, butter, and vanilla and bring to a boil. Set aside to cool.
Mix wet ingredients: In a separate bowl, mix the eggs, then add the beaten eggs to the room temperature milk mixture and whisk quickly.
Mix wet & dry: Add the liquid mixture to dry ingredients and mix well.
Knead dough on lightly floured surface 2 to 3 minutes until smooth.
Shape: After you knead the dough, divide into 20 dough balls. With a rolling pin, roll out thin tortillas and place them on a clean, dry tablecloth.
Dry: Lay out all the thin tortilla flats on a tablecloth and let them dry. Turn them over once to ensure they are dry on both sides. This helps remove most of the moisture before frying, which helps to prevent the oil from popping out at you.
Fry: Heat one-inch of oil in a skillet wide enough for the tortillas to fry flat. Deep-fry tortillas in the hot oil until golden brown, turning once. Remove from pan; stand vertically in a bowl lined with paper towels and drain excess oil.
Garnish: While still warm, sprinkle fried tortillas on both sides with sugar-cinnamon mixture. Enjoy!
Optional Variations
As much as I love this fried tortilla dessert just the way it’s written, I want to make sure you can get in on the fun no matter what your dietary preferences are. Here are a few ideas to make this recipe your own:
- Gluten-Free: While I haven’t tested it, I think this recipe would work well with a cup-for-cup all-purpose gluten-free flour blend. Just make sure to cover and rest the dough for 30 minutes after kneading to allow the flour to properly rehydrate, or they may end up a little grainy.
- Dairy-Free – Swap in vegan butter and use the plant-based milk of your choice.
Expert Tips & Tricks
- Roll thin: The dough should be rolled very thin, almost transparent, to achieve the classic crispy texture. If the dough is too thick, the buñuelos may turn out doughy.
- Dry: When all the rounds are on the tablecloth, let them dry, turning them over once, for about 30 minutes. This helps remove most of the moisture before frying, resulting in a crispier buñuelo that absorbs less oil while cooking. Prick each round once with fork times to prevent bubbles from forming during frying.
- Temperature: Maintaining the right medium-high temperature of the oil is crucial. It should be hot enough to puff up the dough instantly but not so hot that the buñuelos burn. Before you put your first buñuelo in the oil, make sure it hits a temperature of about 325-350 degrees F. No thermometer? Stick the handle end of a wooden spoon in the oil — if it bubbles relatively aggressively, it’s ready to go. If your buñuelo sinks to the bottom without bubbling much, the oil needs to be hotter.
- Fry: To cook the buñuelos evenly, gently press down with a spatula or spoon while frying. This ensures that all parts of the buñuelo are submerged in oil and get an even golden color.
- Drain: After frying, place the buñuelos on a paper towel or a rack to drain excess oil and avoid greasiness.
- Coat while warm: Generously dust the buñuelos with cinnamon sugar while warm to guarantee it adheres to the crispy fried dough.
Frequently Asked Questions
Buñuelos are often mistaken for sopaipillas. Sopaipillas are closer to fry bread and puff up like a pillow when they hit the oil. They turn golden brown on the outside, but are soft and bready in the inside. Authentic Mexican buñuelos, on the other hand, are rolled out thin and fried until crispy.
The dough for softer sopaipillas is also enriched with more eggs and fat, contributing to their softer consistency. Buñuelos also have less leavening added, which keeps them from puffing up too much.
Both are tempting cinnamon sugar-dusted Mexican desserts, but they’re quite different. As we’ve discussed above, buñuelos are rolled out super thin, fried until they’re golden and crispy, and sprinkled with a generous dose of cinnamon and sugar. They’re like the delicately crunchy leaves of autumn — light, airy, and full of flavor.
Now, on to churros, which are kind of like Mexican donuts. They’re made from sweet dough that is piped into long, ridged sticks or round swirls, and then fried to perfection before rolling in cinnamon sugar. When you bite into a churro, there’s a delightful crunch followed by a soft, slightly chewy inside. And let me tell you, dunking them in Mexican hot chocolate? That’s a match made in heaven!
To me, they taste like my abuela’s kitchen — warm, cozy, and totally comforting. The predominant flavor is cinnamon sugar, and the texture is light and crisp.
They are excellent served as is, but I personally love drizzling them with sticky honey, a warm piloncillo syrup, or even some warmed maple syrup. Bonus points if you serve them with some cafe de olla. YUM! I also imagine they’d be darn good crushed on top of vanilla ice cream.
Absolutely! Try making them with flour tortillas like in this Easy Buñuelos {Tree Ornaments} recipe or this Buñuelo Berry Muffin Cups recipe.
They definitely can be! Try these gorgeous buñuelos de viento.
Storage Instructions
I recommend stacking them on a plate and covering them with a simple paper towel or light kitchen towel on the kitchen counter for up to three days to keep their crunch and texture.
More Cinnamon-Flavored Mexican Desserts
- Churros with Mexican Chocolate Dipping Sauce
- Cinnamon Churro Sandwiches with Lemon Cream Filling
- Authentic Sopaipillas
- Sopaipilla Cheesecake
- Cinnamon Horchata Rice Pudding
- Mexican Chocolate Cinnamon Toast Crunch Cookies
If you tried this delicious recipe for homemade Authentic Mexican Buñuelos (Buñuelos Mexicanos), please let me know! Leave a ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating on this recipe below and leave a comment, take a photo and tag me on Instagram with #muybuenocooking.
Mexican Buñuelos Recipe (Buñuelos Mexicanos)
Ingredients
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¾ cup milk
- ¼ cup butter
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 beaten eggs
- Canola or vegetable oil for frying
Sugar coating
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Instructions
- In a mixing bowl combine flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon.
- In a saucepan heat milk, butter, and vanilla and bring to a boil. Set aside to cool.
- In a separate bowl, mix the eggs, then add the beaten eggs to the room temperature milk mixture and whisk quickly.
- Add the liquid mixture to dry ingredients and mix well.
- Knead dough on lightly floured surface 2 to 3 minutes until smooth.
- After you knead the dough, divide into 20 dough balls. With a rolling pin, roll out thin tortillas.
- Lay out all the thin tortilla flats on a tablecloth and let them dry. Turn them over once to ensure drying on both sides. This helps remove most of the moisture before frying.
- Heat one-inch of oil in a skillet wide enough for the tortillas to fry flat. Deep-fry tortillas until golden brown, turning once. Remove from pan; stand vertically in a bowl lined with paper towels and drain excess oil.
- While warm, sprinkle fried tortillas on both sides with sugar-cinnamon mixture.
Video
Notes
Originally published: December 2010. This recipe is also published in the Muy Bueno cookbook.
73 Comments on “Authentic Mexican Buñuelos (Buñuelos Mexicanos)”
Best buñuelo recipe so far!
I searched high and low for the perfect buñuelos recipe and finally came across the Muy Bueno recipe and it is perfect, just like I remember. All my friends have asked for my buñuelos recipe and I direct them to the Muy Bueno site. They all love the recipe.
How long does it take for them to dry?
Has anyone air fried these? I’m trying to look for healthier alternatives. If you have and were successful, what temp and length of time did you use? Thank you
Can’t wait to try your recipe .
I love your recipes and trying them. The recipes sometimes reminds me of my Grandmother Madalena and my Grt. Grandma Clarita. Love and miss them both. The smell of flour tortillas being cooked will put me back in time when they were still living. My Grandma’s made the best sweet tamales, with cinnamon, sugar, and raisins. They were the best. Thank you for sharing your beautiful recipes. I’m going to try making bunuelos. I haven’t had them in years.
This recipe was so easy and so delicious. I didn’t make the syrup but added sugar and cinnamon to my banuelos; let me tell you, my kids loved them! Thank you for this and your champurado recipes. I made them a few days ago to start 2021 and remember my loved ones I could not spend time with during the holidays, or who passed way too soon in 2020. Thank you for bringing some sweetness to my life. I will repeat this recipe again for sure. Feliz ano!
I made these and they taste good but texture wasa more like sopaipilla than a bunuelos, they puffed up like them to they were soft not crispy,my mom never added egg or vanilla to hers
The bonuelos were super crispy and delicious!
the bunuelos were amazing! super crispy and delicious
I’m not very good with a rolling pin, could the dough be flattened in a tortilla press?
I LOVE bunuelos. I grew up in San Antonio. Bunuelos are very popular there. The grocery stores even had them. I miss them so much! I am so excited to try your recipe.
Sounds like your mother used to make sopapillas not buñuelos. Sopapillas go with honey, can be plain or coated with sugar and cinnamon. Not round could be square or triangle. If she did make buñuelos they could also be eaten with honey.
Just saw your post on Insta. And I drooled a bit. My mother would call them azucaritas. Yum.
How long do they stay crisp? What is the best way to store them?
Buñuelos may be stored in an airtight container up to 3 days.
Mmmm… I look forward to this all year long
My abuelita’s Christmas night gift to all of us, her wonderful Bunuleos, topped off with melted “panocha” (brown sugar in a cone shape) and a hard cheese she shredded. We opened our presents at midnight.
I hope this isn’t weird for you, but that photo of hands rolling out tortilla rounds makes me think of, not a specific family member, but somehow all of my aunties and nanas and my mama all at once. 🙂 thank you!
My mom use to make a dessert called “campachanas”. I have a recipe for them but they are not coming out the way I remember them. She would roll them out with a thin rolling pin, then roll them around the rolling pin, then push them off the rolling pin and do it again. She would do this maybe 3 or 4 times. The last time she did it she would not roll then out but would put them on a greased cookie sheet to bake. I try it but it never turns out correct. Hers would be flaky. Mine are not flaky but they do taste good, but not like I remember hers. Do you have a recipe for campachanas, that you could share?
Hi Marion!
I wish I did — you are making my mouth water. My friend Pati does on her site. Her recipes are always right on! Keep me posted: https://patijinich.com/recipe/campechanas/
I was going to make Bunuelos this year and thought I’d use the pre-made tortilla mix and just follow the recipe on the package, but when I found your website and recipes, I knew I had it in me to try and make them from scratch! I shared them with my friends and family, so glad I did! It made all the difference in the world, and even though I lost my Mom and Aunts many years ago, the memories came flooding back as I rolled the first Bunuelos they looked more like UFO’s but as I got about half way through, they were becoming more like the ones of my childhood! Thank you for your recipe!
Thanks for sharing. Mom is 94 years old and she forgets which ingredients to use 🙁
She still makes them once in awhile, but not like she use to. I’m keeping up tradition and now that I have a complete recipe, I think she will be happy that someone else can take over! Grandkids dig these!
Delicious! Next time will try them with a killer caramel sauce that a relative makes. Have had bunuelos at a local Mexican restaurant topped with melted vanilla ice cream. So heavenly.
This will be my 2nd or 3rd year using your recipe and let me tell you it is my favorite!!!!I grew up in Texas and have tried lots of variations of this recipe. My husband and his mother were stunned at how awesome they tasted and how much better they were than the ones his grand ma used to make. Thank you so much, the children are now learning this recipe and hopefully one day they will carry it on. God bless and Merry Christmas
How long do they stay fresh for? Especially when they have the cinnamon sugar sprinkled on them?
Hi Janette, I would say 2-3 days at the most. As long as they are stored at room temp covered or in a tightly sealed container. Feliz Navidad.
Just found your website after a web search. Great find, thank you! A happened to come across a box mix for “Bunuelos” in my small local market in Northern New Mexico and was shocked. I had thought that my childhood memories of “Bunuelos” (in Chula Vista, South of San Diego) were something I had mixed up. Now I know that they really do exist and I’ll quit frying up flour tortillas with the hope of something similar. I wish I had come across your site earlier. I’ll try the box mix for a practice run, as not to waste it and then make your recipe for the real deal. I can’t wait to check out the rest of your recipes.
What were your thoughts on using the tortilla press vs a rolling pin?
Thank you so much for sharing your memories, recipes and expertise!
Hi Heather,
So glad you found Muy Bueno too! As far as a tortilla press that only works for corn tortillas. With flour dough you have to use a rolling pin.
Hope that helps.