Vegan Gluten-Free Churros

📘 What are Churros

A churro is a popular Spanish and Portuguese sweet snack that consists of a pastry dough piped into a cylinder shape, and fried until golden brown and crispy. It is usually coated in sugar or cinnamon sugar, and may be served with a chocolate dipping sauce.

🥣 How to Make Vegan Churros

You are just 8 ingredients and 20 minutes away from delicious vegan churros! Here are the ingredients you will need:

• Brown and white rice flour - To keep these churros gluten-free, we will be using a combination of brown rice flour and white rice flour. After testing, I noticed that churros made using only white rice flour tend to be very custardy. While using only brown rice flour, the churros are crispier but do not have much dough on the inside. The combination of both gives the perfect texture!
• Cornstarch - For texture and to prevent the churros from crumbling.
• Baking powder - Just a pinch, for a slightly lighter texture.
• Unsweetened almond milk - Or your favorite plant-based milk.
• Coconut sugar - To slightly sweeten the dough and help the churros brown. You can use regular sugar as well.
• Oil - Or vegan butter, if you want a more buttery flavor. I tried both and the version using butter had a slightly superior taste.
• Flavorings - Optional, for extra flavor, you can add vanilla extract or orange blossom water to the dough.

Preparing the dough is incredibly easy: add all of the dry ingredients to a bowl and whisk to combine.

Next, heat the almond milk, coconut sugar, oil, and vanilla extract in a saucepan, and bring to a boil. As soon as it comes to a boil, remove from heat and pour it into the dry ingredients. Mix using a wooden spoon until it forms a very thick dough.

Transfer the dough to a churro maker and pipe 4-inch long churros on parchment paper.

Check out the Tips below to learn more on why I recommend piping on parchment paper instead of piping directly into the oil.

Finally, deep-fry the churros in hot oil until golden brown and roll them in sugar!

🍫 Chocolate Dipping Sauce

Now, if you want to do things properly, serving these churros with a chocolate dipping sauce is mandatory. Hey, chocolate always makes things better, right?

To make the chocolate dipping sauce:

• Add 1 cup (about 150g) of finely chopped dark chocolate to a bowl.
• Heat ⅔ cup (160ml) of unsweetened almond milk in a saucepan over medium heat. Remove from heat just before it comes to a boil and pour it over the chopped dark chocolate.
• Let it sit for 1 minute and stir until all of the chocolate has melted and is fully combined with the milk.
• Let cool for a few minutes and serve with the churros!

💬 FAQ

• Can I make these churros with all-purpose flour? Yes! If you prefer to make churros using all-purpose flour, the instructions are exactly the same. Simply replace the brown rice flour, white rice flour, and cornstarch, with 1 cup of all-purpose flour.
• How long can I keep churros? Churros are best served warm, immediately after frying.

📔 Tips

• Pipe the churros on parchment paper: Instead of piping the churros directly into the oil, I highly recommend piping them on small rectangles of parchment paper. Once done, transfer the churros AND the parchment paper to the hot oil. It will prevent the churros from sticking to the bottom of the pan. Don't worry, the parchment paper won't burn or disintegrate.
• The oil should be hot enough otherwise your churros will be pale and won't puff as much. You can test the temperature of the oil by dipping a wooden spatula or chopstick. If you see bubbles and foam forming around the spatula, the oil is hot enough.
• For a twist on regular churros: Replace the oil in the dough with toasted sesame oil, and coat the churros in powdered peanuts combined with sugar. It yields super nutty churros with a subtle toasty flavor! A favorite here!

🧁 More Delicious Plant-Based Sweets

• Bánh Tiêu (Vietnamese Donuts)
• Maple Cinnamon Popcorn
• Cinnamon Bun Cookie Dough Bites

Let me know in the comments if you try this recipe!