Chocolate con churros

Spain's quintessential breakfast pairing: thick, almost spoonable hot chocolate served alongside fried dough churros for dipping

Origin: Madrid, Spain

From the journey of Cocoa.

When Hernán Cortés returned from the Aztec Empire in the 1520s, the bitter cacao drink he brought back was transformed almost immediately by the Spanish court. Sweetened with sugar, warmed (a European modification), and thickened into something between a drink and a sauce, the Spanish hot chocolate became a closely guarded aristocratic secret for nearly a century before spreading to the rest of Europe. By the 17th century, Madrid's chocolate houses (chocolaterías) had become the intellectual gathering places of their era, rivalling coffee houses in London and Paris. The pairing with churros (fritter-like fried dough said to have been brought to Spain by Portuguese sailors who adapted a Chinese youtiao) created an inseparable culinary duo. Today chocolate con churros is synonymous with Sunday mornings, late-night hunger after a night out, and the Chocolatería San Ginés in Madrid, open since 1894 and still busy at 4am every night of the week.

Ingredients

chocolate

500 ml whole milk
100 g dark chocolate (70% cocoa), finely chopped
2 tbsp Dutch-process cocoa powder
2 tbsp cornflour (cornstarch)
3 tbsp caster sugar
0.25 tsp ground cinnamon

churros

250 ml water
0.5 tsp salt
0.5 tsp caster sugar
150 g plain flour
1 litre sunflower oil, for deep frying
2 tbsp caster sugar mixed with 1 tsp cinnamon, for dusting

Method

Make the chocolate: whisk together the cocoa powder and cornflour with 4 tbsp of the cold milk until a smooth paste forms with no lumps.
Heat the remaining milk with the sugar and cinnamon in a saucepan over medium heat until steaming. Add the chopped dark chocolate and whisk until fully melted.
Add the cocoa-cornflour paste to the hot milk mixture, whisking constantly. Cook over medium heat, stirring continuously, until the chocolate thickens dramatically: about 3–4 minutes. It should coat a spoon thickly. Remove from heat and cover to keep warm.
Make the churros: bring the water, salt, and sugar to a full boil. Remove from heat, add the flour all at once, and beat vigorously with a wooden spoon until a smooth, thick dough pulls away from the sides of the pan.
Transfer the dough to a piping bag fitted with a large star nozzle (1 cm / ½ inch). Heat the oil to 180°C (350°F) in a deep pan.
Pipe 15 cm (6 inch) lengths of dough directly into the hot oil, cutting with scissors. Fry in batches for 3–4 minutes, turning halfway, until deep golden and crisp. Do not crowd the pan.
Drain on kitchen paper, then immediately toss in cinnamon sugar. Serve with the hot thick chocolate for dipping.

Notes

The chocolate will continue to thicken as it cools. If serving later, reheat gently over low heat with a splash of milk, whisking. Churros are best eaten immediately, within 5 minutes of frying. In Spain they are often made as simple loops (porras) or loops, either form is authentic.

The Gastrographer

Name: Chocolate con churros
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 35 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Spain
Ingredients: 500 ml whole milk; 100 g dark chocolate (70% cocoa), finely chopped; 2 tbsp Dutch-process cocoa powder; 2 tbsp cornflour (cornstarch); 3 tbsp caster sugar; 0.25 tsp ground cinnamon; 250 ml water; 0.5 tsp salt; 0.5 tsp caster sugar; 150 g plain flour; 1 litre sunflower oil, for deep frying; 2 tbsp caster sugar mixed with 1 tsp cinnamon, for dusting

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Journey Point Map Key

Ingredient originTrade or transit route

Became a culinary stapleColonial / trade control