Authentic Mexican Buñuelos Recipe (Crispy Fritters)

Make traditional authentic Mexican buñuelos for the holidays! Crispy, golden-fried dough dusted with cinnamon sugar. A festive must-have!

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A stack of flat, crispy Mexican Bunuelos dusted with cinnamon-sugar sits on a wooden cutting board next to a rolling pin and a small bowl of cinnamon sugar on a light countertop.

This Mexican buñuelos recipe makes thin, crispy rounds of fried dough that are sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar while they’re still warm.

These traditional fritters, alongside warm pork tamales and champurrado, are a staple in Mexican households throughout the Christmas season, posadas, and New Year’s Eve.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe ❤️

Traditional Durango Recipe: This is the way my family has made buñuelos in Durango, Mexico, passed down to me by my mom.
Thin and Crispy: The dough is rolled thin and fried until golden and crisp.
Simple Ingredients: You only need basic pantry ingredients to make these homemade buñuelos.
Perfect for the Holidays: Serve them warm with cinnamon and sugar for Christmas, posadas, or New Year’s Eve.

-Maggie

📖 Family Story

I first published this recipe in 2017, when my mom came to visit me in San Diego. Like many traditional Mexican women, she wasn’t quick to give away her recipe secrets, so I was thrilled when she agreed to cook buñuelos with me, let me take pictures, and even record video.

Those are my mom’s hands making the buñuelos you see in this post. She taught me this recipe the way we make them in Durango, Mexico, and these old photos are now especially meaningful to me.

I’m grateful I have this recipe—and these memories—to pass down to my own family.

Ingredients

All-purpose flour
Baking powder
Shortening
Oil for frying
Warm water
Ground cinnamon
Granulated white sugar
Salt
Vanilla extract (Optional)
Star anise (Optional)

Four images show elderly hands mixing dough in a metal bowl, gradually combining flour and water to form a sticky dough mixture. A measuring cup is visible in one photo.

🥣 Instructions

Making the Dough

Add salt, sugar, and baking powder to a large mixing bowl.
Mix to combine the dry ingredients.
Add the wet ingredients – including enough water to make a dough.

The Secret to the Perfect Dough

🌟 My mother used to do all the mixing by hand because she’s old school. Use a mixer or food processor to make it easier. The flour mixture will be slightly crumbly.

🌟 Have you ever seen a Dutch Apple Pie or a cobbler with the crumbles on top? That’s exactly the consistency you are looking for. Then add the water.

🌟 Eyeball it. If you add too much water and the dough is too wet, add more flour until you get the right consistency. It’s flour power!

🌟 There is some kneading involved to make a smooth dough. This is where a good mixer comes in handy.

A person with wrinkled hands shapes dough with a wooden rolling pin on a floured surface.

Rolling out the Dough

Take a piece of the dough and form small dough balls.
Place on a lightly floured surface.
Each one should be about the size of a golf ball.
Roll it out using a rolling pin.

I’m rollin’… They hatin’ … Turn the dough as needed to roll it like a thin tortilla. Thin it to win it!

You want them to be the size of a flour tortilla. Think fajita-size flour tortillas.

Hands folding a piece of rolled dough on a wooden surface next to a floured rolling pin, with a metal bowl in the background.

See how my mom stretches the dough?
If a small hole forms, it’s ok. Just press it or pinch it back together.
They don’t have to be perfect circles. I’ve eaten plenty of them with holes. Ohhhh holy night… Lol.

Eleven pieces of round, rolled-out dough are laid out on a cloth-covered wooden surface, ready for baking or cooking.

Once you’re done rolling out the dough, lay them on a kitchen towel.
Cover them with another kitchen towel while they rest and await their turn to jump in the hot oil.
Heat the oil.

I recommend either canola oil or vegetable oil. Olive oil and coconut oil are not good for frying. You could use avocado oil which has a higher heat point, but you’re also going to pay a higher price.

Four photos show dough frying in a pan, being checked with a fork, then topped with cinnamon sugar, becoming a golden, crispy fried pastry on a paper towel.

Frying Bunuelos

See how much vegetable oil I used? I used only about an inch of oil.
No joke. You gotta poke. Use a fork, and poke it several times while it’s frying.
Be very careful. The oil is very hot.
After you finish frying, place the buñuelo on a paper towel to drain slightly.
Mix cinnamon and sugar. Sprinkle the top of the bunuelo.
Flip it and sprinkle the back with the cinnamon-sugar mixture.

Oily to bed, oily to rise. I refilled the frying pan twice to get through all of the frying.

👩🏼‍🍳 Pro Tips

If you don’t poke the dough, the center will inflate and not cook.
You don’t want to drain all the excess oil. The oil will help the cinnamon and sugar mixture stick to the fried tortilla.
Sprinkle while the fried dough is still warm. If you sprinkle when it’s cold, the cinnamon and sugar will not stick to the fritter as easily.
If you burn the buñuelo while frying, you need to start all over again. Dump the oil. Wash the pan. Or, all the other buñuelos will taste like burnt oil.

✂️ Shortcuts

In Mexico, there are tortillerías (or stores where they sell tortillas) that sell the dough for buñuelos. You just have to go home and fry the dough.
In the US, you can use regular flour tortillas or uncooked flour tortillas and fry them. However, the dough in this bunuelos recipe is sweeter than regular flour tortillas.

🙋🏻‍♀️ Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between a sopapilla and a buñuelo?

Buñuelos and sopapillas differ in shape, texture, and preparation. Mexican buñuelos are typically thin and crispy, while sopapillas are usually thicker, puff up when fried, and have a hollow center.

Are buñuelos like churros?

While both are popular fried dough desserts in Mexican cuisine, they differ in shape and texture. Churros are piped through a star-shaped nozzle and often have a ridged surface, while buñuelos are usually flat and thin. Both are deliciously crispy and often served with a dusting of sugar or a sweet dipping sauce.

What are the different types of buñuelos in Mexico?

Mexican buñuelos vary by region and family. Two well-known types are buñuelos de rodilla, which are made from dough that is rolled very thin and fried, and buñuelos de viento, which are made from a batter and shaped with a rosette mold. This recipe is for the thin, crispy style made with dough.

A stack of round, golden-brown fried apple pies coated in cinnamon sugar sits on a wooden surface next to a small rolling pin, reminiscent of the classic Mexican Bunuelos with their crisp texture and sweet, spiced finish.

🎄 More Mexican Christmas Recipes

These traditional Mexican buñuelos are more than just a sweet holiday treat—they are a piece of family history, heritage, and love passed down through generations. Whether you’re making them for a cozy December night or a festive posada gathering, biting into one warm, crispy, cinnamon-sugar-coated piece is pure magic.

¡Buen provecho!