Buñuelos de Viento are Mexican fritters super crispy that practically melt in your mouth! Those sweet treats are perfect to enjoy with hot chocolate and they make the perfect holiday gift for family and friends.
Buñuelos de Viento are rosette-shaped fritters made of a light batter, fried until crispy, and then coated with cinnamon and sugar. They are popular in Mexican and other Latin-American countries.
Even though you probably heard about buñuelos before and have seen them with the regular tortilla shape, buñuelos de viento are recognizable because of their cute and flower-like shape.
Usually, these sweet treats are served in December during the Posadas using also other shapes like stars, snowflakes, hearts, etc. They surely make a wonderful gift for the holidays or to enjoy at home with a cup of Mexican hot chocolate!
Ingredients
- Flour: Use all-purpose flour.
- Eggs: I used 2 medium eggs, if you use large eggs you will need to add less water.
- Milk: Use whole milk.
- Water: To make the batter.
- Butter: You will need unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled.
- Sugar: Granulated white sugar.
- Baking powder: Just a little bit for adding an airy texture to the fritters.
- Vanilla: For flavor, use vanilla extract or paste.
- Salt: Just a pinch
For coating:
- Sugar: Use regular granulated sugar or brown sugar for a deeper taste.
- Cinnamon: Use powdered cinnamon, you can also find it as canela en polvo in Mexican supermarkets.
How To Make Buñuelos de Viento
Before starting, prepare the following:
- A wire rack over a baking sheet or a plate lined with paper towels.
- A mixture of sugar + cinnamon powder on a plate. Or a strainer with confectioner’s sugar for dusting.
- A plate with 2-3 paper towels to clean the excess oil from the mold.
Add flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt in a large mixing bowl. Using a balloon whisk, mix the dry ingredients.
Make a well in the center of the flour and add eggs, water, melted butter, and vanilla extract. Mix to combine.
Now, add the milk while mixing slowly until you’ll have a runny and smooth batter with no lumps left.
Heat about 1-inch of frying oil in a pan over medium heat.
First, dip the rosette mold into the hot oil for half a minute to heat it up. Lift it and shake it a bit, then place it on the paper-lined plate to absorb excess oil.
Now submerge the mold into the batter but do not allow the mixture to go over the mold, make sure is immersed right to the top border.
Lift the mold and quickly dip it into the hot oil. Keep it in the oil for about 10 seconds, then gently shake it so the fried buñuelo will slowly release.
Tip: If needed, use a fork to help to detach the buñuelo from the mold.
Repeat the steps to make 2 more buñuelos and fry them until nicely golden brown, flipping them once or twice.
Remove from the oil with a slotted spoon and place over the rack with the hollow side down.
Allow to slightly cool down and then carefully coat with the sugar and cinnamon mixture or dust them with the confectioner’s sugar (read notes).
Repeat the steps until you use all the batter adding more oil if needed. As you practice, you’ll see it will be easier to make 4-5 at a time.
Tips & Recipe Notes
- For nicely and evenly fries buñuelos de viento, always keep an eye on the oil temperature. Too hot oil will burn the batter in seconds, too cold will make them absorb too much oil.
- Make sure you use a flat container to place the batter, if you use a rounded bottom bowl it will be more complicated to dip the mold into the mixture.
- Do not fully immerse the iron mold into the batter or it will create a seal as you dip it into the hot oil, making it almost impossible for the buñuelo to fall off.
- To speed up the cooking, make sure you always place the mold back into the hot oil while finishing frying the bunuelos.
- The sugar and cinnamon mixture sticks even if the fritters are slightly cold because of the oil. But, if you want to powder them with confectioner’s sugar, make sure they’re at room temperature or the sugar will melt.
- Do the coating with care as the fritters are delicate and fragile.
How To Serve
To follow the tradition of posadas, in Mexico buñuelos de viento are usually served for la merienda with a cup of hot chocolate, champurrado, or atole. Is surely a festive way of eating them!
But, since they are also found all year round in food markets and fairs, you can eat them as a regular snack any time of the day.
You can choose various ways for serving them, for example, simple as they are, dredging them in granulated sugar, or dusted with confectioner’s sugar.
Also, you can use them as a topping for ice cream, pies, or cakes. When we talk about those buñuelos de viento, think of a churro, which you can serve in many ways.
How To Store And Reheat
For storing buñuelos de viento leftovers, first line an airtight container with kitchen paper towels, place the fritters and store them at room temperature for up to 4 days.
If they are not dusted or coated with sugar you can reheat them in the preheated oven at 250°F/125°C for 2 minutes until warm and crisp again.
But honestly, you don’t need to reheat them, there’s just something yummy and comforting about eating a leftover buñuelo whenever you want!
More Mexican Sweets
Video
Buñuelos de Viento (Mexican fritters)
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup milk
- 2 Tbsp butter (melted)
- 2 Tbsp granulated sugar
- 2 medium eggs
- ¼ cup water
- ½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- ¼ tsp salt
- oil for frying (as needed)
For coating
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- confectioner's sugar (optional)
Instructions
- Mix flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt in a large mixing bowl.
- Add eggs, water, melted butter, and vanilla extract. Mix to combine.
- Add the milk while mixing to combine all ingredients together until you’ll have a runny and smooth batter with no lumps.
- Heat about 1-inch of frying oil in a pan over medium heat.
- Dip the rosette mold into the hot oil for half a minute to heat it up. Lift it and shake it a bit, then place it on the paper-lined plate to absorb excess oil.
- Submerge the mold into the batter but do not allow the mixture to go over the mold, make sure is immersed just to the top border.
- Lift the mold and quickly dip it into the hot oil. Keep it in the oil for about 10 seconds, then gently shake it so the fried buñuelo will release.
- Repeat the steps to make 2 more buñuelos and fry them until nicely gold, flipping them once or twice.
- Remove from the oil with a slotted spoon and place over a wire rack with the hollow side down.
- Repeat the steps until you use all the batter.
- Coat buñuelos with the sugar and cinnamon mixture or dust them with the confectioner’s sugar (read notes) and enjoy.
Notes
- For nicely and evenly golden fritters, always keep an eye on the oil temperature. Too hot oil will burn the batter in seconds, too cold will make them absorb too much oil.
- Use a flat container to place the batter, if you use a rounded bottom bowl it will be more complicated to dip the mold into the mixture.
- Do not fully immerse the iron mold into the batter or it will create a seal as you dip it into the hot oil, making it almost impossible for the buñuelo to fall off.
- To speed up the cooking, make sure you always place the mold back into the hot oil while finishing frying the bunuelos.
- The sugar and cinnamon mixture sticks even if the fritters are slightly cold because of the oil. But, if you want to powder them with confectioner’s sugar, make sure they’re at room temperature or the sugar will melt.
- Do the coating with care as the fritters are delicate and fragile.
Nutrition Information
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I made the recipe yesterday as I had all ingredients at home. I must say those are the crispier and most delicious buñuelos de viento I’ve ever had.
They are super simple to make, the steps are easily understandable even for people like me (I am not too good at cooking lol), and they taste AMAZING!
I had a bit of trouble at the start as they burned out quickly :s but I knew it was because the oil was too hot, buñuelos were literally cooking as soon as I placed the mold into the oil but they would be a little raw in the hollows.
So people, just keep an eye on the oil temperature, really, that’s the key! As soon as I got the right oil temperature, my buñuelos were perfect! I actually had to refrain from eating them straight from the oil lol
Thank you so much for this wonderful recipe and the photos…I’m in love, I pinned them all haha they’re just gorgeous!