How to Make Gluten-Free Churros from Scratch

Get ready to enjoy a gluten-free churro that is golden brown and crunchy on the outside and soft and doughy on the inside. My recipe will take you back to your childhood and help you forget that you must eat gluten-free. This post contains affiliate links. Please see my disclosures.

Churros are a type of fried dough pastry originally from Spain and Portugal. They’re typically long and thin, with a ridged texture from piping through a star-shaped nozzle before frying.

Churros are served hot and coated with sugar and cinnamon. Sometimes they’re served with a delicious chocolate dipping sauce.

For the gluten-free community, churros are almost always off-limits. They’re made with wheat flour, and wheat contains gluten, making the delicious pastry a no-go for anyone following a strict gluten-free diet.

If you feel like you’re missing out on this popular carnival food and you’re feeling ambitious enough to try your hand at making them, my simple gluten-free churro recipe will help you.

Trust me, once you get the hang of making a simple choux pastry dough at home, you can enjoy churros and cream puffs (both require gluten-free choux pastry) any time you like.

How to Make Gluten-Free Churros

To make gluten-free churros at home, you’ll first need to create the dough known as a choux pastry. Don’t worry, the dough has a fancy name, but it’s easy to make and requires just a few simple ingredients: Butter, water, salt, flour, and eggs.

Start by adding the butter, water, and salt to a boil in a small pot over medium-high heat.

Once the mixture boils, remove the pot from the heat and immediately stir in the gluten-free flour, working quickly to avoid large lumps. The dough will pull away from the sides of the pan and appear gummy.

I used Bob’s Red Mill 1-to-1 Gluten-Free Flour for this recipe, which worked well. Other 1-to-1 flours may work (you’ll have to experiment to know for sure). I also include a basic recipe for a 1-to-1 gluten-free blend that works well. You can find it in the recipe card below.

Allow the mixture to cool for at least 10 minutes before moving to the next step.

While waiting for the dough to cool, you can prepare the sugar-cinnamon mixture by whisking the sugar and cinnamon together in a small bowl. Set it aside for later.

After the dough has cooled for at least 10 minutes, transfer it to a medium-large bowl. Add the eggs, one at a time, and beat until smooth using a hand-held or standing electric mixer.

Scoop the gluten-free pate choux dough into a piping bag with a star tip. Set it aside.

Now it’s time to fry the churros in oil.

Heat a heavy-bottomed wide pan over medium-high heat and fill it with 1-2 inches of oil for frying. I used avocado oil, but you could use any vegetable oil of your choice.

When the oil reaches about 360°F, or when a small drop of dough bubbles when added to the oil and quickly floats to the top, pipe the gluten-free churro dough directly into the hot oil in about 6-inch pieces. Cut the dough with a pair of scissors.

Be careful not to burn yourself; the oil may splatter when you add the dough. Depending on the size of the pan and the length of each churro, you can fry 3-6 churros at a time.

Fry the churros on each side for 2-3 minutes until they turn golden brown.

Use tongs to remove the churros from the oil and place them on a cooling rack over a baking sheet to drain or on a plate covered with a paper towel. After the churros cool for about one minute, roll each churro in the cinnamon-sugar mixture.

The churros taste best when served immediately and hot! See notes for making a chocolate ganache dipping sauce.

FAQs, Substitutions, and Notes

Dairy-Free:  Instead of butter, use a dairy-free or vegan substitute, like Earth Balance, Melt, or Plant Butter. You can also use palm shortening or canola oil to make soy-free churros.

About the Flour:  I used Bob’s Red Mill 1-to-1 Gluten-Free Flour. If you’re using another flour blend, results may vary. Be sure your flour blend contains xanthan gum, or add ¾ teaspoon of it to the flour before adding it to the boiling water.

In addition to Bob’s Red Mill’s 1-to-1 Gluten-Free Flour, this recipe has been tested with the following flour blend:

• ½ cup rice flour
• ¼ cup tapioca starch
• ¼ cup potato starch
• ¾ tsp xanthan gum

Chocolate Ganache: To make a chocolate ganache for dipping, combine ½ cup of chocolate chips with 2-3 tablespoons of heavy whipping cream in a microwave-safe bowl. Heat in the microwave in 30-second intervals until the mixture is melted, mixing between each interval. Enjoy!

More Recipes

Try these delicious gluten-free recipes, too:

• Classic Gluten-Free Cream Puffs
• Copycat Gluten-Free Krispy Kreme Donuts
• Gluten-Free Pop-Tarts – Homemade
• Gluten-Free Strawberry Shortcake – Easy and Delic!
• Gluten-Free Cosmic Brownies