Deep-fried sopapillas have crisp edges with soft and tender centers and are coated in sweet cinnamon sugar or powdered sugar. Served with a drizzle of sweet honey, these are an easy Mexican dessert you’ll crave again and again!
Why You’ll Love This Sopapilla Recipe
Everyone will love that these Mexican sopapillas are ready in less than an hour.
- Quick: Aside from the 20-minute resting time, you only need 10 minutes of prep time and another 10 minutes for frying.
- Soft & Crisp: Sopapillas are an addictive fried dough with crisp edges and soft, fluffy and tender centers that everyone will love biting into.
- Simple: Made with simple pantry staple ingredients that you probably already have on hand, these are a simple Mexican treat you will find yourself making again and again.
- Addictive: With a drizzle of honey on top, we dare you to try to have just one sopapilla!
If you love sopapillas, make sure to also check out my easy sopapilla cheesecake bars and these festive fried buñuelos de viento.
What Are Mexican Sopapillas?
Sopapillas are northern Mexican deep-fried treats made with a simple dough. Once puffy, they’re dusted with powdered sugar or rolled in cinnamon sugar. Their texture is a cross between crispy buñuelos and bouncy beignets. They’re typically served for breakfast or dessert with a cup of coffee or café de olla.
Recipe Ingredients
There’s nothing on this list you probably don’t already have on hand! For full ingredient amounts and directions, scroll to the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post.
- All-Purpose Flour: Don’t use bread flour, the extra protein will make the dough tough.
- Baking Powder: Please don’t use baking soda.
- Granulated Sugar: Feel free to use light brown or dark brown sugar.
- Salt
- Unsalted Butter: If you use salted butter, skip the salt in the rest of the recipe.
- Water
- Oil: You can use vegetable, corn, or canola oil for this. No olive oil.
For Serving
- Sugar: You can dust them with powdered sugar or a cinnamon-sugar mixture.
- Honey: Raw honey, agave syrup, and maple syrup are perfect. You can also enjoy them with a drizzle of dulce de leche, chocolate sauce or salted caramel sauce.
How to Make Sopapillas
Mix the wet and dry ingredients, knead, rest, and fry. It’s easy! Check the recipe card at the bottom of the post for more detailed instructions.
- Dry ingredients: Whisk the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar in a bowl until well combined.
- Wet ingredients: Stir in the butter until well combined. Make a well in the center and pour in the hot water, working it in little by little.
- Knead: Use your hands to form a ball of dough and knead until smooth.
- Rest: Place the dough in a bowl and cover it. Let dough rest for 20 minutes.
- Cut The Dough: Heat the oil in a pot. Roll out the dough into a long rectangle. Cut into about 16 squares.
- Fry: Drop 2-3 squares into the oil, making sure they don’t touch as they fry. Cook until golden brown on all sides.
- Serve: Remove the sopapillas from the oil and set them on a paper towel-lined plate. Roll them in cinnamon sugar or dust with powdered sugar and enjoy.
Tips for Success
Here you’ll find the secrets to guarantee success:
- Hot Water: You need to use hot water for the dough, otherwise the fat won’t distribute evenly. It also helps the flour hydrate faster and makes a better dough.
- Make Cinnamon Sugar: Combine ⅓ cup granulated sugar and 2 teaspoons cinnamon until well combined. You can add less cinnamon if you don’t like it so cinnamon-y. Sprinkle it on your freshly made treats.
- Test The Oil: Dip a piece of the dough into the oil and wait until it begins to sizzle to start frying. If it’s too cold, the sopapillas will be soggy and greasy. If it’s too hot, they’ll burn around the edges and turn out raw in the center. I highly recommend using a clip-on thermometer to ensure your oil stays around 375°F for best results!
- Don’t Crowd: Do not try to fry too many sopapillas at once. If you do, they will not cook evenly and the oil will cool down quickly, leaving you with soggy, undercooked sopapillas.
Proper Storage
Like most fried foods, these sopapillas are best eaten fresh. However, leftovers can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. You can also refrigerate them for up to 5 days.
Reheat leftover sopapillas in the oven at 350°F for 10 minutes, or in an air fryer at 375°F for 2 to 3 minutes, until crispy.
More Mexican Dessert Recipes To Try
- Mazapan Candy
- Cocadas (Mexican Coconut Candy)
- Queso Flan
- Capirotada (Mexican Bread Pudding)
- Arroz con Leche
- Homemade Churros
Yield: 16 sopapillas
Sopapillas
These soft and puffy sopapillas are deep-fried until golden, sprinkled with sugar, and drizzled with honey for an extra sweet authentic Mexican treat.
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- ¾ cup hot water
- Oil, for frying
Optional For Serving:
- Powdered sugar
- Cinnamon sugar
- Honey
Instructions
- In a medium sized bowl, whisk to combine the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar together. Stir in the butter until well combined.
- Make a well in the center and pour in the hot water little by little, working it in with your hands until a ball forms. Knead the dough for 4 to 5 minutes, until it forms a smooth, elastic dough.
- Place the dough ball back into the bowl and cover. Allow dough to rest for 20 minutes.
- Heat the oil to 375°F.
- While the oil is heating, roll the dough out into a long rectangular shape. Cut into squares. I prefer 16 smaller squares, but you can make 8 larger squares.
- Carefully add 2 or 3 dough pieces to the hot oil, making sure they don’t touch while they fry. Fry for 2 to 3 minutes, then turn them over and let them cook for another 2 minutes, until golden brown.
- Use a slotted spatula to remove the sopapillas from the hot oil and place on a paper towel-lined plate. Keep warm until you finish frying the remaining sopapillas.
- Roll the sopapillas in cinnamon sugar, or dust with powdered sugar, and serve with a drizzle of honey.
Notes
Storage: Sopapillas are best eaten fresh. However, leftovers can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. You can also refrigerate them for up to 5 days. Reheat leftover sopapillas in the oven at 350°F for 10 minutes, or in an air fryer at 375°F for 2 to 3 minutes, until crispy.
Hot Water: You need to use hot water for the dough, otherwise the fat won’t distribute evenly. It also helps the flour hydrate faster and makes a better dough.
Make Cinnamon Sugar: Combine ⅓ cup granulated sugar and 2 teaspoons cinnamon until well combined. You can add less cinnamon if you don’t like it so cinnamon-y. Sprinkle it on your freshly made treats.
Test The Oil: Dip a piece of the dough into the oil and wait until it begins to sizzle to start frying. If it’s too cold, the sopapillas will be soggy and greasy. If it’s too hot, they’ll burn around the edges and turn out raw in the center. I highly recommend using a clip-on thermometer to ensure your oil stays around 375°F for best results!
Don’t Crowd: Do not try to fry too many sopapillas at once. If you do, they will not cook evenly and the oil will cool down quickly, leaving you with soggy, undercooked sopapillas.
Nutrition
Serving: 16, Calories: 71kcal, Carbohydrates: 12g, Protein: 2g, Fat: 2g, Saturated Fat: 1g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 0.4g, Trans Fat: 0.1g, Cholesterol: 4mg, Sodium: 113mg, Potassium: 17mg, Fiber: 0.4g, Sugar: 0.3g, Vitamin A: 44IU, Calcium: 25mg, Iron: 1mg
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