These air fryer churros are one of my favorite treats to make at home. They come out golden and crispy on the outside, soft on the inside, and coated in cinnamon sugar.
The best part is that you don’t need to deep fry anything. The air fryer does all the work, and you still get that perfect crunch without all the oil.
The dough comes together really fast on the stovetop with just a few basic ingredients – flour, butter, eggs, water, and a little sugar. Nothing fancy at all.
Once you pipe the dough into churro shapes and air fry them for a few minutes, you roll them in cinnamon sugar while they’re still warm. That’s honestly the best part.
If you’ve been looking for a simple dessert that feels a little special but doesn’t take much effort, these are it. Let me show you how to make them.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Great for Beginners – If you’ve never made choux dough before, this is a really forgiving recipe to start with. The steps are straightforward and you only need basic kitchen tools to get it done.
Simple Pantry Ingredients – Flour, eggs, butter, sugar, and cinnamon are probably already sitting in your kitchen right now. You don’t need to hunt down any specialty items to make a batch of these churros.
Way Less Oil Than Traditional Churros – Classic churros are deep fried in oil, but this air fryer version just needs a quick spritz of cooking spray. You still get that satisfying crunch without all the extra grease.
Perfect Cinnamon Sugar Coating – That warm cinnamon sugar mix clinging to the outside of each churro is honestly the best part. Every single bite is sweet, cinnamony, and absolutely addictive.
Ingredients
- 1 cup Water
- 1/4 cup Butter
- 2 tbsp Sugar
- 1/4 tsp Salt
- 1 cup All-Purpose Flour
- 2 Large Eggs
- 1/2 cup Sugar for coating
- 1 tbsp Cinnamon
- Cooking Spray
How to Make
Step 1
In a saucepan, bring water, butter, 2 tablespoons sugar, and salt to a boil. Remove from heat and stir in flour until a ball forms. Let cool for 5 minutes, then beat in eggs one at a time until smooth.
Step 2
Transfer dough to a piping bag fitted with a large star tip. Pipe 4-5 inch strips onto parchment paper cut to fit your air fryer basket.
Step 3
Spray churros generously with cooking spray on all sides. Carefully transfer parchment with churros to air fryer basket.
Step 4
Air fry at 375°F for 10-12 minutes until golden brown and crispy, flipping halfway through.
Step 5
Mix 1/2 cup sugar with cinnamon in a shallow dish. While churros are still warm, roll them in cinnamon sugar mixture until fully coated. Serve immediately.
Tips
Let the Dough Cool Before Adding Eggs
After you stir the flour in and get that dough ball, you really need to wait the full 5 minutes before adding your eggs. If the dough is too hot, the eggs will start to cook the second they touch it and you will end up with scrambled egg chunks in your churro dough.
You want the dough to be warm but not hot. If you touch the side of the saucepan and it is still too hot to keep your hand there, give it another minute or two.
Once it has cooled enough, add the first egg and stir it in completely before adding the second one. It will look like a slimy mess at first, but keep stirring and it will come together into a smooth, thick dough.
Use a Star Tip, Not a Round One
The star-shaped piping tip is what gives churros those classic ridges on the outside. Those ridges are not just for looks. They create more surface area, which means more crispy edges and more spots for the cinnamon sugar to stick to.
If you use a round tip or try to just squeeze the dough out of a bag with the corner cut off, you will get something that looks more like a plain stick. It will not crisp up the same way and the coating will not hold as well.
A large open star tip works best here. Something like a Wilton 1M or 8B is perfect for getting that traditional churro shape.
Pipe Onto Parchment Paper First
Do not try to pipe the dough directly into the air fryer basket. The dough is sticky and thick, so you need both hands on that piping bag to control it. Piping onto parchment paper on your counter gives you way more control over the shape and length of each churro.
Cut the parchment paper to fit your air fryer basket before you start piping. That way you can just lift the whole sheet and place it right in without touching the churros and messing up their shape.
Leave about an inch of space between each churro on the parchment so they do not stick together as they puff up during cooking.
Related Recipes
- Air Fryer Cinnamon Sugar Donut Cakes
- Air Fryer Molten Chocolate Lava Cakes
- Air Fryer Birthday Cake Mug Cakes
- Air Fryer Lemon Blueberry Mini Cakes
- Air Fryer Pizza Dough Knots with Garlic Butter
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I keep the churros from sticking to the air fryer basket?
Give the air fryer basket a good spray with cooking spray before placing the churros in. This is really important because the dough is sticky and will cling to the basket without it.
You can also line the basket with a small piece of parchment paper that has holes in it, which works great for easy cleanup too.
Air Fryer Churros
- piping bag with star tip
- air fryer
- 1 cup Water
- 1/4 cup Butter
- 2 tbsp Sugar
- 1/4 tsp Salt
- 1 cup All-Purpose Flour
- 2 Large Eggs
- 1/2 cup Sugar for coating
- 1 tbsp Cinnamon
- Cooking Spray
- In a saucepan, bring water, butter, 2 tablespoons sugar, and salt to a boil. Remove from heat and stir in flour until a ball forms. Let cool for 5 minutes, then beat in eggs one at a time until smooth.
- Transfer dough to a piping bag fitted with a large star tip. Pipe 4-5 inch strips onto parchment paper cut to fit your air fryer basket.
- Spray churros generously with cooking spray on all sides. Carefully transfer parchment with churros to air fryer basket.
- Air fry at 375°F for 10-12 minutes until golden brown and crispy, flipping halfway through.
- Mix 1/2 cup sugar with cinnamon in a shallow dish. While churros are still warm, roll them in cinnamon sugar mixture until fully coated. Serve immediately.