This Champurrado recipe is made with Mexican chocolate, masa harina, milk, water, cinnamon, and vanilla. Thick and creamy, this cozy drink is best enjoyed on a cold winter night during the holiday season.
This Champurrado recipe is warm and comforting, and sure to fill you up this winter season! Just like Mexican atole, champurrado is made with masa harina but has the fun addition of Mexican chocolate.
This chocolate-based atole is prepared with milk, Mexican chocolate, and cinnamon. Sweetened with a little piloncillo and vanilla extract, every sip is creamy, thick, and satisfying and will warm you up from the inside out!
Enjoy a mug of champurrado with some Mexican bunuelos for a festive dessert or some tamales for a filling meal!
What is Champurrado?
Champurrado is a warm Mexican drink made by heating milk, Mexican chocolate, piloncillo, and Mexican cinnamon together. It’s then thickened with a mixture of water and masa harina. When it’s ready, champurrado is smooth, thick, chocolatey, and creamy!
It’s a seasonal drink you can enjoy on a chilly evening, for breakfast, or around the holidays. Because of its thick texture, champurrado is filling, satisfying, and can be used as a nutritious meal replacement.
What’s the difference between atole and champurrado?
Champurrado is a type of atole that’s made with Mexican chocolate, whereas the basic atole recipe does not include chocolate.
Both atole and champurrado recipes are made with masa harina, piloncillo, vanilla extract, cinnamon, milk and water.
Ingredients you’ll need for champurrado
- Milk – I like using whole milk for the thickest and creamiest texture and flavor. You can use 2% or even almond milk if you prefer.
- Piloncillo – This whole cane sugar has an earthy and caramel-like taste and is a staple in Mexican baking. (Learn more about piloncillo.)
- Mexican chocolate – Mexican chocolate is a paste made from cacao nibs, sugar, and cinnamon. It has a rougher texture than milk chocolate and is usually not intended to be eaten on its own. My favorite brand is Abuelita, which you can usually find in grocery stores or ethnic markets. (Learn more about Mexican chocolate.)
- Masa harina – This Mexican staple and necessary ingredient when making corn tortillas or tamales is made from dried maize corn. You can usually find masa harina in large grocery stores or your local Hispanic store.
- Warm water – This is mixed with the masa harina to thicken the champurrado.
- Cinnamon stick, vanilla extract, and salt – For flavor!
How to make champurrado
- Heat the milk and chocolate mixture: Add the milk, piloncillo, Mexican chocolate, and cinnamon stick to a medium saucepan. Heat on the stove until the piloncillo and chocolate has dissolved. Remove and discard the cinnamon stick.
- Combine the water and masa harina: Whisk together warm water and masa harina until it’s a smooth mixture. Then add the masa harina mixture, vanilla extract, and salt to the saucepan and whisk to combine.
- Heat it up and serve: Bring it up to a simmer, then lower the heat. Cook and whisk until the champurrado is thick, creamy, and smooth. Pour a large mug full of the finished champurrado and top it with a touch of cinnamon!
Tips and Substitutions
- Don’t have piloncillo? You can use 2 tablespoons of dark brown sugar instead.
- Can’t find Mexican chocolate? Look for it in the Hispanic food aisle at. your local grocery store or go to a specialty Hispanic grocery store. If you still can’t find it, you can order it online here.
- Is your champurrado grainy? Put in some elbow grease and keep whisking! Get the smoothest champurrado possible by whisking it vigorously throughout the whole cooking process. You’ll want it velvety smooth for the best texture.
- Want to make it dairy free? Use almond milk instead of dairy milk.
- To make this completely vegan, use a vegan Mexican chocolate brand like Taza or Ibarra.
Storing and reheating
To store, keep the finished and cooled champurrado in the fridge for up to 4 days. The longer it sits, the thicker it will become.
To reheat, mix in a little more water or milk into the drink first. Give it a good stir, then heat it up in the microwave or on the stovetop.
More Mexican Recipes
Ingredients
- 4 cups milk
- 2 ounces piloncillo, plus more to taste
- 2 (3-ounce) discs Mexican chocolate (I used Abuelita brand)
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1 ½ cups warm water
- ½ cup masa harina
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 pinch salt
Instructions
- Add milk, piloncillo, Mexican chocolate, and cinnamon stick to a medium saucepan or pot. Heat over low-medium heat until the piloncillo and chocolate have completely dissolved. Stir frequently to make sure nothing sticks to the bottom of the saucepan.
- Remove and discard the cinnamon stick, using a strainer if it has broken into pieces.
- In a small bowl, add warm water and masa harina. Whisk together until the mixture is smooth.
- Add the masa harina mixture, vanilla extract, and salt to the saucepan. Whisk to combine.
- Bring to a simmer, reduce heat to low, and continue to cook, whisking frequently, for 25-30 minutes until thick, creamy, velvety, and smooth. The champurrado should be thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.
- Serve and garnish with a touch of ground cinnamon or a cinnamon stick.
Isabel’s Tips:
- Milk: Using whole milk is best since it provides a thicker and creamier texture and flavor, but you can use 2% if you prefer. You can also use almond milk to make it dairy free.
- Don’t have piloncillo? You can use 2 tablespoons of dark brown sugar instead.
- Don’t forget to whisk! Make sure to whisk vigorously throughout the whole process to help get the drink as smooth and velvety smooth as possible. The champurrado should be completely smooth and not grainy. If it’s still a little grainy, continue whisking until it becomes smooth.
Nutrition Information
I love Champurrado but I’m diabetic can I use a sugar substitute instead. ?
Hi Joe! Yes absolutely!
Can you make this the night before? Up to what point could I make it ahead?
Hi Anita! You can definitely make it the night before and reheat it over the stove the next day 🙂
Great recipe!!! Turned out perfect the first time too!!! and guess what? I like it right out of the fridge too!! Almost like a pudding 🙂
Excellent recipe, just like the champurrado I grew up with. Thank you!
Hi making it now, smells great. I do have a question though. When I mixed the masa harina with the warm water it turned lumpy, is there a trick to it?
Hi Angelique! It sounds like maybe it needed a little more mixing, or the water needed to be a little warmer to fully incorporate the masa.
Do you brown the masa as your mixing it with water ?
Hi Abby! For this recipe that isn’t necessary.
Delicious! I used a stick blender instead of a wisk for a smooth blend…sooooo good! Thank you!
I made it…. 😐 I think it was toooooo much masa it turned out horrible. Thanks
Hi Cindy. Thank you for the feedback. The great thing about cooking is that you can always adjust things to your liking. We hope you try our recipe again and maybe cut the amount of masa in half or to your preference. Thank you!
I’m making it right now, and it smells exactly like the kind my aunt makes. I hope it tastes good as it’s my first time making it.
Ah Isabel… This is so good. Thank you
My cousin, who is a gueya, got 2 5 lb bags of masa from Walmart because they gave her the wrong bags and wouldn’t take it back from her but anyways she asked me for some recipes using masa. I immediately thought of champurrado. Now after telling her about it I was craving it and am making it as we speak. I love your recipe because it’s close to mi abuelas. Thank you. I had everything I needed piloncillo, abuelita, masa. I’m using half evaporated milk and 1/2 whole. 🤤
Very delicious for the winter months
I love this champurrado recipe very easy and simple to make. I been wanting to make this for years but really never got a chance or the right recipe that was easy enough to make. It came out good, being the first time I made this. I been buying it in Mexican stores that have Mexican style drinks but the bad part about it is that it’s seasonal 😭. Now I am able to make it whenever I crave it 🤪. Thanks for sharing this easy and simple recipe can’t wait to try other recipes u have.
love love love
I will use your recipe of champurrado
I recently moved to a very rural part in a new state with no REAL Mexican food places. I have since been looking for a place to find good recipes and learning to cook more. I came across this page and LOVE how easy it is to follow!! I tried making champurrado for the first time ever this past Christmas and it was a huge hit!! I felt so awesome thank you for leaving such amazing, flavorful and easy to make, authentic recipes!!!
Tank you i will make.
I’m would like to know the receipe to make rom pope
Hi! Here is a link to Isabel’s Rompope recipe: https://www.isabeleats.com/rompope-mexican-eggnog/
Good, but not authentic. Milk was a latter day addition to champurrado. Prior to this, champurrado was made with water, chocolate (either Ibarra or Abuelita) and masa.
It’s easy to make “champurrado” with milk. It’s a lot harder to get the creaminess, richness using only water, chocolate, masa and heat.
Sorry but you sound like a hater. Nowhere did she actually claim it was “authentic”. BUT if you’re Mexican and know anything about our culture you know many places put their own twist on Mexican recipes throughout different regions. Many regions do make it with milk. It doesn’t not make less authentic than the next.
Yes, I was wondering why I never found the recipe. Thank you and my Tia made it with flour, too.
YES! TO YOUR COMMENT. SMELLS LIKE A HATER TO ME
As long as it’s delicious and she didn’t say it was ‘authentic’ doesn’t it deserve 5 stars? It’s pretty easy to just use water instead of milk. Happy cooking! 🙂
Who says it’s not authentic? My grandmother was Mexican, born and raised in Guanajuato, and always used milk in her Champurrado. Just like in some regions of Mexico, like Merida, black beans, and not pinto beans, are the staple. Every region of Mexico will have its own version of “authentic” food.
This just might be another family favorite!! Easy to make. I did make it vegan. Still tastes amazing!!