This Homemade Sopapilla Recipe is one of our favorite desserts to make as a family. Warm fried dough with melted butter, honey and powdered sugar? Yes please! If you’re wondering how to make sopapillas this easy recipe is for you.
Homemade Sopapillas
I’ve been looking forward to sharing my sopapilla recipe for weeks now. Let me start by saying I know people call these all kinds of different names. It kind of depends where you grew up! I’ve heard people call them scones, fry bread and sopapillas. I am not partial, I’ll call them anything, lol! I remember as a kid having warm sopapillas at a Mexican restaurant we went to and it was my favorite part of the meal!
Be sure to try my Homemade Cinnamon Roll Recipe too! Follow Picky Palate on Instagram for daily recipe inspiration.
What Is A Sopapilla?
If you are not aware of what this recipe is, let me explain. It’s a homemade dough, fried, then lathered with butter, honey and powdered sugar. Seriously does NOT get better than this.
When my family gets together on Sundays, we almost always end up making these. They are everyone’s favorite 🙂
What You’ll Need
- canola oil– You’ll use canola oil or vegetable oil to fry your sopapillas.
- warm water– Warm water helps activate the yeast for the homemade sopapillas.
- active dry yeast– Active dry yeast is a key ingredient when making homemade breads.
- granulated sugar– Just a touch of sugar gives a slight sweetness.
- all-purpose flour- All-purpose flour is the main dry ingredient.
- kosher salt– Kosher salt is a course salt. I prefer using it over fine salt.
- extra virgin olive oil– Just a touch of olive oil is used when making the dough.
- butter– You can use salted or unsalted butter here.
- honey– You’ll drizzle honey over top of the warm sopapillas when they are done frying.
- powdered sugar– Also referred to as confectioners sugar. You’ll use powdered sugar to dust over top of the sopapillas.
How To Make Sopapillas
- Place oil in large dutch oven over medium heat with a thermometer attached to the side of the pot. Heat until at least 350 degrees but under 375 degrees F.
- Place warm water, yeast and sugar into stand mixer bowl with a dough hook attached. Let sit for 5-10 minutes until yeast has grown.
- Add flour, salt and olive oil to the stand mixer, beating on medium speed. Mix until dough is cleaning sides of bowl, about 2-3 minutes. With very floured hands, remove dough from bowl and form into a ball on top of parchment paper.
- Pinch off about 1/4 cup pieces of dough forming into 3 inch rounds. Does not have to be perfect. Carefully drop pieces of dough into hot oil, in batches. No more than about 3 or 4 at a time. Fry until golden and puffed on each side. Remove from hot oil and place onto parchment paper. Immediately spread butter and honey over each piece. Sprinkle with powdered sugar if desired.
While you are waiting for your yeast to rise, heat your oil to 350-375 degrees F.
Prepare dough as recipe states below in recipe card. Roll into ball on top of parchment paper.
Pinch off little pieces of dough and form into about 3 inch rounds.
It doesn’t have to be exact, can be bigger or smaller 🙂
Carefully drop each piece of dough into the hot oil. Let fry until golden then flip! This is the color you are looking for. Remove from the oil and set onto some parchment paper. Spread each piece of dough with lots of butter as soon as it comes out of the oil.
Drizzle with honey. Dust with more powdered sugar. The outcome is pure heaven. Such a delicious dessert for the whole family.
How To Serve Sopapillas
Serve warm with butter, honey and powdered sugar. Best if enjoyed shortly after fried. It’s not recommended to store leftovers and re-heat. Best if eaten on day they’re made.
Leftovers
Store any leftover sopapillas in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
Homemade Sopapilla Recipe
Equipment
- Stove
- stand mixer with dough hook
- Dutch Oven or large pot
- deef frying sieve
- Bowl
- measuring cups
- measuring spoons
Ingredients
- 64 ounces canola or vegetable oil
- 1 cup warm water 110 degrees F.
- 2 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast
- 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose Gold Medal Flour
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter softened
- 1/2 cup good quality honey
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
Instructions
- Place oil in large dutch oven over medium heat with a thermometer attached to the side of the pot. Heat until at least 350 degrees but under 375 degrees F.
- Place warm water, yeast and sugar into stand mixer bowl with a dough hook attached. Let sit for 5-10 minutes until yeast has grown.
- Add flour, salt and olive oil to the stand mixer, beating on medium speed. Mix until dough is cleaning sides of bowl, about 2-3 minutes. With very floured hands, remove dough from bowl and form into a ball on top of parchment paper.
- Pinch off about 1/4 cup pieces of dough forming into 3 inch rounds. Does not have to be perfect. Carefully drop pieces of dough into hot oil, in batches. No more than about 3 or 4 at a time. Fry until golden and puffed on each side. Remove from hot oil and place onto parchment paper. Immediately spread butter and honey over each piece. Sprinkle with powdered sugar if desired.
Nutrition
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I love this recipe,its simple & easy dessert recipe.
Amazing recipe. The honey part always gets me the most, and I can’t wait to try these. Over here we also know this as sopapilla and I just have to try to make one the next time my folks have a get-together. I might just need to slow down on the sugar but that is what the honey is for right?
Omg . These look just like the ones we used to get at a popular Mexican restaurant when I lived in Denver. Whenever I order them now at Mexican restaurants in the Midwest they are nothing like the ones we had growing up. Thank you so much.My family will be thrilled.
Amazing sopapilla recipe! It is very decadent, and the people in my office are happy today! I found your post from Pinterest! I’m also gonna pin this post on my Pinterest board my followers will love it. Thanks for sharing!
Amazing sopapilla recipe! It is very decadent, and the people in my office are happy today! I found your post from Pinterest! I’m also gonna pin this post on my Pinterest board my followers will love it. Thanks for sharing!
Amazing sopapilla recipe! It is very decadent, and the people in my office are happy today! I found your post from Pinterest! I’m also gonna pin this post on my Pinterest board my followers will love it. Thanks for sharing!
Amazing sopapilla recipe! It is very decadent, and the people in my office are happy today! I found your post from Pinterest! I’m also gonna pin this post on my Pinterest board my followers will love it. Thanks for sharing!
Hi. I can’t wait to try these. I’ve been researching fried desserts and your recipe is more like a beignet than a traditional sopapilla. I’ve had both and the flavor is similar. The main difference is the texture. They are both airy inside but one is definitely lighter. The yeast is what changes the recipe. Traditional sopas use baking powder and don’t have much or any sugar added to the dough.
Superb page, Continue the excellent job. Thanks for your time!|
These are sooooo good. Just be careful when making the dough round once you pinch it off the dough ball. If you flatten it too much, they won’t puff as well when frying. I recommend letting gravity do as much of the stretching work as possible. But even if they don’t puff up a whole lot, they are still soooo good!!
I was introduced to Sopapillos just over 65 years ago and have only found a couple places since that had them. Now I can make my own any time. Know I will be just as delighted with these. THANK YOU!!
Where I’m from, New Mexico, we roll the dough out about 1/4 inch thick and cut about 4×4. Then deep fry making sure you push down in the hot oil so they puff up. They are also good slit open and stuffed with taco meat, beans, cheese, and lettuce and tomatoes.
Great recipe, though we call them fried Scones, been looking for a better homemade recipe for them thanks!
I really want to make these but I don’t have a stand mixer. What would be the best alternative? Thanks!
Sopapillas are also made with pumpkin purée. I am from chile. And this is a very traditional pastry. But very different.
Hi, can I mix all whit the hands? I dont have a mixer. 🙁
Your sopapillas look so so good! I’ll take 10, generously lathered with butter, honey and powdered sugar (the baby needs them!). Your blog does strange things to my pregnancy cravings! 😉 Pinning! 🙂
Have you used this dough instead of crescent roll dough to make sopaipila cheesecake?
oh! sopapilla CHHESECAKE! I hate cheesecake,but I LOOOOVE SOPAPILLA CHEESECAKE! I make it with the crescent roll dough,and it is SOOOO good!
We have something very similar here in South Africa, but we call it Vetkoek (fatcake). We eat it sweet with sugar and cinnamon, or savory, with mince and cheese stuffed into the cavity. YUMMY! So glad I found your Blog
Kindest~ Flee
South Africa
Thanks for sharing! Would love to try South American food!!