# Champurrado
**Champurrado** is a Mexican hot drink, a chocolate-flavored variety of atole, made by cooking nixtamalized corn masa in water or milk with Mexican table chocolate, piloncillo (unrefined cane sugar), and cinnamon until it thickens.[1](https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/classic-champurrado) • [2](https://recetasmexas.com/en-au/guide/atole-de-chocolate) It combines the two sacred foods of [Mesoamerica](https://www.edgepedia.org/mesoamerica), maize and cacao, in a single preparation, and it is closely associated with cold-weather breakfasts, [Las Posadas](https://www.edgepedia.org/las-posadas), and Día de los Muertos.[2](https://recetasmexas.com/en-au/guide/atole-de-chocolate)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Definition | A chocolate-flavored atole: masa or masa harina whisked into hot water or milk, sweetened with piloncillo, flavored with cinnamon, and finished with Mexican chocolate[3](https://traditionalmexicankitchen.com/molinillos/guides/champurrado-explained/) |
| Core ingredients | Masa harina or fresh masa, stone-ground Mexican chocolate, piloncillo, and cinnamon[1](https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/classic-champurrado) |
| Traditional tool | The molinillo, a wooden whisk rolled between the palms, keeps the masa from clumping and froths the surface[3](https://traditionalmexicankitchen.com/molinillos/guides/champurrado-explained/) |
| Historical roots | Sahagún's Florentine Codex describes Nahua drinks combining cacao with maize masa, among them "chocolatl with atolli"[2](https://recetasmexas.com/en-au/guide/atole-de-chocolate) |
| Early printed recipe | "Atole Champurrado" appears as recipe 254 in the *Nuevo Cocinero Mexicano* (1845)[4](https://www.cookbooksoftheworld.com/mexico/nuevo-cocinero-mexicano/atole-champurrado/) |
| Typical occasions | Las Posadas, Día de los Muertos, Candlemas, and winter breakfasts, usually paired with tamales[2](https://recetasmexas.com/en-au/guide/atole-de-chocolate) • [3](https://traditionalmexicankitchen.com/molinillos/guides/champurrado-explained/) |
| Estimated nutrition | Per 100 g: about 90–155 kcal, 1.5–3.5 g protein, 18–30 g carbohydrate (estimated values)[5](https://humanfoodatlas.com/chocolate/champurrado) |
## What distinguishes it from atole and hot chocolate
Atole is the broader category: a warm drink thickened with masa or, in some versions, rice flour or cornstarch, which can be flavored with fruit, vanilla, cinnamon, or other ingredients.[1](https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/classic-champurrado) • [6](https://www.infobae.com/mexico/2024/01/30/cual-es-la-diferencia-entre-el-champurrado-y-el-atole-de-chocolate/) Champurrado is simply atole with chocolate added, which is why it is sometimes called chocolate atole or atole de chocolate.[3](https://traditionalmexicankitchen.com/molinillos/guides/champurrado-explained/) Compared with plain atole it is darker, thicker, and chocolate-centered; the Infobae food writer Cinthia Salvador describes it as combining chocolate with a larger quantity of masa, water, and spices such as cinnamon, giving a notably thick consistency.[6](https://www.infobae.com/mexico/2024/01/30/cual-es-la-diferencia-entre-el-champurrado-y-el-atole-de-chocolate/)
Standard Mexican hot chocolate sits at the other end: it contains no starch at all, and its texture comes entirely from frothing with a molinillo. Champurrado's masa gives it a porridge-like body closer to a drinkable pudding.[3](https://traditionalmexicankitchen.com/molinillos/guides/champurrado-explained/)
## History
The word atole comes from the Nahuatl *ātōlli*. Originally it was a thin porridge of water and nixtamalized corn, a pre-Hispanic staple of Maya and Aztec diets; during the 16th-century colonial era the Spanish adapted it, introducing cow's milk, sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla.[7](https://www.eater.com/food-culture/924450/coquito-atole-champurrado-chocolate-cafe-de-olla-how-to-make) The combination of maize and cacao in one drink has a documented pre-Hispanic pedigree: [Bernardino de Sahagún](https://www.edgepedia.org/bernardino-de-sahagun)'s Florentine Codex describes several Nahua drinks that combined cacao with maize masa, among them "chocolatl with atolli".[2](https://recetasmexas.com/en-au/guide/atole-de-chocolate) A Spanish-language study of the word chocolate likewise identifies the cacao-fortified maize atole of that era as what is now called champurrado.[8](https://www.scielo.org.mx/scielo.php?pid=S0071-16752013000200003&script=sci_arttext)
**Dating the name.** The Human Food Atlas, which reconstructs historical dishes, cautions that champurrado's history is best understood as convergence rather than a securely dated invention: colonial writings document both maize gruels and cacao drinks, but they do not establish that a standardized dish called champurrado emerged at any single mid-sixteenth-century date, and the recognizable modern formula is supported chiefly by later culinary practice.[5](https://humanfoodatlas.com/chocolate/champurrado) The earliest recipe in the evidence set is the "Atole Champurrado" entry in the 1845 *Nuevo Cocinero Mexicano*, which describes plain atole with chocolate beaten into it, thick enough to coat a spoon, dark and barely sweet.[4](https://www.cookbooksoftheworld.com/mexico/nuevo-cocinero-mexicano/atole-champurrado/)
The ingredient list itself records the historical layering. Maize and cacao are American domesticates with deep pre-conquest histories, while cane sugar and [Old World](https://www.edgepedia.org/old-world) cinnamon arrived through colonial trade, and cattle introduced dairy as a possible liquid base; piloncillo, an unrefined cane sugar molded into cones, became the characteristic sweetener.[5](https://humanfoodatlas.com/chocolate/champurrado)
## Preparation
The basic method is consistent across sources. The masa is first loosened in cool water or milk so it does not form lumps, then whisked into a simmering base of water (or milk) with piloncillo and cinnamon; chocolate tablets are added and stirred until dissolved, and the mixture is kept moving over low heat until it thickens.[9](https://www.gob.mx/agricultura/es/articulos/decalaveritaquiero-un-champurrado) • [10](https://biblioteca.semarnat.gob.mx/janium/Documentos/Ciga/libros2018/CD007487.pdf) Continued heating gelatinizes the maize starch, producing a glossy consistency that ranges from readily drinkable to porridge-like.[5](https://humanfoodatlas.com/chocolate/champurrado)
The traditional tool is the molinillo, a wooden whisk rolled between the palms. Rolling it keeps the masa from settling or clumping as the drink thickens and whips the surface into a light foam that a spoon or standard whisk does not produce as reliably.[3](https://traditionalmexicankitchen.com/molinillos/guides/champurrado-explained/) Recipes vary by region and household: some use only water, some milk or a mixture, and the amounts of chocolate, sweetener, and masa are adjusted freely; a typical home recipe serves four in about 25 minutes using 50 g of masa harina, 100 g of piloncillo, and 90 g of stone-ground chocolate.[1](https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/classic-champurrado) • [5](https://humanfoodatlas.com/chocolate/champurrado)
## When and where it is eaten
Champurrado is consumed throughout Mexico, with particular prominence at the December posadas, Día de los Muertos celebrations, and winter breakfasts; it is a staple of atolerías and of street stalls that set up on cold nights in central Mexico.[2](https://recetasmexas.com/en-au/guide/atole-de-chocolate) It is customarily served with tamales, a pairing traditional at Mexican gatherings, and also appears alongside pan dulce, buñuelos, or churros.[3](https://traditionalmexicankitchen.com/molinillos/guides/champurrado-explained/) • [1](https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/classic-champurrado) In Oaxaca it is found in the morning at street stalls, markets, and restaurants, served very hot in a clay cup, often with bread on the side.[11](https://www.eater.com/22926355/best-drinks-oaxaca-mexico-chocolate-horchata-coffee-atole-tepache)
In [Nicaragua](https://www.edgepedia.org/nicaragua), Costa Rica, and Honduras a related chocolate-maize drink is known as pinolillo, typically served cold.[12](https://www.epicurious.com/expert-advice/how-to-make-champurrado)
## Nutrition
Estimated values per 100 g of edible portion put champurrado at 90–155 kcal of energy, 1.5–3.5 g of protein, 1.5–4.5 g of fat, and 18–30 g of carbohydrate, with a glycemic index estimated at 50–70; a typical serving is one medium mug of about 240 g.[5](https://humanfoodatlas.com/chocolate/champurrado) The nixtamalization of the corn contributes nutritionally: the process makes corn easier to digest and releases nutrients including niacin.[7](https://www.eater.com/food-culture/924450/coquito-atole-champurrado-chocolate-cafe-de-olla-how-to-make)
## References
1. [Classic Champurrado Recipe, Epicurious (Andrea Aliseda, 2022)](https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/classic-champurrado)
2. [Atole de chocolate: what it is and how to make champurrado, Recetas Mexas](https://recetasmexas.com/en-au/guide/atole-de-chocolate)
3. [Champurrado Explained, Traditional Mexican Kitchen](https://traditionalmexicankitchen.com/molinillos/guides/champurrado-explained/)
4. [Atole Champurrado, Dictionary of Cookery, or The New Mexican Cook (1845)](https://www.cookbooksoftheworld.com/mexico/nuevo-cocinero-mexicano/atole-champurrado/)
5. [Champurrado, Human Food Atlas](https://humanfoodatlas.com/chocolate/champurrado)
6. [Cuál es la diferencia entre el champurrado y el atole de chocolate, Infobae (2024)](https://www.infobae.com/mexico/2024/01/30/cual-es-la-diferencia-entre-el-champurrado-y-el-atole-de-chocolate/)
7. [From Coquito to Atole, Champurrado to Chocolate, Eater (2025)](https://www.eater.com/food-culture/924450/coquito-atole-champurrado-chocolate-cafe-de-olla-how-to-make)
8. [Chocolate: historia de un nahuatlismo, Anales de Antropología / SciELO México](https://www.scielo.org.mx/scielo.php?pid=S0071-16752013000200003&script=sci_arttext)
9. [Olvídate del frío con un delicioso champurrado, Secretaría de Agricultura y Desarrollo Rural, gob.mx](https://www.gob.mx/agricultura/es/articulos/decalaveritaquiero-un-champurrado)
10. [Champurrado, SEMARNAT biblioteca digital](https://biblioteca.semarnat.gob.mx/janium/Documentos/Ciga/libros2018/CD007487.pdf)
11. [The 11 Best Drinks to Try in Oaxaca, Mexico, Eater](https://www.eater.com/22926355/best-drinks-oaxaca-mexico-chocolate-horchata-coffee-atole-tepache)
12. [How to Make Champurrado, Epicurious](https://www.epicurious.com/expert-advice/how-to-make-champurrado)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Food, customs, and everyday culture › Food, cooking and hospitality › Beverages and drink culture › Soft drinks and non-alcoholic beverages › Milk-based and plant/grain drinks*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license