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Home » Breakfast

Mexican Hot Chocolate

November 30, 2018 By Lorena Grater

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Collage of Mexican Hot Chocolate images with text overlay for Pinterest.

Ever wondered how to make Mexican Hot Chocolate? I’ve got the best Mexican Hot Chocolate Recipe ever for you! Lot’s of spices and mixable with ANY kind of milk.

Mexican Hot Chocolate with frothed milk in a glass cup

The best part about this Mexican Hot Chocolate Recipe is probably that it is water based and thus perfect for literally anybody. Dairy-intolerant? No problem! Coconut milk fan? Awesome!

Instead of cooking one cup of hot chocolate you prepare a syrup-like chocolate base that you can then mix with whichever hot milk you like best. Similar concept to the Homemade Chai Latte already on the blog.

How To Make Mexican Hot Chocolate

The “abuelita hot chocolate” is very very popular in Mexico these days but that’s basically a commercialized version of the traditional hot chocolate.

The traditional hot chocolate wasn’t even sweetened. People would drink it rather like a cup of black coffee.

Needless to say, it’s pretty bitter without sweetener so this recipe is rather for the sweet drink that can be enjoyed around Christmas or literally all winter long.

You add plenty of delicious spices like vanilla, cinnamon, anis, clove and then most importantly “raw sugar”.

In Mexico they call this raw sugar piloncillo. Almost every Latin American has a different name for the same kind of sugar though so if you go to a Latin American store to look for this sugar make sure you ask for one or all of these names: piloncillo, chancaca, panela, rapadura, raspadura, tapa de dulce, papelón. I hope I’m not forgetting any.

Then, because we don’t have raw cacao beans easily available we will rely on raw cacao powder. It’s the unsweetened stuff you’ll find in the baking isle.

Mix that all with water and simmer it uncovered until it reaches a syrup-like consistency and that’s it. Mix it with hot milk of your choice and voilá the BEST Mexican Hot Chocolate EVER!

Mexican Hot Chocolate shown from above surrounded by spices

Is Mexican Hot Chocolate Healthy?

The word “healthy” can be defined in sooo many ways so this will depend entirely on your definition. Since it does have quite a bit of sugar in it (yes raw, but still sugar) I definitely recommend enjoying it in moderation.

My family and I typically enjoy a cup or two on the Day of the Dead (día de los muertos) and around Christmas and then maybe once a month throughout winter.

Compared to most ready made hot chocolate mixes this Mexican Hot Chocolate Recipe is VERY healthy. It’s all about what you compare it with and what else your nutrition consists of.

There is plenty of article listing the benefits of drinking hot chocolate. And I’m sure there is just as many listing the risks.

I’m camp “everything in moderation” :)

Mexican Hot Chocolate with frothed milk in a glass cup

Mexican Hot Chocolate

Prep Time: 2 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 22 minutes
Servings: 4 cups
Ever wondered how to make Mexican Hot Chocolate? I've got the best Mexican Hot Chocolate Recipe ever for you! Lot's of spices and mixable with ANY kind of milk.
Print Recipe

Ingredients

  • 2 cups water
  • 1/2 cup raw cacao powder
  • 3.5 oz piloncillo - (100g)
  • 2 cloves - (or 1/8 tsp ground clove)
  • 1 anis star - (or 1/4 tsp ground anis)
  • 2 sticks cinnamon - (or 1 tsp ground cinnamon)
  • 1 tsp vanilla bean - (or 2 tsp vanilla extract)
  • 4 cups any kind of milk
  • ground cinnamon
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Instructions

  • Cut open vanilla bean lengthwise so the seeds have an easy way out add vanilla bean, piloncillo, raw cacao powder, cloves, anis star and cinnamon sticks to a saucepan and cover with 2 cups of water.
  • Bring to a boil and reduce heat to a simmer. Cover the pot for about 5 minutes or until the sugar dissolved. Then remove the lid and let simmer uncovered for 15-20 minutes or until syrup-like consistency.
  • Fish out spices or strain using a sieve.
  • Heat 1 cup of milk of choice (froth if you like) and mix 1/4 cup of syrup with 1 cup hot milk. Sprinkle with a little ground cinnamon and enjoy!
  • The chocolate syrup can be stored in the fridge for 3-5 days.

Notes

Nutritional Information excluding milk because different milks have different nutritional values.

Nutrition

Calories: 121kcal | Carbohydrates: 29g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 1g | Sodium: 9mg | Potassium: 163mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 21g | Calcium: 42mg | Iron: 1.9mg
Course Drinks
Cuisine Mexican
Keyword Mexican Hot Chocolate
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Filed Under: Breakfast, Drinks, Vegetarian

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Tatiana says

    October 25, 2021 at 9:51 am

    Can you use Jude regular sugar or sugar in the raw if so how much? 1 tbsp? I don’t have a Latin store near me

    Reply
    • Lorena Grater says

      October 27, 2021 at 10:25 am

      Yes, you can use regular white sugar. The amount will depend on how sweet you like your hot chocolate. Remember you can always add more later. White sugar dissolves pretty quickly in anything hot.

      Reply
  2. Frances says

    October 29, 2020 at 4:14 pm

    How do you reheat the syrup if it’s been refrigerated?

    Reply
    • Lorena Grater says

      October 29, 2020 at 4:38 pm

      I don’t. By adding boiling hot milk it’s usually enough to warm it.

      Reply
  3. Wendy says

    January 22, 2019 at 11:14 pm

    5 stars
    Made this tonight, but the piloncilloI bought was harder than the rock of Gibraltar, I finally managed to shave enough off, so of course spatter that workout I deserved a cup almost all whole milk with about 2 Tbsp cream for a real treat, going to try Rice milk next for lower fat version,it was fantastic all the spices blended so nicely they were not over powering at all, I did use vanilla extract as Vanilla beans have become extremely expensive recently.

    Reply
    • Lorena says

      January 23, 2019 at 2:21 pm

      Hahaha, you just made me laugh Wendy! Yes, piloncillo is super hard. I like buying the one that is divided into squares like a chocolate bar because it’s much easier to break apart. I’m glad you were able to shave it off. Rice milk sounds wonderful with this! YUM!

      Reply
  4. Aysegul Sanford says

    December 5, 2018 at 10:53 am

    5 stars
    Such a great recipe and superb video.

    Reply
    • Lorena says

      December 6, 2018 at 11:03 am

      Thank you Aysegul :)

      Reply
  5. Espresso Tune says

    January 6, 2017 at 11:26 am

    wow-i love a good quality cup of hot chocolate, but haven’t been able to make a good one myself at home….is this bitter or sweet? i usually prefer to sweet, but bitter is good on a sick tummy….

    Reply
    • Lorena says

      January 9, 2017 at 11:14 pm

      Hi Espresso Tune. The hot chocolate is pretty sweet. You can always sweeten it more by using more piloncillo or make it more bitter by adding more cacao.

      Reply
  6. Bethany @ Athletic Avocado says

    November 10, 2015 at 10:29 pm

    literally the most perfect holiday drink ever!

    Reply
    • Lorena says

      November 11, 2015 at 7:50 pm

      Right? Thank you :D

      Reply
  7. Heather Mason @NuttyNutrition says

    November 10, 2015 at 9:24 pm

    mmm, this looks beautiful Lorena! It’s been raining all day here and I think this would be great!

    Reply
    • Lorena says

      November 10, 2015 at 10:22 pm

      Thank you Heather! Absolutely, this is a crap weather drink :)

      Reply
  8. Rebecca@Figs and Pigs says

    November 10, 2015 at 7:37 pm

    Wow what stunning photos and the hot chocolate sounds heavenly.

    Reply
    • Lorena says

      November 10, 2015 at 10:21 pm

      Thank you Rebecca :D

      Reply

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