Mexican Hot Chocolate
Mexican Hot Chocolate – Cozy up with a cup of vegan hot chocolate made with cocoa, cinnamon, and chili spice! It’s easy to make on the stovetop or in the slow cooker and makes a delicious, crowd-pleasing, warm, and festive winter drink!
I love this time of year! It’s all about bundling up in sweaters, beanies, and scarves while sipping on warm soups and hot drinks!
Nothing beats the cozy warmth of authentic vegan Mexican Hot Chocolate – rich semi-sweet chocolate melted into creamy perfection with warming spices for that iconic Aztec-inspired heat.
It’s thicker, more decadent, and way more flavorful than standard hot cocoa. One sip, and you’ll be in love – just like we are!
What Is Mexican Hot Chocolate?
Mexican Hot Chocolate (sometimes called Aztec Hot Chocolate) is a rich, cozy classic blending semi-sweet chocolate with warm cinnamon, a hint of nutmeg, vanilla, and just a pinch of cayenne for that signature gentle kick.
Unlike ordinary hot cocoa, it melts real chocolate bars or morsels into the mix, creating an ultra-creamy, velvety texture that’s thick, decadent, and incredibly satisfying. Full of bold flavor and comforting warmth, this one’s a family favorite!
Ingredients You’ll Need
Here is everything needed to make vegan Mexican hot chocolate. Plus, suggestions for substituting ingredients to suit your needs.
- Chocolate – Feel free to use either semi-sweet or any dark chocolate or cocoa powder (see notes in recipe card). Chocolate pieces, more so than cocoa powder, will make a wonderfully thick and velvety hot chocolate.
- Non-dairy Milk – Use unsweetened plant milk, plain or vanilla. Some favorites are cashew, oat, or almond milk.
- Sweetener – I’ve used pure maple syrup, but pure cane or coconut sugar will work as well. Adjust to taste.
- Cinnamon – Both ground cinnamon and cinnamon sticks can be used as noted in the recipe card.
- Nutmeg – If you don’t have nutmeg on hand, try using ground cloves.
- Cayenne – Adds a nice bit of heat to your hot chocolate. Chipotle powder would also add a nice flavor and a bit of heat.
- Vanilla – Vanilla, which originated in Mexico and was used by the Aztecs to accent the flavor of chocolate drinks, is a classic ingredient for Mexican hot chocolate. Feel free to double the amount!
- Salt – Salt will bring out all of the flavors. My favorite salt is pink mineral salt (affiliate link), which naturally contains essential minerals and trace elements the body uses.
How To Make Mexican Hot Chocolate
This Mexican hot chocolate recipe can be made two ways and easily halved or doubled if made for a crowd.
- Slow Cooker: Simply place the ingredients in the bowl of your slow cooker and cook on LOW for 2 – 3 hours, stirring every 20 minutes.
- Stovetop: This method is the quickest and will be ready in under 10 minutes. To make hot cocoa on the stovetop, place the ingredients into a medium-sized pot and cook over medium-low heat until the chocolate is melted or the cocoa powder has dissolved, stirring occasionally.
Best Hot Cocoa Toppings
Some of my favorite hot chocolate toppings are vegan marshmallows, shaved dark chocolate, a dash of cinnamon, or a dollop of coconut whipped cream!
More Chocolate Recipes!
- Orange Spice Hot Chocolate
- Favorite Vegan Brownies
- Chocolate Cherry Smoothie
- Chocolate & Peanut Butter No Bake Cookies
- See all vegan chocolate recipes on TSV!
If you try this hot chocolate recipe, please let me know! Leave a comment and rate it below. I love hearing what you think or any changes you make.
MEXICAN HOT CHOCOLATE
Smooth, velvety and full of chocolatey flavor, this vegan Mexican Hot Chocolate is the BEST! Recipe can easily be halved or doubled. Let the winter warm up begin…
- Prep Time: 5
- Cook Time: 10
- Total Time: 15 minutes
- Yield: Serves 4 – 6 1x
- Category: Beverage
- Method: slow cooker, stovetop
- Cuisine: Latin, Vegan
Ingredients
- 6 cups unsweetened non-dairy milk (plain or vanilla)
- 6 oz semi-sweet dark chocolate (or any vegan chocolate) or 6 tablespoons cocoa powder
- 1/3 cup pure maple syrup or coconut or pure cane sugar
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon (or 2 cinnamon sticks)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- pinch of cayenne
Optional toppings
- light dusting of cocoa powder or dash of cinnamon
- dollop of coconut whip cream
- cacao nibs or shaved chocolate
- vegan marshmallows
Instructions
Crock-Pot: Place ingredients in the crock pot and cook on low for 2 to 3 hours, stirring every 20 minutes or so.
Stovetop: Place ingredients in a large pot and heat over medium-low, stirring occasionally, until chocolate is completely melted, about 10 minutes. Turn the heat to low and cover, to keep warm until ready to serve.
Serve: Ladle into mugs and serve with a light dusting of cocoa powder. Also pairs well with a dollop of coconut cream on top.
Serves 4 – 6
Store: Leftovers can be kept in the refrigerator for up to 7 days, in an airtight container. Reheat on the stove over low or in the microwave for 30 – 60 seconds, or until warmed through.
Notes
You can use Abuelita/Ibarra cocoa tablets for authenticity, but we prefer to make it from scratch for a purer flavor.
Feel free to roughly chop the chocolate if you like. I added mine in large chunks, but it will help melt down faster if the pieces are smaller.
You can also mix and match using chocolate pieces and cocoa powder. Use half-and-half (3 oz.). chocolate pieces and 3 tablespoons of cocoa powder. If adjusting differently, use 1 oz. chocolate pieces or 1 tablespoon of cocoa powder for every 1 cup of plant milk used.
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Thank you for an amazing recipe! It tastes great and even my omnivore family enjoys it and I quote “you can’t even taste it is plant milk.” Which is the biggest complement I can’t get from them. I added both cayenne pepper and chipotle chili.
Definitely ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I have made this recipe several times and I absolutely love it! I have noticed there is no mention of how much salt to use in the list of ingredients, so I just sprinkle it to taste. Thank you for this recipe!
Yes! I had a Mexican hot chocolate at a random restaurant once and couldn’t remember what it was or where to find it again. I tried to recreate it and could never get it down. Reading this recipe made me realize that I’ve been leaving out nutmeg!
Thank you for the Mexican hot chocolate recipe
It taste great.
Tomorrow I’m going to make the butternut squash & red lentil soup
Will let you know how that turns out.