Pao de queijo – Pan de queso – Cheese rolls
By Asado Argentina on Sep 18, 2006 in Something Different
(recipe follows)
I have yet to travel to Brazil, but from what I have heard, Pao de queijo, is often on the list of “you haven’t experienced Brazil unless you’ve tried them.” Pao de queijo, or pan de queso in Spanish, means cheese bread in English. Wheat flour-based yeast bread with cheese mixed in has nothing on this Brazilian snack, I was told. After searching around, I found that this bread originated in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais sometime around the 17th or 18th century but didn’t contain cheese at the time. Only later did one of the world’s greatest foods get mixed in. The two main ingredients that stand out are, obviously cheese and cassava starch. Cassava starch is like corn or potato starch and you really can’t tell the difference much while running it through your fingers.
I have wanted to make these for a long time but unfortunately, like many other items on the “to prepare list”, they ended up being sidetracked or lost in the pile. Recently, the time finally arrived with full dedication to get these doughy rolls of cheese on the table. However, the first attempt was a disaster for two reasons: wrong type of cassava flour and bad recipe. To cut a long story short, we used a recipe from a magazine when I should have searched online first. Lesson learned. Don’t trust those little 10-20 page recipe magazines in the news stands. When trying any unfamiliar recipe, always double or triple check with other sources just to make sure they have the basic ingredients right. Search online, in other cookbooks, or ask others who know.
Back to the drawing board. The second time I decided to search for an authentic type recipe that was in Portuguese and/or listed on a Brazilian site. That didn’t necessarily mean it would be right but a start nonetheless. I found quite few where all of the the ingredients were pretty much the same except for the swapping of or mixture of butter and oil. None of them that I came across had ricotta like that first recipe pulled from an Argentinean magazine. The easiest appealing one came from a Wikipedia page in Portuguese: Pão de queijo. Matched up well with the other recipes I found and the quantities looked simple too.
And simple to make it was. However, you really have to put some serious muscle work into kneading the dough. When the time arrived to pull the first batch out of the oven, they looked perfect. Then I took the first bite. The hot gooey mass within the crunchy exterior made me spew out “Uhh honey, is this how it is supposed to be???” Flashbacks of undercooked bread filled my head. First time I had a fresh one of these out of the oven mind you. “Noooo, these are perfect,” my wife said. Don’t get me wrong, they were delicious, I just wasn’t prepared. When cooled, the bread firms up a quite well as you can see in the picture below. While wheat-based cheese bread has a slight cheesy taste, Pao de queijo tastes like cheese with the texture of bread. If that makes any sense.
Recipe
1 Kilo Cassava starch
3 Cups Milk
1 Cup Vegetable oil
1 Tablespoon Salt
4 Eggs
500 grams semi-hard or hard aged cheese (Parmesan, Fontina, Reggianito, etc.)*
*I used 250g each of parmesan and fontina
In a very very large bowl mix together salt and cassava starch. In a sauce pan add milk and oil and bring to a boil. Pour about a quarter of the hot liquid into the cassava and stir a bit with a large wooden spoon or spatula. Pour in about half of the rest of the liquid and stir some more. Then pour in the rest and mix as best you can with the spoon. The easiest way, if you have someone laying around the house at the time, is to get them to continuously drizzle in the hot liquid while you stir.
Time to get your hands dirty. The dough will be quite warm, perhaps a little hot, so touch it a little with your hands to see if you are comfortable enough to work with it. If not then stir around some more with the spoon until you can. Knead with your hands until all of the cassava starch powder is totally worked into the dough. Then cover the bowl with a damp cloth and allow to cool. While that is set aside, grate the cheese and set that aside too. When the dough has cooled down a bit, add the eggs. The dough doesn’t have to be room temperature, just cool enough so that the eggs don’t start too cook when you add them to the warm dough. Before you add the eggs turn your oven on maximum heat. When you add the eggs, you’ll get the feeling that they’ll never blend in with the dough; it has the consistency of chewing gum. Just keep kneading and eventually they’ll mix. Next add the cheese and mix well.
Lightly grease a large shallow baking pan. With your hands, form little balls of dough about 5cm (2 inches) diameter. Lay them out on the pan so that there is at least 4cm (1.5 inches) space between them. Before placing them in the oven make sure that it has been on max for at least 15 minutes. Place in the oven and turn the heat down to medium. Cook for no longer than 30 minutes. Allow them to cool a bit before biting into them but not too much. Always enjoy them warm.
Note: A mixing machine with a dough hook may work wonders for mixing, I didn’t try it this time, but this stuff is tough so make sure you have one that can handle the task.
This looks great. One question though Casava starch. My guess is it would be something similar to Arrowroot flour?
Pelle | Sep 21, 2006 | Reply
Good question but not one I know the answer to. I’ve never actually cooked with arrowroot so I’m not sure on the comparison. However, I have been told that it works better than corn starch on some sauces/desserts but that’s a different subject.
There is a Chilean seafood shop I frequent that sells potato starch. I don’t know if it has the same “effect” with this type of bread but I’m going to give it a try one of these days.
Administrator | Sep 21, 2006 | Reply
cassava = casava = manioc = mandioca = tapioca root = yucca = yucca root = yuca root = Brazilian arrowroot. A little harder to find outside of this part of the world, but you can probably find it in a good latin american food market – you might find it as tapioca starch if you’re in the U.S. or Europe. Depends where you are in the world. Definitely not the same as what I was used to in the U.S. as arrowroot or corn starch!
Dan | Oct 5, 2006 | Reply
Wow!
Your pão de queijo looks absolutely fantastic! I came here through Cooking Diva and you are already a favorite. Now, please excuse me while I read the rest of your blog
All the best!
Dadivosa | Oct 20, 2006 | Reply
We have been researching recipes since our trip in April of this year. We had these wonderful rolls at Cabana Las Lilas which we were told were “Chipa”. I have about 6 recipes which are all similar but the starch changes from Tapioca Flour to Potato Flour to Cassava Starch to harinado maize(?) to cornstarch. I tried the potato flour and didn’t like the texture. I then used 1 part potato flour and 2 parts all purpose flour and it was better. One recipe noted that baking powder could be added which yielded a lighter product. I will try the cassava starch next time. Now for the cheese – this also varied by recipe with some stating a Paraguanian cheese which was a cross between a fresh and dry cheese so I used Coteja Anejo a cheese similar to Feta. This was OK. Others also stated parmesan which I will try next time.
I’ll keep trying till I perfect it but then I will have to go back to Las Lilas to make sure its right, darn!
Joe Libertucci | Nov 5, 2006 | Reply
>I will try the cassava starch next time.
All of the recipes I’ve come across for chipas call for cassava starch. I haven’t tried potato starch yet but if the texture didn’t work much for you then it probably won’t work much for pão de queijo since the majority of recipes are “almost” the same.
Administrator | Nov 7, 2006 | Reply
Mmmm, look great! My first pão de queijo experience was actually in a small town in Minas Gerais when I was visiting a friend there, and from watching him make it I have to say it took a lot of kneading.
The way they ate them was to wait 10 minutes for them to cool down a bit, then they cut into the middle and stuffed them with butter.
Talk about a delicious (and healthy) snack!
Argentina Blogger | Nov 21, 2006 | Reply
Entonces es lo mismo Pão de queijo que chipá?
Mulix | Nov 22, 2006 | Reply
>Mulix
SÃ, lo mismo. Más or menos. Poca diferencia en el tipo de queso o grasa?
>Argentina Blogger
A lot of kneading that leaves your arms and hands numb afterward
Administrator | Nov 23, 2006 | Reply
Interesting, I have been to Brazil and Argentina several times in the past 12 months and absolutely love these. I brought back some mixes from Brazil on my last trip and they turned out a lot better then I expected. I was not anticipating how difficult it would be to mix the ingredients, and thought I ruined the recipe not know what it should look or feel like. I am going to try your recipe this week, but can you tell me why you have to boil the oil and milk before mixing? I did not have to do this with the mixes I brought from Brazil.
Perry J. Genereux | Nov 30, 2006 | Reply
Perry:
I’m not really sure what the deal is with boiling. Perhaps it creates a more homogeneous mixture or allows the dough to be easier to work with. Or maybe the recipe I found is a passed-down traditional family one that typically calls for methods like these but are not exactly necessary.
I recently tried one of the easy-to-create mixes here for chipas, by Blancaflor, and it didn’t call for any boiling either. Taste and texture wasn’t “quite” the same but pretty close. For anyone who travels to Argentina I’d recommend it as something to take back home if you can’t find cassava starch. That’s if your local customs/agriculture department allows you to bring it into the country.
Administrator | Nov 30, 2006 | Reply
I married a wonderful brazilian man, whose mother owned a restaurant in brasil, and she taught me how to cook, actually she is from Minas Gerais. Her pan de queso is better than any box, or any recipe i’ve used, using the polviho acido, which is yucca flour, that and parmesan cheese, they are so delicious. Happy cooking everyone, try the yoki brand, they are delicious and very close to authentic brazilian pan de queso.
Viola | Feb 11, 2007 | Reply
I was wondering, at what temperature do you bake these at? I can’t wait to try them. They look delicious!
Chris | Mar 29, 2007 | Reply
Hi Chris,
About 180 Cº (350 Fº) should do the trick.
Asado Arg | Apr 4, 2007 | Reply
What is 1 kilo in cups? and 500 grams?
Jan Gridley | Apr 27, 2007 | Reply
Have enjoyed these visiting wife’s relatives in Brazil. Occasionally find in US Brazilian restaurants. Tapioca flour available for cheap (
Che Gringo | Apr 30, 2007 | Reply
I tried making these cheese at least 6 times, but they don’t puff up and then they look almost transparent inside, almost like they are not cooked enough?
What am I doing wrong?????
Patricia | May 9, 2007 | Reply
I hope you didn’t throw them away each time. These really don’t puff up much at all. Not like other breads.
Also, in my post I said that the first time I cooked them I thought they were undercooked (I thought I did something wrong too). They’re supposed to be hot and gooey inside for some time after being pulled from the oven. The best time to enjoy them but unusual at first.
The picture above was taken after they were cooled down a bit. Did you let any cool down all the way, and if so, were they still gooey?
Next time I make a batch I’ll take a photo of them fresh from the oven.
Asado Arg | May 10, 2007 | Reply
How do I make this recipe in high altitude over 5000 feet???
Thanks
Holly Pond | Jun 25, 2007 | Reply
Hi Holly,
I wish I could help but I’m not very familiar with adjustments for high/low altitude cooking. Perhaps someone else will chip in.
Asado Arg | Jun 26, 2007 | Reply
hi,
Your pao de queijo’s look very good! But I also have been trouble making mine look solid like yours, how did they stay round after cooling? Mine always collapse into a flaccid mess. And the inside never quite solidifies. Yours look so breadlike when they are cut open? Even after cooling, mine look like a block of previously melted cheese cut in half.
What can I do?
gillian | Jan 31, 2008 | Reply
I’ve had many with the cooled “melt-cheese” appearance from various bakeries. Maybe that’s the desired effect.
I’m not much of a baker so I can’t really come to a conclusion on the collapsing. Did you use this recipe? Hard crust when you pulled them out?
Asado Argentina | Feb 1, 2008 | Reply
Great receipe – thanks! Have never been to Brazil or tried the authentic version, but previously had them from a packet mix from the supermarker (Yoki). Your receipe comes very close to that, and is real easy to follow. I quartered the receipe which still made about 40 balls (easily enough for 2 people), but i think the smaller quantities were easier to work with. Yum!
angela | Jul 13, 2008 | Reply
That’s good to hear Angela, thanks!
Asado Argentina | Jul 18, 2008 | Reply
Hi I love your pao de queijo, they looked so yummy..pao de queijo is very rare in my country (Jakarta) so far I just found one stall sell it. When I research for its recipes, I found so many variations, some recipes used butter to replace oil. do you have any idea what is the different between those recipes. have you ever tried using butter instead of oil? thanx..
Lauren | Jan 10, 2009 | Reply
Haven’t tried with butter yet but I imagine it would turn out just as good. Probably a richer taste. Let me know if you try it.
Asado Argentina | Jan 14, 2009 | Reply
Hi, I tried your recipe, but mine was not like your picture at all. They are flat instead of ballshape. When I kneaded the dough, it was so gooey I couldn’t even make it any shape because it was all over my hand. It didn’t seem right. Did I put too much liquid? But I followed your instruction. Or I didn’t knead enough? What does the dough look or feel like before you put it into the oven? And also on your picture, your bread has so many holes while mine looked like undercooked dough. What’s wrong? Help please!!!!
Jen | Jun 19, 2009 | Reply
@Jen: You were using starch instead of flour right? Should look like corn starch. If so, try with less water next time. The dough should be rubbery from the beginning. Like kneading a big wad of gum. The bread in the photo was well cooled at the time, hence the bubbles. When they are fresh from the oven, the inner part does have the consistency of undercooked dough but they are cooked. I thought the same at first too
.
Asado Argentina | Jun 19, 2009 | Reply
Hi,
You recommend eating the bread while it’s still warm. What if I need to prepare it for a party? Can I pop them into a microwave before the party to warm them? Will they taste the same? Thanks.
Mary | Oct 27, 2009 | Reply
@Mary I’d recommend that you slightly warm them up in an oven until they soften a bit. Otherwise, they are not bad when cooled. A lot of bakeries and street vendors sell them on the street that way.
Asado Argentina | Oct 27, 2009 | Reply
Hi,
could we use microwave to bake the dough?
if we could, for how long?
i really dumb in oven-microwave stuff. could you tell me please, what’s the diff?
mariana | Jan 22, 2010 | Reply
How many does this recipe make??
Zach | Feb 25, 2010 | Reply