Faith's post on cheese bread last week reminded us of one of our own cheesy obsessions: Brazilian pão de queijo. Pictures like this one really don't do them justice and words alone can't fully describe what make these little savory puffs so wonderful...But we'll try!
These buns actually have a lot in common with the pâte à choux used to make cream puffs and gougères. Both are made by bringing liquid to a boil, stirring in the flour until it becomes a paste, and then working in a few eggs for richness and leavening. Where the French pastries tend to have a crisp outer shell and a fairly hollow interior, pão de queijo are quite soft and have an airy, delicate crumb.
Pão de queijo are also traditionally made with cassava flour (also called manioc flour or tapioca starch), which is incredibly starchy. This flour gives the buns a distinctive texture and (we think) a slight sour flavor.
In Brazil and other Portuguese-influenced countries, pão de queijo are often eaten for breakfast or as a snack. We're happy to have them pretty much any time of the day!
Here are a few pão de queijo recipes from around the web:
• From Dona Brasil
• From Cooking Resources
• From Sonia Portuguese
• A thread on Chowhound containing a recipe and some tips
Do you have any tips for making pão de queijo at home?
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I think what makes pão de queijo stand out more than anythng is its texture. Definitely starchy, almost gummy/glutinous like (but not as much as) chinese dessert rice balls?
yum!
Oh man. The cheese in Brazil is so awful, imo. This is the only way I can manage to eat cheese there.
uuuuuuuuuuuuh
Im Brazilian myself and I loveeeeeeee these! haha I have them every year when I go back home :)
I am also Brazilian and love cheese bread, we actually make panini with them. Oversized pao de queijos with fillings (sweet or savoury) and pressed on the panini maker, yum!
My tip for making them really puff and gain as much volum eas possible in the oven is to knead a lot, the longer you knead the dough the nicer, softer they will be.
I sometimes add dried herbs like oregano to the dough for a change. Whenever I make them at home (here in the US) they quickly vanish.
There is a Brazilian brand called Yoki that sells a mix for making cheese bread just by adding eggs and water. It is available in many latin food stores all over the US, here is the link to the mix:
http://yoki.com.br/nossas_marcas_2.asp?ac=Categoria&idMarca=1&idCat=17
I also use arrowroot to make my best "pão de queijo", but this ingredient is really hard to find...
If you want to add to your links, there's my "pão de queijo" recipe in portuguese from Crianças na Cozinha (it means "Children in The Kitchen): http://pat.feldman.com.br/?p=214
Whole Foods carried arrowroot.
Oh, you really make me miss home now. My first meal there is lots of pão de queijo and guaraná still at the airport.
this is amazing... i'm not really a cheese person, i don't like most of the cheeses, but pão de queijo is awesome!
these are awesome. like when they're gooey on the inside, a little bit like chewing gum. will try these at home tonight (after finding tapioca starch somewhere in Stockholm).