Pão de Queijo: Brazilian Cheese Bread

Brazilian cheese bread (Pão de Queijo) is a popular snack and breakfast in Brazil. It’s gluten-free and need only 5 minutes to mix before you bake.

What is Brazilian Cheese Bread (Pão de Queijo)?

Brazilian cheese bread, aka Pão de Queijo, is small baked cheese buns. It is a popular snack and breakfast food in Brazil. This unfussy and gluten-free cheese bread is direct and short to make and so tasty.

The most common time to eat the Pão de Queijo is for breakfast in Brazil. But we can see this would make a wonderful afternoon snack as well. Another wonderful thing about this bread is that it is a gluten-free!

What is Brazilian cheese bread made with?

• tapioca flour
• milk
• oil
• salt
• egg
• shredded cheese

Tapioca flour is also known as tapioca starch. Unfortunately you can’t substitute with other kind of starch for tapioca flour. Other types of starch won’t create the same texture. Tapioca flour is fine, white powder that works well in gluten free baking.

You can use any cheese of your choice. We like ours with Parmesan cheese and mozzarella cheese. You can also add some mince garlic or dried herbs to make it more flavorful if you wish.

For oil, we used grape seed oil this time. Olive oil would be great too.

How the dish comes together

You don’t knead any fancy kitchen gear to make this bread. All you need is a pot to heat milk and oil, and mixing bowl and a wooden spoon.

1. Just mix the tapioca flour with the heated milk & oil, eggs and stir.
2. Add the cheese and mix well.
3. Scoop out the dough into a golf ball size on a baking sheet and bake. That’s it!

Hope you enjoy this chewy flavorful bread for breakfast or as a snack. So savory!

Watch Brazilian cheese bread Recipe Video

Ways to serve it

Enjoy these tasty Brazilian cheese bread while they are hot. They are soft, slightly gooey and chewy and tasty. Once cooled, they get hardened and not as soft.

• Yield: 3 dozens
• Prep: 5 minutes
• Cook: 20 minutes
• Total: 25 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 lb tapioca flour
• 1-1/2 cup milk
• 1/2 cup oil
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 eggs
• 6 oz shredded Parmesan cheese
• 6 oz shredded Mozzarella cheese

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 400˚F.
2. Combine milk, oil, and salt in a pot and bring it boil.
3. Put tapioca flour in a large mixing bowl and pour the hot milk mixture over; stir briefly. Add the eggs and mix well with a wooden spoon. Add the cheeses and mix well.
4. Using a tablespoon cookie scoop or a spoon, drop the dough in a size of golf bowl on a baking sheet lined with a parchment paper, 2-inch apart. Bake for 15-20 minutes until the edges gets slightly golden brown. Serve hot.