Authentic Brazilian Cheese Bread (Pão de Queijo)
This post may contain affiliate links. Read our disclosure policy.
Finally!
Guys, you have to promise to love me forever. I’ve been wanting to post a Brazilian Cheese Bread (aka Pão de Queijo) recipe here ever since I started my blog, almost a year ago. I’ve tried and played with recipes a bazillion times, and it was never like the pão de queijo I get back home.
The last recipe I tried before this one was ok. Not “OMG this is the best cheese bread I’ve ever eaten” good, but still delicious in its way. So I almost posted here… I even had this whole speech on my mind about how you can attempt to make Brazilian cheese bread in the U.S., but it will never be as good as the one you find in Brazil, since it’s so hard to find sour manioc starch and almost impossible to find “meia cura” cheese. Boy, was I wrong. Yes, it took me a loooot of attempts, but I finally came up with the perfect recipe that you can make with ingredients you will find at your local grocery store. And I dare say it tastes better than many of the pães de queijo I had back home… You’re welcome! :P
The result? The softest, gooiest, most flavorful cheese bread you will ever taste. The ugly moles you see all over the rolls? That means that they are incredibly cheesy. If you’re a cheeseaholic, like me, you should always want ugly moles on your Brazilian cheese breads!
Pão de queijo is an typical Brazilian snack, originally from the states Minas Gerais and Goiás. We don’t know exactly where and when it originated, but it is suspected that it was around the 18th century, during the slavery period, in the “fazendas mineiras” (farms located in Minas Gerais).
It was customary to serve the masters bread and coffee in the afternoon (hence our “afternoon coffee” instead of “afternoon tea”). However, in Brazil, wheat products just started being largely produced in the 20s, so the cooks had to use manioc products. Those were widely available since they were used long before colonization. So to make the breads, they had to use tapioca flour (or manioc starch), and then, by mixing it with cheese, they created the first pães de queijo from Minas.
The pães de queijo baked in wood burning stoves and were prepared with ingredients produced in their own farms.
Fast forward to the 50’s when the recipe became popular all over the country and then again until nowadays when it’s popular all over the world.
Technically, pão de queijo shouldn’t be considered “bread”. I was debating calling them “rolls” or “puffs”, but SEO likes “cheese bread”, so I went for it! You will find them called either of those terms. You will also find lots of different recipes as every Brazilian has a family recipe that they swear by.
Some people make them crustier (and tougher) and others, like me, prefer them soft and pillowy! Some go light on the cheese and others (ahem! You’re looking at one!) stuff that baby with as much cheese as they can.
The original recipe uses manioc starch (either sour or sweet) and “meia cura” cheese. I guess you could claim my recipe isn’t really authentic since I’m using tapioca flour and parmesan/mozzarella. But let’s not rain on my parade, okay? :P :P :P
Brazilian cheese bread is tasty as it gets, since they are so flavorful due to the cheese and the tapioca flour. However, feel free to serve them with butter or even some dulce de leche! Yum!
Also, if you’ve seen other pão de queijo recipes out there, they were probably showcased next to a steamy cup of black coffee. Now, yes they go amazing together, but I always like to have my pão de queijo along with a glass of ice cold Guaraná (the national Brazilian soda)!
What? You’ve never had Guaraná? You need to try it right now! It’s delicious!
Make sure you get a few bottles or cans so you can have some friends over for this authentic Brazilian snack: “pão de queijo com Guaraná”. I mean, only if you’re in a sharing mood… Because there would be no judgement on my part of you eat the whole 30 rolls (puffs?) this recipe makes.
Or I you can do it like me and freeze some, that way I’ll always have fresh pão de queijo out of the oven. They taste better out of the oven! The leftovers usually lose the texture… But in case you do have leftovers, they are great for sandwiches! :)
But now you will have to excuse me cause I have a batch coming out of the oven! Oooh the smell…
P.S. Wanna keep in touch? Follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or Pinterest to stay up to date with my posts! If you end up making one of my recipes, I would love to see it! Just take a photo and post it on your preferred Social Media and tag me or use the hashtag #oliviascuisine!
Authentic Brazilian Cheese Bread (Pão de Queijo)
Yield:
30 cheese rolls
Prep Time:
10 minutes
Cook Time:
20 minutes
Total Time:
30 minutes
Ingredients
- 4 cups tapioca flour
- 1 1/4 cups milk
- 1/2 cup water
- 6 tablespoons oil
- 1 1/2 cups grated parmesan cheese
- 1 cups shredded Mozzarella cheese
- 2 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons salt
Instructions
Notes
To freeze them, shape the balls, place them on the baking sheet and bring to the freezer. Once they are frozen, transfer to a ziplock bag and keep them in the freezer up to 3 months.
Once you're ready to use them, preheat the oven to 400 as usual and bake the frozen balls for 25 to 30 minutes or until golden and puffy!
295 Comments on “Authentic Brazilian Cheese Bread (Pão de Queijo)”
Hi Olivia, I’ve tried this recipe 4 times to try to get the dough to be somewhat in a ball – Even when I can mold it sort of into a ball in my hand, the second I put it on the baking sheet (with parchment paper) it spreads out really thin and when they cook they end up being thin discs. I have tried adding more flour and also chilling the dough at various points during the process. Anything else I can try? Thank you!
Hi Alexandra, you can try baking in a muffin tin. Are you heating the liquids until almost boiling? It’s the scalding of the tapioca flour that makes the pães de queijo puff when baking.
Hi, I can’t wait to try out this recipe! Do you recommend using the flat beater or the dough hook for the mixer?
Hi Ruth, I use the flat beater!
Can you replace the water with milk totally?
Yes!
Finally easy recipe. Thank you. I will add asiago cheese to recipe.
Sounds delicious!
Very good recipe. My returning guests are asking for this now. :)
Yay! That makes me happy! 😊 Thanks for taking the time to comment.
I used a pizza blend grated cheese which had mozzarella, cheddar and Parmesan and it was all sorts of CRAZY GOOD. Such a great recipe and am about to make my second batch.
Hi Lucy-Ann! I’m so glad you loved them. 😊
Wow!!! So Delicious!!! They are also just as delicious cooking them from frozen stare. Will always have some on hand now!!!
Always a good call to have pão de queijo in the freezer! 😊
Can I half the recipe?
Yes!
How many cheese balls does this recipe make, please?
Depends on the size, but around 25.
Can I use cassava flour instead of tapioca flour?
Hi Atia, no, unfortunately it won’t work with cassava flour.
This is the best pão de queijo recipe I have made and have sung its praises to anyone interested in making their own. I add a little garlic powder to enhance the flavor. Always popular at pot lucks and family events.
So glad to hear that, Randolph! 😊 Thanks for the feedback.
Do you have any recommendations of how to substitute the egg? Would a flax egg work? Or aquafaba? Any thoughts?
Hi Cheryl,
Unfortunately, I have never tried making this without the egg. I have no experience with vegan baking! I’m so sorry I can’t be of any help. 😞
End result is outstanding. This is the only gluten-free bread I actually enjoy eating. The only problem I had was the dough kept creeping up my beaters and I had a devilish time freeing it. I ended up putting on a pair of food prep gloves and incorporated all the rest of the ingredients by hand which I will do again.
(Never use an immersion blender either. 😂)
Hi Elise, glad to hear you loved the cheese breads! ♥️ I recommend using the hook attachment when making this, as the dough is really quite sticky! And yes, no hand mixer or immersion blender as they might break. 😊
These look amazing, can’t wait to try them! Can these be served with anything? Maybe a dip?
They’re usually eaten as-is, but you can definitely serve with a dip! 😊
I don’t have a stand mixer – would a hand mixer work?
I used oat milk and non-dairy cheese. Bread didn’t rise much and was just gooey like hot string cheese in the middle. Will make sure to scald the milk next time. Any additional advice is greatly appreciated.