Small, naturally gluten-free Brazilian bread balls made from cassava starch and cheese, with a light crispy crust and a distinctive chewy interior, perfect for breakfast or as a snack.

المقادير

2 cups sour tapioca starch (or a mix of sweet and sour tapioca starch)

1 cup whole milk

1/2 cup vegetable oil (or melted butter)

1 tsp salt

2 large eggs

1.5 cups grated Parmesan or Brazilian Minas cheese (can substitute a mix of Parmesan and mozzarella)

خطوات التحضير

Preheat the oven to 190°C, and line a muffin or baking tray with parchment paper.

Place the milk, oil and salt in a small saucepan and heat over medium heat until it just begins to simmer.

Pour the hot liquid over the tapioca starch in a large bowl and stir quickly with a wooden spoon until combined (the mixture will look lumpy at first — this is normal).

Let the mixture cool for 10 minutes until warm, not hot.

Add the eggs one at a time, beating vigorously (a stand mixer or food processor can be used) until the mixture is smooth and sticky.

Add the grated cheese and mix well until evenly distributed.

Moisten your hands with a little oil, and portion the dough into balls about the size of a golf ball.

Arrange the balls on the baking tray, leaving space between them.

Bake for 18-22 minutes until the balls puff up and turn lightly golden outside.

Serve hot, straight out of the oven, to enjoy their signature chewy texture.

نصيحة

Unbaked balls can be frozen and baked directly from frozen when needed, adding a few extra minutes to the baking time. Avoid overmixing the dough after adding the cheese, or the baked bread can turn out tough.

Pão de queijo, meaning «cheese bread» in Portuguese, hails from the Minas Gerais region in southeastern Brazil, with roots tracing back to the 18th century when enslaved people on plantations baked small balls from locally available cassava (manioc) starch. Cheese was added to the recipe later, in the 19th century, after cattle farming spread in the region and local cheese became abundant.

What sets this bread apart is the use of cassava starch (tapioca) instead of traditional flour, making it naturally gluten-free and giving it a distinctive chewy interior with a thin, crisp crust outside. Baked into small balls, it has become one of the most popular breakfast and snack foods across Brazil today.