Authentic Brazilian Cheese Bread (Pão de Queijo)
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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)
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
- Preheat oven to 400F degrees with a rack in the middle.
- Combine the milk, water, oil and salt in a saucepan and bring to a boil over medium high heat.
- Add the tapioca flour to the bowl of a stand mixer and, once the milk mixture boils, pour it over the flour. Turn the mixer on and mix it well. The texture will be fondant-like, really white and sticky.
- With the mixer still on, add the eggs, one at a time. You will think they won't mix, since the tapioca flour mixture is so sticky, but hang in there cause they will.
- Once the eggs are incorporated, add the cheese, a little at a time, until fully incorporated.
- The dough is supposed to be soft and sticky. However, if you're worried it's too liquidy, add some more tapioca flour. Just don't over do it or your cheese bread will be tough and not too gooey.
- To shape the balls, wet your hands with cold water and, using a spoon, scoop some of the dough to shape balls that are a little smaller than golf-sized.
- Place the balls on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper and bring it to the preheat oven.
- Bake for 15-20 minutes or until they are golden and puffed.
- Serve them warm! :)
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!
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!
297 Comments on “Authentic Brazilian Cheese Bread (Pão de Queijo)”
My kids studied Brazil last year and we made brazilian cheese bread. It was so good, but yours looks better :)
So cool that your kids studied in Brazil!!! I hope they didn’t get too spoiled with the good food we have down there! :P
We followed the directions, but the balls collapsed into a flat cookie. They would not keep their round shape. What are we doing wrong?
Hi Olivia,
Thank you sharing this yummy receipe.
May I know the grams needed for the parmesan cheese and
shredded Mozzarella cheese?
Thank you.
Hi Irene! It’s about 135g parmesan cheese and 100g mozzarella.
I’ll love you forever if you share some of those rolls with me! I love the cheesy goodness. They look amazing!
Thanks so much, Ashley! They tasted amazing too! :)
My mom and I made these today. They turned out great. Thank you for sharing.
Wow, this bread looks amazing! And I happen to have an unopened bag of tapioca flour :D
Thanks, Claudia! Time to put that bag of tapioca flour to a good use! :D
Hi Olivia,
You’ll be glad to hear that I made this bread with coconut and almond milk. Someone asked about non dairy milk in the comments. I used regular cheese though. Sorry to add a comment here, the option wasn’t there for the non dairy milk comment for some reason.
I really want to make these but I cannot find tapioca flour anywhere!!! Is there a substitute?
Hi Karen, Bob’s Red Mill is sold in all supermarkets in NY/NJ. It’s a huge section at Shoprite, Stop n Shop, Wegmans. I get that brand’s tapioca flour. Ask at the courtesy counter of your local store. Regards, Dee
you can try Amazon, I got my bag of tapioca flour on amazon
Check your local health food store/Whole Foods.
Sometimes you find it in the Asian foods aisle as tapioca starch.
Also, Asian groceries often carry it under the term “cassava flour”.
Do you have Sprouts stores near you? They carry it, and their prices are better than Whole Foods.
You can use maisena, they will look in a different consistence, but good as!
Hi olivia ,
Thanks for the recipe. I tried 3 recipes before I finally found yours. I was so excited because I read your stuff before the recipe and found out you tried different ways prior to posting this. I have been doing your recipe ever since.
Thank you .
Amor
Woah…these rolls/bread/puffs look incredible, Olivia! I absolutely love cheese, and I love making bread…so these need to show up in my kitchen. I’ve never heard of the Brazilian version, but I am intrigued now! Plus, I’ve never experimented with tapioca flour. Time to play around in the kitchen!
David, can’t believe you’ve never hear of Brazilian cheese bread! You need to try it immediately! lol You’ll be forever hooked!!!
Oh my goodness Olivia these look amazing! I’ve also been experimenting with Brazillian cheese bread recipes. Trying to come up with one that tastes exactly like that amazing pão de queijo I had when I visited Rio. Unfortunately I can’t have eggs nor much cheese but while I keep tweaking I think I’ll make this one for my family. I’m sure they’ll love you forever!
Hi Krystal! You can customize the amount of cheese to your likings. Also, I think you can attempt to make it without the eggs. The texture might be a little different, but it is worth it a try! There are some recipes that use heavy cream, tapioca flour and the cheese. Again, they might not puff as much, but will still be delicious! :)
Maybe use chia seeds you can mix with water and get tgat gooey consistency which makes a great egg substitute
Krystal, have you tried quail eggs. I’m intolerant to chicken eggs but quail eggs are good. 4 quail eggs for 1 chicken egg available at some health food stores.
This bread looks amazing, Olivia! I’m a sucker for any type of cheese bread, so I’m totally craving this. Sounds absolutely perfect!
Thanks, Gayle! :) This tastes like home to me. I hope you like it!
My coworker’s mom made some of this it was most delicious bread I’ve ever ate all my gosh it was amazing it made my taste buds want more
My coworker’s mom made some of this it was most delicious bread I’ve ever ate all my gosh it was amazing it made my taste buds want more I’m going to definitely make some of these
Pão de Queijo is known for having that effect on people! :) I hope you make it and love it!
What kind of cheese I can add?! In Brazilian cheese br??!
Hi Salma, I use mozzarella cheese and parmesan! If you can find queijo meia cura, you could use that for a more authentic version! :)
Any chance an alternative milk would work vs cow milk??
Hi Bett,
Probably not as the fat content is different. I know there are a few vegan pão de queijo recipes out there but I haven’t tried them, so I don’t know if they are any good!
What an incredible looking Brazilian cheese bread. DELISH and inviting too! :)
These cheese bread rolls look so moist and delicious, Olivia! I never tried them before but after looking at pictures I do want to make some soon! yumm!
ooh that looks fabulous! Check out my meatless Monday linkup we’d love to have you
Girl, this bread looks delicious! I’ll take mine extra cheezy too, please! I always love hearing about your Brazilian food history!
Dear Olivia, your rolls look perfect! These sound wonderful..I can’t wait to give them a try. xo, Catherine
the bread looks amazing Olivia! Obviously I have never tried a Brazilian bread but your pictures are making me drool! So good!
I have never had Brazilian cheese bread before and after seeing your photos and reading your post, I KNOW I have been missing out of some serious deliciousness! This bread looks crazy, cheesy good! I am absolutely making this! Thanks for sharing, Olivia! This truly looks incredible!♡
Olivia, this is a super Brazilian classic, I want one of those baskets full of them right now! Your pictures represent so well the deliciousness of this bread.
Too bad, I ate them all! :P lol Thanks, my friend!
Oh, I love so so so much pão de queijo!! ♡ Yours looks so amazing!
Thanks, Ana! :)
I made this recipe today. It almost burned the motor in my blender. It doesn’t matter, they are so good. It totally brought back many lembrancas. I had tried an easier recipe but it didn’t taste as good & the texture wasn’t right. It felt like a science experiment, but worth it. Thank you for the yummy recipe.
Oh no! I’m so sorry the recipe almost burned your blender. I usually use my stand mixer cause it’s stronger. But I’m glad you enjoyed it and that it brought you good memories. :)
I really want to try this! However,in my country I do not have access to tapioca flour… :( can I replace it with regular flour???
xo
Iris
Hi Iris, unfortunately the texture wouldn’t be the same. Pao de queijo is made with either cassava starch, tapioca starch or tapioca flour. I heard of people making it with potato starch but they reported that the texture/taste wasn’t quite the same.
Is there one of the ones mentioned (cassava starch, tapioca starch or tapioca flour) which you find that gives the ultimate or preferred texture to these cheesy delights?
Maybe you could order it online? :)
I just read this 1 hr ago and decided to try. It was really good!!! I used grapeseed oil and still turned out great. And of course Tilamook Sharp Cheddar Cheese. The dough texture was really sticky and I just used mini muffin baking pan instead of making balls. 24 pcs were all gone in 15 mins between 5 of us. My husband said it was better than the one we usually buy (Brazi Cheeese Bites). Thank you again!!!!
Oh, I’m so glad! Thanks so much for the feedback, Ling. It makes me really happy! :)
THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU …. I just recently got married and my husband is from São Paulo, and I was born in Ontario, Canada … I had never heard of the deliciousness that is pão de queijo. He showed me a box that I could purchase and make for him. He was happy with that. I, loving to bake, was not. So I looked up recipes on line and found one that was so runny I had to pour it in muffin tins. While my husband ate it and said it was “fine”, I tried these tonight and he sent me a text as he ate it saying “It is official, I am eating a little bit of home. Well done princess.” So thank you again. They are delicious and super easy to make.
Cindy, thanks so much for taking the time to leave me this wonderful comment. It definitely made my day! I am from São Paulo, like your husband, and completely understand the “eating a little bit of home” feeling. Now that you’ve mastered the pão de queijo, you have to make him some requeijão (which is Brazilian cream cheese), coxinhas and brigadeiro! ;-)
Mentira Olivia! !! Você tem receita de requeijão? ??? Por favor poste! !! Já tentei muitas vezes e nada! !! Sou de São Paulo também e moro em PEI Canadá há 8 anos !!! Please please please
Oi Fabiana! Tenho sim. Procura aqui do lado na search bar e você vai achar! É super facinho de fazer e rende um montão. Também adoro requeijão! :) Obrigada por visitar meu blog!
Thanks for posting this recipe. Can you advise if you use a dough hook on your stand-mixer?
Look forward to trying this recipe.
Hi Cecilia! I use the paddle attachment for this recipe, as the dough won’t be sturdy enough for the dough hook! :)
I used the hook. It wasn’t perfect, I had to knead sometimes with my hands, but it worked!
Hi Vania! I’m glad it worked. The dough is supposed to be soft and sticky, almost like fondant. I usually wet my hands or grease with oil to form the balls! That way the pães de queijo are soft and pillowy and not tough. :)
excellent recipe and this dough tip is excellent, too, and ought to be in the recipe. muita obrigada.
I couldn’t find the mix and since I promised to take those to a Christmas party, well, google recipes was the solution! I have just made a batch of those! They are delicious! I will make another batch with a sharper cheese, because that’s just my taste, but this was life saver today! Thanks for posting!
You’re welcome! :) I’m really glad you enjoyed them. You can use any type of cheese and you can even stuff them with things like olives, ham, salami, etc.
Hi! Once I add the liquids to the 4c of tapioca it turns to liquid.. Could it be that milk is not too hot? Help 😢
Hi Karolina, what brand of tapioca are you using? You can add some more tapioca to fix it!
Thanks so much for the recipe. I just made ~30 of these bad boys following your instructions to a T. Not only was the taste on point but the texture was exactly the way I remember them- “pillowy”. I brought them to a party and they were all gone in few minutes!!
Oh I’m so glad, Dani! Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a review. :) :)
These looked amazing, and relatively easy to make. However, my results were vastly different from the descriptions here and from what other commenters have said. I followed directions and measured carefully, but the dough was very liquid – forming into balls was not possible. I spread some onto the baking sheet, a few others into a muffin tin per suggestions. The issue is that they never baked completely. The results were very gummy on the inside, while hard and crunchy on the outside, with a thick crust. Nothing soft or pillowy about them. I kept checking every 5 minutes, but there was very little change in the consistency, and after 30 minutes in the over then were starting to burn. Not sure what I was doing wrong?
Hi Kurt. I’m so sorry your pães de queijo didn’t turn out fabulous like they should. While it would be hard to figure out what went wrong without knowing exactly how you made them, let’s try to troubleshoot it. 1) Did you boil the milk, water and oil? This step is very important to make sure your cheese bread “puff” and grow while they’re baking. 2) If you still think the dough is too liquidy – it should be sticky but not liquidy – I recommend adding more tapioca flour, a little bit at a time, until manageable. The dough should resemble fondant and you have to wet your hands (or grease with oil) to be able to form the balls. 3) Maybe your oven runs hotter than mine. So try baking them at 350 to ensure they don’t bake too quick, as they will burn on the outside and remain raw inside.
Hopefully, this helps. My pão de queijo turns out very soft and gooey every time, but we have different equipment and oven temperatures. I hope you give them another try and let me know how they turn out!
Hi Olivia,
Thanks for your reply. If I try again I might omit the water, as the dough seemed to no need extra liquid. I did add extra tapioca flour a little at a time, but I was hesitant to add too much per your warning that it might get too tough. Perhaps the oven does run hot? It’s electric. They were definitely crunchy outside and raw inside. I will try it at 350 next time (I still have half the dough from last night). Thanks for the tips.
Hi, I had the same problem. Very liquidy and could not form balls. I added extra flour, but probably not enough. Did you try it again without water, and did that improve the texture. I poured my mixture into muffin pans and the result was still yummy, but I wanted to be able to form them with my hands in order to put a “surprise” in the centre
I don’t know if this is the problem but there can be a lot of misunderstanding about what is tapioca flour/Cassava flour and tapioca starch.
First tapioca and cassava come from are the same root/plant. Cassava is less refined and is the whole root cooked and dried. Tapioca starch is a refined product and has no fiber just the gelatinous qualities of starch.
My guess is you used tapioca starch and it became liquid when the water, milk were added and there was nothing to give your dough any structure.
I went to a Brazilian cafe that sells cheese bread and they had cassava flour and tapioca starch and it looked very different. Cassava flour was less fine and an off white color and more grainy. Tapioca starch was a very soft fine powder and very white. The type of flour/starch you used may be part or all of the problem. Order cassava flour online or if you live in big city you may be able to buy flour from a Brazilian store or restaurant.
I had similar problems, more like panceca de queijo, mas aínda delícia! Morei em Sampa para seite anos e voltei aos EU dois anos na pasada. I live at 4400 ft elevation and followed your recipe carefully. The dough was very liquidy so I added more flour which seemed to help.
I was not able to make “balls”, more like cookies. They browned nicely and taste delicious but are not puffy! Que pena! One difference is that I used Extra Virgin Olive Oil because that is all I had. I am determined to get this down becuase there is nothing better with coffee than this! Ajuda!
Beijo
I have made this recipe a few times for my husband. Amazing recipe by the way. I find the tapioca flour I get from the grocery store (loblaws) has a starch consistency and the dough comes out more like a sticky batter…pretty unmanageable. However, sometimes I am able to find sweet manioc flour (I believe that is how it is spelled) from the Portuguese stores in my area and sometimes in the international section of the grocery. It’s a thicker flour still made from cassava and works pretty well.
Hi Olivia, we have a Brazilian restaurant here in Houston called Fogo de Chow that serves these delicious rolls. My daughter is gluten free so I was so excited to find your recipe. I made these for Christmas dinner for her but was a little disappointed, please help. I followed the recipe exactly and didn’t mix too much at all. While they looked and tasted great, the insides were so tough that I couldn’t pull the roll apart. Any suggestions from you would be appreciated.
Hi Helen,
First, how amazing that you have a Brazilian restaurant. I’ll definitely check it out if I’m ever in Houston!
Second, I’m sorry you were disappointed. The pães de queijo should be soft and pillowy and not tough. Let’s try to figure out what went wrong.
Did you boil the milk, oil and water? I find that this step is crucial for the pães de queijo to puff when baking. My dad usually skips this step and his pães de queijo look more like pancakes. (Shhh, don’t tell him!)
Also, do you think your oven runs a little hotter than most? If yes, try baking the cheese rolls at 350. And keep a close eye on them, removing from the oven as soon as they start to get golden on the outside. While they can look more fabulous if they get super golden on the outside, that also means that they over cooked and won’t be as soft/gooey on the inside.
I hope you give them another try! If you have any other questions, feel free to contact me here or at oliviascuisine@gmail.com! :)
Mine came out perfectly. I used two spoons to shape the dough into balls as it was too sticky to handle even with wet hands. Has any tried using a pastry bag? The dough is basically the same as cream puff dough except for the use of tapioca instead of wheat flour. So I might try using a pastry bag next time for more uniformity.
Hello, mine came out decent, with one flaw – the puffs puffed up, but in a way that there was one big bubble that formed between the bottom and the top, and most of the dough was in one relatively thick gooey layer above this bubble. What could cause that? Ideally there’d be bubbles throughout the dough, obviously.. (btw i did boil the milk :) )
This recipe was absolutely perfect! Having lived in Brazil for a number of years, and also having been to quite a few Brazilian Churrascarias – I know the taste and consistency I was looking for – and this was it!
I didn’t change a thing in the recipe (except doubled it since I was making a bunch for a party), and they were fantastic!
As far as the “stickyness” issues, I used Extra Virgin Olive Oil as my oil, and I sprayed my cookie sheets with cooking spray since I did not have any parchment. However, I kept a bowl of cold water next to where I was making the balls and I would dip both hands into the water and shake off a bit, and dip my spoon into the water and shake off – about every two that I made.
The water allowed me to make very smooth puffs that came out like small dinner rolls.
If I may make a couple clarification points from some things I’m reading:
* The bread is SUPPOSED to be soft and chewy on the inside, and some would think it is like uncooked dough, but it’s cheese for heaven’s sake, it won’t be like a super fluffy roll.
* Make sure you use GRATED Parmesan, not shredded. I used the typical green Kraft kind you sprinkle on spaghetti, etc. Shredded or shaved parmesan has too much moisture in it.
Again, thanks for a perfect recipe for one of my all time favorite Brazilian treats!
John, so sorry for the delayed response. And thanks for the feedback! I’m glad my recipe was similar to what you were looking for. Being a Brazilian myself, I take my pão de queijo VERY seriously! lol
Also, great points! I might add them to the post, if you’ll allow me, to make it easier for the readers that had a hard time getting them right.
Thanks again! :)
I believe this is where I went wrong, I used shredded Parmesan and the end result was a very sticky mess I ended up putting in muffin tins. Will try again!
I’ve been trying to get the right balance and have tried numerous recipes without complete success. This one is by far the very best! Love it! They are delicious and the right texture and flavor.
Thank you so much, Laurie. I’m really glad you loved it!! :)
I lived in Brasil years ago, and I married a Brazilian. We love pão de queijo. Over the years, I have tried to find the perfect recipe. There have been many failures. One had way too much oil, and most are too runny and do not have the right texture. This is the perfect recipe! You got everything right. I used polvilho doce because my husband brought some from his last trip to Brasil. That is the only substitution I made, and it was Perfect! I have made your recipe twice now. The first time, I mixed everything hy hand which was NOT fun. The second time, I decided to let my Ninja do the work on the dough setting. It was so much easier. Folks, this is THE pão de queijo recipe. Do not try any others. My husband is raving about these and says they are better than what he had on his last trip to Brasil. Thanks, Olivia!
Oh wow. Thank you so much, Suze. I’m really happy that you enjoyed it!! :) You’ve made my day with your lovely feedback. And made me crave some pão de queijo, so I guess that’s in order for tomorrow. lol :)
We were at a Brazilian restaurant a few weeks ago and loved the cheese bread. I tried this recipe tonight and the results were perfect. Cheesy and chewy and wonderful. The batter for this is so dense and sticky that it made my old mixer smoke. I had to finish mixing this by hand – what a work-out but worth it! I’ve been looking for an excuse to upgrade my mixer and I now have it.
Thanks for the recipe. I’ll be making this a lot.
I just made a batch of these and they turned out awesome. Pillowy soft and cheesy. Thanks so much
Hi Olivia! Do you think you could substitute the parmesan for cotija? Cotija doesn’t seem to melt very easily so I don’t know if it’s a good idea. I just have some on hand, and would rather use something I have than go out and buy! :)
Hi Christy, I think Cotija is a fine substitute. I heard of lots of people make pão de queijo with cotija, since it’s similar to queijo media cura, which is the authentic cheese for pão de queijo. That being said, I’ve never tried making with it! So, if you do, please come back to let me know how it turned out! :)
I made this the other day with the Cotija and O. . .M. . .G!!!!!!! So ridiculously good! I haven’t tried it with the parmesan though so I don’t know how it compares to your original. My first taste of them were at a Brazilian restaurant here in Los Angeles and these taste pretty spot on. Great job!
Hello! This recipe looks delicious! Two questions, 1- I don’t have a stand mixer and therefore no paddle attachment. I do have a hand mixer that comes with a dough attachment; would this suffice? If not, what would you suggest as an alternative? 2- Just want to confirm that it is ok to grate the mozzarella using the big holes on a box grater. Thanks!
Hi Jenn,
I wouldn’t attempt to use your hand mixer, as it might break. Unfortunately, you will have to do it by hand. Just think of the great work out you will be getting! lol And, yes, the big holes of your grater should be fine.
Let me know how they turn out! :)
I’m the first to admit that I am not a great cook – I don’t even like to cook. But after my cousin made these, I loved them so much I made some too. Mine came out shaped like disks but they still had the right taste and consistency. Everyone loved them. I did add extra flour, a bit at a time but they still flattened out. Any suggestions?
I followed your recipe except replacing the milk with almond milk and replacing the eggs with aquafaba, and used a wooden spoon to mix as I don’t have a stand mixer. I also halved everything as I didn’t want to make too many in case it failed. Sure enough, it did :( The outside texture seemed fine, but once I tore it apart the inside was gummy and too stretchy, with an almost translucent colour instead of that lovely white puffiness. Too bad, as I was so looking forward to these after so long!
Hi Annisa,
Thank you for stopping by and I’m sorry the recipe didn’t work for you. I’ve never cooked with aquafaba and have never made this recipe with almond milk, so I don’t recommend those substitutions. Maybe find a recipe for vegan pão de queijo? I know there are a few out there. :)
Hi, I tried to make these several times from my brazilian friend’s recipe who used to make the most amazing pao de quejo… now I tried with your recipe; however they still come out not as they should be. First of all the quantities get a more liquid texture and to get to something I can put on a baking tray I should add an extra cup of flour… then, when they come out of the oven are all puffy and all of the sudden they drop… when I open them they are all sticky instead of sticky/bready kind of thing, the outside is also shiny instead of being bready like yours! Why I cannot get these right? Help!
Hi Claudia! I’m so sorry your pão de queijo didn’t come out amazing like they should. Let’s try to troubleshoot it. As for them sinking when they come out of the oven, I can think of two things: 1) Did you boil the milk and water before adding to the dry ingredients? This step is vital for the pao de queijo to be puffed. 2) Maybe your oven is too hot and they are browning on the outside without cooking inside. Try lowering the heat to 350 after about 10 minutes.
As for needing more flour, that is normal. Depending on the weather/humidity, you will need less or more flour. So add some more, just until you can scoop them into a baking sheet. It is supposed to be sticky. I usually have to wet my hands so I can deal with the dough!
Let me know if you need more help. You can also reach me at oliviascuisine@gmail.com! Let’s get you amazing, pillowy pão de queijo, like you deserve!
Hi! I had the same issues they looked great,I followed the recipe exactly, bit thingie was a flat white gum :(
HI Olivia. I want to try to make this bread. Is there any chance to have all ingredients in ml or grams?
I just tried your recipe, and they came out amazing! It was my first time ever making Pão de Queijo so I was really worried about how it was going to turn out. I had them once not too long ago at a Brazilian steakhouse and I loved them, and have been wanting to make my own ever since.
I read in one of the other comments that someone almost burnt out the motor of their blender trying this recipe, so I ended up actually doing about half of the mixing manually haha (I don’t have a standing mixer). I would blend it for a few seconds, then mix it by hand, then blend again and so forth. It was a bit laborious, but I didn’t want to risk it since it’s not my blender hahaha. But it was worth it! They came out looking EXACTLY like your picture and taste amazing! Thank you so much for sharing this!
Hi Jessica, I’m so glad you enjoyed them, even with all the muscle workout! :) Thanks so much for taking the time to leave me feedback. I really appreciate it!
No problem! Definitely one of the best snacks I’ve ever made, and there was enough batter for me to freeze half and save for later. I shared with my cousin and she loved them too. I think it’ll definitely be worth investing in a standing mixer for next time though haha.
I’ve been planning on developing an easier recipe, that can be made in the blender. Maybe it won’t be as cheesy and delicious as this one, but a good option for when you want pão de queijo ASAP. I’ll let you know how it goes! :)
I tried this recipe over the weekend and they were absolutely delicious! I ending up burning out the motor on the hand mixer and eventually just ended up kneading it manually because the stand mixer kept on freezing up because the dough was too sticky, almost glue-like. I wish I had a photo because the dough was all over me and the kitchen :) Should I use less Tapioca starch the next time and add more in if there is too much liquid? I know its supposed to be sticky but I wasted a lot of the dough because it just stuck to everything! The result was so good so it was worth the clean up – just wondering if I could simplify a little. I like your idea of using the oil on my hands to form the balls!
Hi Amy!
Oh no, I’m so sorry you burned the motor of your mixer. You really need a strong mixer – or muscles – for this heavy dough! And yes, if making it by hand, it can be quite messy. But so worth it, right? I’ve been meaning to develop another recipe, with a lighter dough, that can be made in the blender! It probably won’t be as gooey as this one, but good if you need pão de queijo in a pinch. And, to answer your question, yes you can totally play with the amount of flour and liquid, if you think that was the problem. Or you can just add some more milk if the dough is too tough. If the dough ends up being too liquidy to form balls, you can just scoop it into a muffin pan! I hope that helps! :)
Hi Olivia
Thank you for such great article and great recipe
But I have question for you
Can I substitute tapioca flower for corn starch or whole use flower as I am getting hard time finding tapioca in the country where I live
Thank you
Hi Tony, unfortunately pão de queijo only works with tapioca flour. Can you try ordering on Amazon? I also have a recipe for the French version (which is similar but not the same) and that uses regular flour. Just search in my recipe index for Gougeres. I hope that helps! :)
I made these for breakfast today in honor of the Rio Olympics and they came out amazing. I varied the cheese mixture a bit to heighten the flavor (instead of all Parmesan, I used equal parts Parmesan, Pecorino and aged Vermont cheddar). Thanks for a great recipe.
Hi Bridget, I’m glad you enjoyed them! That mixture of cheeses sounds really interesting. I sometimes like to play with pão de queijo by making crazy versions, like with gouda cheese or stuffed with olives, requeijão (which is the Brazilian version of cream cheese), calabresa sausage and even goiabada (guava paste)! I could literally live off just pão de queijo! lol
This bread was FABULOUS! For health reasons, I have been relegated to a Paleo diet and what I missed most was bread! Most of the Paleo recipes for bread that I tried, just didn’t do it for me. Today I made homemade Marinara sauce with big wonderful meatballs and thought I would try this recipe. Wow! They came out looking exactly like yours, soft on the outside, gooey and cheesy in the middle. I am so happy to have found a great recipe that really fulfills that bread urge! I followed your recipe exactly, except that I added a little more mozzarella. This is going to be a staple in our house! Thanks so much for posting this recipe
Holy moly, these are delicious! I enjoy baking, though I do have a mishap every once in a while. I was concerned with the difficulty of this recipe after reading other comments, but they turned out PERFECT! I was so proud! I made them for an Olympics party, and they left such a strong impression on everyone that 2 weeks later I am still thinking about them. I didn’t experience the runniness that others did, but I think that is do to packing the flour into my measuring cup. I had a difficult time locating the tapioca flour but eventually found some at Whole Foods for anyone else having trouble. Thank you so much for posting this recipe! I will definitely be making it again!
Just a side note: You can purchase tapioca flour very reasonably at Amazon.com. I ordered 4 20 ounce bags for about $16 with free shipping with my Prime membership.
We just discovered this food through an impulse buy at Whole Foods: Brazi Asiago and Garlic Cheese Bread. We liked it a lot so decided to make it ourselves, looking at various online recipes. They are all pretty similar, but only a few have minced garlic. Yours does not. What is the garlic variation like, authenticity-wise? We are big garlic lovers. We haven’t tried your variation yet, but next time!
Olivia, would you be so kind to measure all the ingredients in grams? It would be so much easier to make these buns perfect. I tried to cook following your instructions, but it didn’t work out.. And I’m so upset about it.
Yes i am wondering the same thing. I tried them but im not sure they were right. I used butter instead of oil and that seemed to make a little difference (better). They weren’t what they are supposed to be though. When i used a measure cup it only weighed roughly 300gms.
Weights to work from would be great please olivia x
Omg so I had this bread in cafe, and fell in love with it but I live far away so I searched on Pinterest and found ur recipe! Decided to try it, I do not have a stand mixer so I used my hands. But omg soooooo gooddddd! My niece came out flat like patties or an arepa shape but I don’t care still so yummy, thank you so muchhhh!
I’m glad you enjoyed it, Dia. I find that the pão de queijo won’t rise when I don’t boil the milk first. The hot milk in contact with the tapioca flour is what makes the pão de queijo puff. My dad swears by his pão de queijo – which tastes amazing – but he doesn’t boil the milk, so the final breads are like pancakes. :) Also, it might have something to do with the starch you use. I use the Bob’s Red Mill one here in the U.S. -> http://amzn.to/2fSjLd2. I hope that helps!
i found your recipe some time ago and as I am Celiac and must eat gluten free I tried it. They are amazing. Truly so amazing and so very yummy. I use this recipe for all kinds of bready things. I precook my homemade sausage and wrap one of the raw rolls around it before baking and it comes out wonderfully. I use it for a pizza dough base… truly a miracle… soft and slightly chewy and I pre-bake it for a few minutes before topping it and it stands up well. Even our friends love this as pizza dough.Thank you so much for a recipe that is so delicious and versatile.
Hi Martha! Thank you so much for stopping by to leave feedback. :) Funny how you said you use it as pizza dough because just yesterday I saw a Brazilian youtuber who did that. Now I’m very curious and will need to try that next time I make pizza! Thanks for the suggestion!
My wife is 100% Strict Vegeterian “No Eggs”, can you suggest how to make this recipe without eggs, I want to take this challenge of making this beautiful recipe without eggs and achieve almost as good.
Second can you suggest other than Tapioca Flour – is is possible!
Hi Jacky,
I can’t testify to the efficacy of this, but I’ve heard of people substituting the eggs for flaxseed in pão de queijo. For each egg, combine 1 tablespoon of ground flax seed with 3 tablespoons of water. Stir well, and place in the fridge to set for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, the result should be a sticky egg-like substitute.
As for the tapioca flour, you could use manioc starch but that will be kinda hard to find if you’re not in Brazil. If you want to make cheese puffs with all purpose flour, search for my gougeres recipe instead!
I hope that helps!
Best,
Olivia
Hi there!
I have made variations of this bread before but your recipe sounds perfect! I am making them for a party and was wondering if it is ok to do the boiling/mixing steps to prepare the dough ahead of time before I head to my friend’s house to pop them in the oven? Or will this ruin the puffiness? There will be a lot of food prep involved so getting the oven time at her house was an achievement since I assured her these were best fresh out of the oven!
Thank you,
Marjie
Hi Marjie, in that case, I would make the pão de queijo and then freeze them after making the balls. You can even make them a few days ahead. Then, transport them frozen to your friend’s house and bake them. :) I hope that helps!
Hi Olivia!
I wanted to make these for a company potluck and was wondering – how bad would it be to reheat these in the microwave? how would you suggest to do that?
Thanks!
Hi Michael,
So you won’t have an oven at the party? Cause you could make the balls, freeze them and then bake at the party. If not, just serve them at room temperature! They’ll still be delicious!