Brazilian Cheese Puffs (Pao de Queijo)
- Total Time
- 1 hour, plus 2 hours resting
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
- 335grams tapioca starch (about 3 cups), plus more to dust your hands
- 18grams salt (2 teaspoons)
- ¼teaspoon baking powder
- ⅔cup whole milk
- ½cup canola oil
- 1½tablespoons butter, softened
- 2large eggs
- 94grams grated Pecorino Romano cheese (about ¾ cup)
- 94grams grated Parmesan cheese (about ¾ cup)
Nutritional analysis per serving (32 servings)
104 calories; 6 grams fat; 2 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 3 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 10 grams carbohydrates; 0 grams dietary fiber; 0 grams sugars; 3 grams protein; 93 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
In an electric mixer with a paddle attachment, blend the tapioca starch, salt and baking powder on low speed.
- Step 2
Put the milk, oil, butter and ⅔ cup water in a small pot and bring to boil. Immediately pour it over the starch and mix at low speed until all the ingredients are blended and the dough is smooth, about 3 or 4 minutes.
- Step 3
Stop the mixer and crack in the eggs. Mix at low speed for 8 to 10 minutes until the dough becomes sticky. Stop to scrape down the bowl and blade, but quickly resume the mixing.
- Step 4
Stop the mixer and pour in the cheeses. Mix on low for 40 to 50 seconds, just enough to blend the cheeses into the dough.
- Step 5
Refrigerate for 2 hours.
- Step 6
Heat the oven to 375 degrees. With a small scoop take out small lumps of this soft, sticky dough and, after lightly dusting your hands with tapioca starch, form them into 1-inch balls. Keep dusting your hands as needed.
- Step 7
Place the rolls on a baking sheet about 2 inches apart. (Leftover rolls can be frozen, then thawed before baking.) Bake for 20 to 23 minutes, until the flecks of cheese are brown and the crust is lightly golden. Serve warm, as they may get tough as they get very cool.
Private Notes
Comments
These is way too much work. I found a recipe online that doesn't have baking powder or butter and doesn't require cooking the liquids. You put everything in the blender and mix. The resulting liquid is poured into cupcake pans (I use the mini-cupcake pan) and baked. The result is delicious (as attested to by my Brasilian friends). I store the uneaten cheese bread in a plastic bag in the fridge and reheat in the toaster oven.
My wife makes excellent pão de queijo. When I was reading the recipe back to her, she was shocked to hear baling powder included. Absolutely no need to use baking powder. Also any dry aged cheese can be used, at least by her. She just made a batch using some leftover gruyere.
Fyi, these keep in the freezer for months. Just store in a tightly sealed container with parchment paper in between the layers (if layering).
Delicious! Did some minor adjustments: -Did not add baking soda -Subbed mozzarella cheese -Did not put in the fridge for two hours (straight from mixer to baking sheet) Also, used an ice cream scoop to measure out the balls, occasionally dipping in water to make the dough easy to portion. Rolled the balls by hand afterward. Definitely can’t wait to make again!
Recipe is forgiving. Substituted buttermilk for milk because I had it. At others' suggestions, did not cook the milk mixture and omitted baking powder. After adding eggs, dough did not become sticky so added more tapioca starch until it did. After sitting for 2 hours, it was quite dense (next time will not add extra starch). First batch on baking sheets spread out like crackers so put the next into mini muffin tins. End result was great, even the crackers which I just baked until crisp.
Just returned from Brazil and was eager to make these. I omitted the baking powder per suggestions, these were very tasty but did not puff up as expected, they were rather flat. Believe the dough was a good consistency. I do live at elevation so will try again with the baking powder to see if that helps.
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