Brazilian Cheese Bread

Brazilian Cheese Bread (Pao De Queijo) – tastes just like the fancy Brazilian steakhouse chewy cheese bread! Super easy to make and tastes great! Milk, oil. salt, tapioca flour, parmesan cheese, mozzarella cheese, and eggs. Naturally gluten-free bread. Can use any cheese you prefer. These little cheese puffs go with everything – steak, pork, chicken, salad, and soups! Even if you aren’t doing a gluten-free diet, you will love these easy Brazilian cheese bread puffs.

basket of brazilian cheese bread

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Homemade Brazilian Cheese Puffs

Have you ever tried Brazilian Cheese Bread? Brazilian Cheese Bread, or Pão de Queijo, is in the simplest of terms a chewy cheese puff. We first tried it last year at a Brazilian steak house. I was amazing. We almost filled up on the bread basket before we got to the meat course. I knew I had to make my own Brazilian cheese bread at home so we could indulge in this bread anytime we wanted!

I tested a lot of recipes and finally perfected the recipe. This gluten-free Brazilian Cheese Bread recipe is the BEST! Crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside. Just like the fancy Brazilian steak house! These cheesy puffs are great with just about anything – steak, chicken, pork, soup, chili. Anything! I made a batch for dinner last week and ate WAY too many of them. Definitely one of the best things we ate last week. Whip up a batch for your dinner table tonight!

Brazilian cheese bread on a baking sheet

How to Make Brazilian Cheese Bread with Tapioca Starch

This bread recipe is very easy to make with only a few simple ingredients. Unlike some recipes I’ve seen, this recipe doesn’t use a blender or mini muffin tins. This recipe is made on the stovetop and in an electric stand mixer.

In a small saucepan over medium-high heat, heat milk, oil, and salt until it reaches a boil. Remove from heat as soon as it starts to boil and stir in tapioca flour with a wooden spoon. The mixture will be very sticky. Transfer the tapioca flour mixture into the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat on medium speed for 2 to 3 minutes, until a smooth dough forms. Add the grated cheeses and mix at low speed. Add eggs and mix until smooth. Scoop the dough with an ice cream scoop or large cookie scoop onto a parchment paper-lined cookie sheet. Bake the dough balls until golden brown.

Helpful Tips & Frequently Asked Questions

  • Tapioca flour and tapioca starch are the same things. The name on the package depends on the producers’ choice, but the product is the same.
    • I use Bob’s Red Mill Brand Tapioca Flour. I buy it at Whole Foods.
  • Can use vegetable oil, canola oil, or olive oil.
  • I used mozzarella cheese, but you can different cheeses. Sharp cheddar, Monterey Jack, swiss cheese and Pepper Jack would be nice. Get creative!
  • Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
inside of Brazilian cheese bread

How to Serve Pao De Queijo

This gluten-free bread has quickly become a favorite at our house. This homemade version is a million times better than the frozen Brazi Bites you find at Costco and the grocery store. I’ve made this bread several times and we absolutely love it! It goes great with grilled meats, soups, chili, salads – pretty much everything. I usually make a half batch since there are just two of us and we would eat the whole batch if I made it! LOL! We have zero self-control around these cheese puffs. Give this a try ASAP! This is sure to become a family favorite recipe!

Here are a few of our favorite recipes that go great with this Pão De Queijo recipe:

basket of brazilian cheese bread

Brazilian Cheese Bread (Pao De Queijo)

Yield: 2 dozen
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 35 minutes
Brazilian Cheese Bread (Pao De Queijo) – tastes just like the fancy Brazilian steakhouse chewy cheese bread! Super easy to make and tastes great! Milk, oil. salt, tapioca flour, parmesan cheese, mozzarella cheese, and eggs. Naturally gluten-free bread. Can use any cheese you prefer. These little cheese puffs go with everything – steak, pork, chicken, salad, and soups! Even if you aren't doing a gluten-free diet, you will love these easy Brazilian cheese bread puffs.

Ingredients:

Instructions:

  • Preheat oven to 350ºF. Line a baking pan with parchment and set aside.
  • In a large saucepan, over medium-high heat, boil milk, oil, and salt, whisking occasionally. Remove when you start to see large bubbles forming. Working quickly, stir in the tapioca flour. The dough will become VERY tacky and gummy. It will almost become gelatinous.
  • Transfer dough to the bowl of a standing mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment. Turn mixing speed on low and gradually increase to medium. Beat the mixture for 2-3 minutes until it begins to become smooth. Add the grated cheeses and incorporate. Turn the mixing speed down to low and add eggs one at a time, beat on medium for 2-3 minutes until a sticky, stretchy dough forms.
  • Using a large cookie scoop, create portions by dipping scoop in water, scooping the batter and placing onto the prepared baking sheet. Place in oven and bake for 25-30 minutes, or until the tops and sides are lightly golden in color and the outsides are crisp. (They may look a little greasy, but that’s just from the cheese, and they won’t be greasy when they cool.)
  • Remove from the oven and allow to cool on the sheet a few minutes before serving.

Notes:

Can use any cheese you prefer instead of mozzarella cheese.

Steph

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collage of 2 photos of Brazilian cheese bread
basket of brazilian cheese bread
inside of brazilian cheese bread

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Comments

  1. These are wonderful We’ve been making double batches and keeping them in the fridge to have with dinner instead of rolls. I have also eaten them for breakfast! And they always turn out!

  2. I did something wrong. My rolls are not fluffy puffy inside, they are dense cheesy. Did I not cook long enough on first step? I don’t think my dough seemed gelatinous. At the end they were sticky stretching and scooped well dipping scoop in water first. What I am seeing is that I used 1/2 cup olive oil not vegetable oil. And I have 12 rolls not 24. Any feedback to my problem? Is it the olive oil?

    1. Could be the olive oil. Could be that you made much larger rolls than the recipe calls for. Could be that you didn’t cook it long enough in step one or beat it long enough in the mixer. I really can’t say since I wasn’t there when you made them.

      1. Thank you for responding, I appreciate any help. I did let the milk mixture come to a boil. But I’m not sure what the large bubbles forming actually means. Maybe I turned off the heat too soon. Can you explain the large bubbles forming? How long does it take for this to occur after liquid comes to a boil? I do hope it wasn’t the olive oil. With the recipe being gluten free I will try again. (I love the cheesy keto biscuits and they turned out perfect. I used the same large cookie scoop which is 3 Tbsp)

  3. After adding the eggs, the mixture became very runny, even after beating it for several minutes. Maybe 1 egg?

    1. I used 2 eggs – you may just need to mix it longer. Did you mix it 2 or 3 minutes after adding the eggs?

  4. I have a question. I do not have a mixer with the paddle attachment. Can I use a hand mixer and beat on low and get the same affect as using the paddle attachment for a standing mixer??

    1. I would say a day or two. You can freeze any leftovers and reheat them in the microwave for a few seconds.

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