Breakfast Pão de Queijo
Small gluten-free rolls made from manioc starch and cheese, crispy on the outside and wonderfully elastic inside. Eaten warm, straight from the oven, with coffee.
Small gluten-free rolls made from manioc starch and cheese, crispy on the outside and wonderfully elastic inside. Eaten warm, straight from the oven, with coffee.
This, my friend, is coffee's companion. At the studio, when we were looking for a melody that wouldn't come, we'd send someone to get warm pão de queijo. You take one, it strings like chiclete, you close your eyes — and there it is, the chord arrives by itself. It's the amido de mandioca, the manioc starch, that gives them that elasticity of lazy Cariocas. Simple, but without them, no morning holds up.
- •Manioc starch (polvilho azedo and doce) — equal parts (elastic base)
- •Aged Minas cheese — a good amount (flavor and umami)
- •Milk, eggs, oil — as needed for dough (binder)
- •Salt — a pinch (seasoning)
Breakfast Pão de Queijo
Small gluten-free rolls made from manioc starch and cheese, crispy on the outside and wonderfully elastic inside. Eaten warm, straight from the oven, with coffee.
Why this dish? Small soft and elastic cheese balls, pão de queijo is nibbled everywhere in Brazil with cafezinho, from morning to the studio. It's the quintessential everyday snack of Jobim's Brazil.
This, my friend, is coffee's companion. At the studio, when we were looking for a melody that wouldn't come, we'd send someone to get warm pão de queijo. You take one, it strings like chiclete, you close your eyes — and there it is, the chord arrives by itself. It's the amido de mandioca, the manioc starch, that gives them that elasticity of lazy Cariocas. Simple, but without them, no morning holds up.
Ingredients (period version)
- Manioc starch (polvilho azedo and doce) — equal parts (elastic base)
- Aged Minas cheese — a good amount (flavor and umami)
- Milk, eggs, oil — as needed for dough (binder)
- Salt — a pinch (seasoning)
Ingredients
- Manioc starch (tapioca) — 250 g (gluten-free base)
- Milk — 120 ml (binder)
- Neutral oil — 80 ml (softness)
- Eggs — 2 (structure)
- Grated Parmesan + Comté (if Minas cheese unavailable) — 150 g (flavor)
- Salt — 1 tsp (seasoning)
Method
- Bring the milk, oil, and salt to a boil, then pour over the manioc starch and mix: the dough becomes lumpy and sticky.
- Let cool slightly, then incorporate the eggs one by one, then the grated cheese. Work until the dough is smooth and elastic (slightly sticky is normal).
- With oiled hands, form small balls the size of a walnut and place on a baking sheet.
- Bake at 180°C for 20–25 minutes: they puff up, turn lightly golden, and stay soft inside.
- Enjoy warm, straight from the oven, with a strong coffee.
How it was made : Pão de queijo comes from Minas Gerais, land of cheese and manioc. Before modern ovens, these breads were baked in the wood-fired ovens of fazendas. Manioc starch, inherited from indigenous techniques for processing the root, replaced wheat, which grew poorly in the tropics.
The contemporary twist : Insert a small heart of melting cheese or a dab of goiabada in the center before baking for a sweet-savory surprise.
Sources : Câmara Cascudo, História da Alimentação no Brasil
Antônio Carlos Jobim · Charactorium