My first encounter with Brazilian culture was at the age of 18 when I travelled abroad to study in the United States and met students from many different countries; among them, Brazil. Today, 25 years later, I am still in touch with one of those Brazilian girls, and even though we have only met once more, we care for each other quite a bit, just like when we first met. I hope that when the situation we are currently living in the world ends I soon get the chance to go visit her in her country.
Later, it wasn’t until a decade later that I became interested in Brazil and its language due to my work and the need to communicate thereof, so, I started to study the language of Vasco de Gama and even to dance (quite badly) a bit of samba in an event of the language center the Brazilian Embassy used to have in Mexico back then.
But, how did the pão de queijo become part of my gastronomical baggage? Well, I think and believe it was actually when I arrived to live in the Washington DC area, when in an event they were served and I totally fell in love with them. I asked for the recipe here and there, but nothing came about. Everyone said they were easy to make, but no one told me how. And it was just during these quarantine days when another friend, also Brazilian, but who lives in Mexico, who told me that a well-known chef from her country had shared the recipe. She did, however, make some comments taste-wise. I adapted as I saw fit, and here are my results:
You may, of course, adapt as need there’d be if you don’t have a specific ingredient or cannot seem to find it.
Pão de queijo or Brazilian Cheese Puffs
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Add the tapioca flour or cornstarch and the salt in a bowl and mix well.
- Boil the water, milk, and oil in a saucepan or pot and then pour the liquid in the bowl. Mix well.
- Add the egg previously whisked.
- Incorporate the pecorino romano cheese, and then add the mozzarella.
- Take a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and arrange small balls of dough of approximately one tablespoon each leaving enough space in between, since they will puff up a little when they go into the oven.
- Put the baking sheet in the refrigerator for about 15 minutes and preheat the oven at 350 °F (180 °C).
- Once the oven reaches temperature, bake the cheese puffs for about 10 minutes.
- Serve warm; it’s when they taste best.