Pão de quê

This is a trip down the memory lane for anyone having traveled through the hinterland of the south American continent. Nothing else has the satisfying crunchy yet gummy mouthfeel of the dear Brazilian breakfast item. This particular Pão de queijo replaces queijo (cheese) with quê (what?!). And it’s a long stretch to call it even pão (bread) since it’s not made from any cereal! Unfortunately the clever name is not my own idea but a popular vegan alternative to the even more popular staple.

Only attempt to make this if you can find the all important main ingredient Polvilho azedo (fermented cassava starch) the only acceptable substitute might be Polvilho doce (regular cassava starch). Trust me that Farinha de mandioca (cassava flour) which is common used for making Farofa will not work at all.

Heat up

• 150ml (olive-)oil

into that stir in

• 500g Polvilho azedo (fermented cassava starch)

which will be just a clumpy mess at this point. then add and kneed in

• 500g–1000g of precooked and mashed potatoes (can be sweet potatoes or cassava or a mix of those)

Stop adding more mashed potatoes when the dough starts to loose its shape when forming a ball with it. To give it some taste and color add about

• 2 tsp. salt
• 2 tsp. turmeric powder

Form little balls from the dough and lay out on a baking paper. Bake for about 30min in a preheated oven at about 180˚C until golden and cruchy on the outside.

Share and enjoy while it’s still hot!