Ingredients
Dough
- 400 galmidón de yuca, cassava starch
- 500 gqueso fresco, firm and salty, finely grated
- 2eggs
- 60 gbutter, softened
- 1 tspbaking powder
- a little milk, if needed
Note
- no wheat flour and no corn flour
To serve
- yogur de frutas, drinkable yoghurt
- or coffee
Directions
- Use almidón de yuca, sweet cassava starch, sold as tapioca starch or polvilho doce. The cheese is the other half of the recipe and it must be firm, salty and dry.
- Grate the cheese as finely as you can, almost to a powder. Fine grating matters, because lumps of cheese melt into holes and the roll collapses around them. Rub the softened butter into the cassava starch and baking powder with your fingertips.
- Add the grated cheese and work it through. The dough should be soft, slightly sticky and hold together when squeezed, and it will feel quite unlike a wheat dough.
- Add a splash of milk only if it refuses to come together, and add as little as possible. Too much liquid and the rolls spread flat instead of puffing up.
- Roll the dough into balls about the size of a golf ball and set them apart on a lined tray. Bake at 200°C (390°F) for 15 to 20 minutes. They are ready when they have puffed, cracked slightly on top and are pale gold, not brown.
- Take them out while they are still pale. Browned pan de yuca goes hard and dry, and the inside should stay soft and stretchy.
- Serve them straight from the oven, and eat them within minutes. They go hard and rubbery within twenty minutes of cooling, which is why Ecuadorian shops bake them in small batches all day.
Technique
- The unbaked balls freeze extremely well and go into the oven from frozen with 5 minutes added.
- Sour cassava starch, polvilho azedo, gives a tangier and more open roll.
- Reheating them in a hot oven for a few minutes revives them reasonably well.
Substitutions
- Tapioca starch or polvilho doce for almidón de yuca.
- A firm salty white cheese: feta, queso blanco or young halloumi.
Variations
- Made with sour cassava starch for a tangier roll.
- Pandebono, the Colombian version with corn flour.
- Pão de queijo, the Brazilian relative.
History
A Guayaquil snack-shop staple, kin to Colombian pandebono and Brazilian pao de queijo, always served with drinkable yogurt.
Frequently asked questions
What is Pan de yuca?
Pan de yuca is a bread & pastry from Ecuador: chewy cassava-starch and cheese roll eaten hot with a yogurt drink. A Guayaquil snack-shop staple, kin to Colombian pandebono and Brazilian pao de queijo, always served with drinkable yogurt.
How long does Pan de yuca take to make?
Pan de yuca takes 20 min of preparation and 20 min of cooking. The recipe makes about 16 rolls. It is rated easy to make.
What can I substitute in Pan de yuca?
Yes, within limits. Tapioca starch or polvilho doce for almidón de yuca. A firm salty white cheese: feta, queso blanco or young halloumi.
What is the most important thing to get right in Pan de yuca?
Use almidón de yuca, sweet cassava starch, sold as tapioca starch or polvilho doce. The cheese is the other half of the recipe and it must be firm, salty and dry.
