Just like the Brigadeiro is a dessert, or sobremesa as it’s called in Brazil, the one food you see everywhere, in every imaginable size, is pão de queijo. I’ve mentioned this treat in several previous posts because it’s become one of my favorite Brazilian foods.
Pão de queijo is technically cheese bread, but it’s unlike any cheese bread I had growing up in the United States. You’ll find it everywhere, from coffee shops and restaurants to bakeries and roadside vendors. It’s the go-to snack for just about everyone.
I would venture to say that no one who has tried it has ever said, “Nah, not for me.” I’d also bet that if you walk into a place serving fresh pão de queijo, you’ll probably have one. I loved them the very first time I tried one, and now I eat them several times a week.
As I mentioned, they’re everywhere, and there is no universal size. When I go to the grocery store, I usually buy a 400-gram bag, which holds about 15 or 20 of them. Every bakery and market I visit seems to have them. I go so often that they usually hand me a fresh sample while I’m standing at the counter. When they come out of the oven hot, they’re even better.
The outside has just a slight crispness from the oven lightly browning the top, while the inside is warm, soft, and pleasantly chewy. The cheese flavor isn’t overpowering. It’s just enough to make you reach for another one before you’ve even finished the first. In a way, it takes me back to my grandmother’s cooking on a cold winter day. Nothing was piping hot, just warm, comforting, and perfect. Pão de queijo gives me the same feeling. You tell yourself you’ll eat just one, but you won’t. I lose that battle every time. Sometimes I even buy a small bag just to eat on the walk home.
The ones from the grocery store are usually about the size of a golf ball. At my favorite coffee shop, they’re a little larger and flatter, maybe about three-quarters the size of a hockey puck. The size varies a bit, and so does the amount of cheese, but the taste is consistently delicious.
If I had to choose one food I could eat every day, I think I’ve already found it.
Some people come to Brazil for the beaches.
I’ll keep coming back for the pão de queijo.
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