BRAZIL
Pão de queijo
Cheese
buns, cheese breads, pão de queijo, chipá, or cuñapé, are a variety of small, baked,
cheese-flavoured rolls, a popular snack and breakfast food in Bolivia, Brazil (specially in the state of Minas Gerais), Paraguay and northern Argentina. Its origin is uncertain; it is
speculated that the recipe has existed since the
eighteenth century in Minas Gerais (Brazil), but it became popular throughout
the country after the 1950s. It's also widely eaten in northern Argentina. In countries where the
snack is popular, it is inexpensive and often sold from street side stands by vendors carrying a heat-preserving
container. In Brazil, it's very commonly found in groceries, supermarkets and
bakeries, industrialized and/or freshly made.
The original
name is from Guarani chipa . It is also known as pão de
queijo , 'cheese bread' in Portuguese, or chipa, chipacito or chipita and in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia, the
term cuñapé (Guarani) is often used. The pan de
yuca in Ecuador and Colombia and pan de bono in Colombia are both very similar to chipa.
Cheese buns
are distinctive not only because they are made of cassava or corn flour, but also because the inside is
chewy and moist. Its size may range from 2 cm to 15 cm (1 to
6 inches) in diameter and approximately 5 cm (2 inches) in
height. In Paraguay and Argentina, smaller chipá can also be found, as well as
"mini pães de queijo" in Brazil. Also varieties of stuffed pães de
queijo with catupiry, hot and melted goiabada, doce de leite and other variations can be found in
Brazil.
History
Chipá or
Cuñapé has been prepared in the Guarani region (northern Argentina, Paraguay,
south-eastern Bolivia and areas of Brazil) since humans settled in the area.
During inception, the Guarani people prepared it only with cassava starch and water.
After the arrival of the colonists and Jesuit missionaries, and with the
introduction of cattle, chickens and new products derived from this livestock (like cheese and eggs), chipá began
to gradually evolve into the widely-used recipe of the early 21st century.
During the
second half of the 20th century, migration within South America has increased
consumption of pão de queijo and chipás in large cities such as São Paulo, Belo Horizonte, Buenos Aires and Córdoba, Argentina. In Brazil, the
dish became a national sensation in the 1950s.
Preparation
Chipá
The most
frequent variety of chipá is made from cassava starch, milk, cheese, eggs and
butter or oil (occasionally, anise seeds are added). The dough is formed into
little balls, 3 centimetres in diameter. The lightness of the cassava starch,
which is thinly milled, gives the bread a special
texture.
Cuñape uses the same ingredients as chipá but in different
proportions.
Pão
de queijo
The cassava
root produces a very powerful starch which is key to the size and texture of
the pão de queijo; unlike other types of bread, the recipe calls for no leavening of any kind. Small pockets of air
within the dough expand during baking and are contained by the powerful elasticity of the starch paste.
One can
knead pão de queijo in a mixer with a hook attachment or do it manually by
hand. Once the mixture reaches a doughy consistency, it's vital to roll it
into a ball and either bake immediately or freeze it for later use. If left to
rest, the dough will virtually liquefy. Regardless of whether the bread is made
from freshly made dough, or with frozen dough prepared at a prior cooking
session, the final pão de queijo will be the same size and texture.
Paraguay and Northeastern Argentina
In the
Guaraní region, the chipás are often baked in smaller doughnuts or
buns that are called chipa'í or chipacitos. These are sold in
small paper bags by street sellers of big cities and small towns. Every variety
of manioc and corn flour bread is known in Paraguay and Northeast of Argentina
as chipa and mbeju, this also originally from Paraguay.
In the preparation,
yeast is not used, so in spite of the high temperatures of the region, it can
be preserved for many days. It is a festive food and
can be found in every popular religious celebration.
Other common
variants in Paraguay include the chipa
guasu or
chipá guazú ("chipa grande", "big chipa" in English), made
with corn flour in its fresh state (clog), one of the most usual dishes at the Holy Friday table during the Lent period because it is meat-free; the
chipa caburé or chipá mbocá (cooked around a stick, in consequence it doesn't
have the spongy inner centre) and the chipa so'ó, filled with ground meat.
There are other varieties of chipa with different ingredients; chipa manduvi
(made with a mix of corn flour and peanut), chipá avatí and chipa rora (made of
the skin of the seed of corn after being strained, like a whole-wheat bread).
The
Paraguayan city of Coronel Bogado in the department of Itapúa is considered the National Capital of the Chipa.
In Brazil, pão de queijo is a popular
breakfast dish and snack. Made of cassava starch, a large number of consumers
prefer to buy the mix and bake the bread at home, rather than buying it
ready-made; however, pão de queijo continues to be
widely sold at snack bars and bakeries.
"Casa do Pão de Queijo", a specialized national chain, has expanded
considerably due to a recipe that produces a distinctive, slightly sour
version. On the BR-381 road, near Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais state capital, there's a
snack bar/restaurant called Beléus, which is famous for it's pão de queijo that
has a piece of melted canastra cheese inside and is considered one of the best.
They also sell the unbaked dough by weight. Pão de queijo can also be bought
frozen at supermarkets for baking, with brands such as Forno de
Minas, Casa do Pão de Queijo and many others featuring as producers. In Brazil,
cheese puff mix packages are easily found in most supermarkets, with brands
such as Yoki and Hikari dominating the market. A continuing growth exists for
pre-prepared products, with brand availability depending on the particular
supermarket.
Typical Cakes:
Pão de mel-honey
cake, somewhat
resembling gingerbread, usually covered with melted chocolate.
Bolo de rolo- roll cake, a thin mass wrapped with melted guava, most often called rocambole in Southern and South-eastern Brazil.
Bolo de cenoura -carrot cake with chocolate cover made
with butter and cocoa.
Bolo prestígio- chocolate cake with a coconut and
milk cream filling, covered with brigadeiro.
Bolo de fubá- corn
flour cake.
Bolo de milho -Brazilian-style corn cake.
Bolo de maracujá- passion fruit cake.
Bolo de mandioca- cassava cake.
Bolo de queijo- literally "cheese cake".
Bolo de laranja- orange cake.
Bolo de banana-
banana cake spread with cinnamon.
Called cuñapé, they are made of either
cassava or maize flour. Cuñapés are
usually baked in the mornings and sold later on the streets, while being
transported in polystyrene containers.
Such
vendors can also be found in bus terminals and near popular areas of the cities
and even rural towns. A medium-sized piece of chipa generally sells (as of
2006) for roughly 25 cents (in American dollars)
Colombia
Pandebono is a bread made of corn flour,
cassava starch, cheese and eggs very similar to Pão de queijo.
Japan/East Asia
The Brazilian pão de queijo
arrived in Japan with the dekasegis. It is usually made with rice flour instead of the cassava (tapioca)
starch.-wikipedia
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