This easy Vegan Brazilian Cheese Bread uses tapioca starch, potato, olive oil, and spices to make a dairy-free pão de queijo. Gluten-free.
It was only a few years ago now that I was first introduced to Brazilian cheese bread. A coworker had brought it in for a celebratory birthday lunch.
The moment I found out that it was made of naturally gluten-free tapioca starch, I almost jumped up and down with excitement.
It's the little things, right?
Traditional Brazilian cheese bread, or pão de queijo, while made up mostly of tapioca starch, is also, as the name suggests, heavy on the cheese.
I wanted a dairy-free Brazilian cheese bread that didn't rely on vegan cheese but still had that crispy on the outside, chewy on the inside texture and addictive flavor.
And while already going the dairy-free route, I wanted to go ahead and make it completely vegan, omitting the egg.
Due to the starch content of both tapioca starch and the cooked potato, this was possible.
Vegan Brazilian Cheese Bread Ingredients
Besides those two main components, the ingredients list is really quite short. Here's what you'll need:
- tapioca starch
- nutritional yeast
- cooked potato
- olive oil
- unsweetened almond milk
- garlic powder, onion powder, turmeric, black pepper
Can you reheat Vegan Brazilian Cheese Bread?
I recommend that this vegan brazilian cheese recipe is best eaten the day it is made. It is especially good while still warm right out of the oven.
But, if you do have leftovers, refrigerate the brazilian cheese bread in an airtight container. You can reheat the cheese bread in the oven or the microwave.
I prefer to heat them in the oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for about 8-10 minutes. The oven method keeps the outside crisp, while the microwave method will not.
If using the microwave, heat for 15-20 seconds.
So, eat these for breakfast, serve as a snack or appetizer, or pair with a meal.
I love having them with soup as they make delicious dunking vessels!
Want more inspiration? Check out these gluten-free sourdough crescent rolls!
More Gluten-Free Bread Recipes
Gluten-Free Sweet Potato Cornbread
Vegan Brazilian Cheese Bread (Gluten-Free)
Ingredients
- 1 cup cooked Russet potato
- 2 cups (236g) tapioca starch
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon onion powder
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 pinches ground turmeric
- 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast*
- ½ cup boiling water
- ⅓ cup olive oil
- 3 tablespoons unsweetened almond milk (or other non-dairy milk)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Pierce the potato with a fork and cook on appropriate setting in microwave until cooked and mashes well with a fork.
- In a large bowl, combine tapioca starch, salt, garlic powder, onion powder, black pepper, turmeric, and nutritional yeast. Whisk to combine.
- In a small bowl, combine boiling water, olive oil, and almond milk. Whisk to combine. Add the liquid mixture to the tapioca mixture with a wooden spoon or spatula, stirring until most of the dry ingredients have been incorporated.
- Add the cooked potato and stir and mash with the back of the spoon until mostly incorporated. Then, using your hands, squeeze and knead the dough together until it becomes smoother. There will be some dry bits of dough, just press and knead them into the dough.
- Scoop the dough by tablespoon, and roll into balls. It is helpful to squeeze the dough together a few times as you roll to make a cohesive ball. Space about an inch and a half apart on baking sheet.
- Bake for 32 to 35 minutes. The outsides should be dry and the bottoms should start turning a golden brown (lift one to check). The tops of the cheese bread will not really brown at all.
- Allow vegan brazilian cheese bread to cool for a few minutes on baking sheet. Serve warm. Best eaten the day they are made.
- For leftovers: Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator. To reheat, warm in oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 8-10 minutes. You can also reheat in microwave for 15-20 seconds. The microwave will not make them crisp.
Gabby
I don't want to be dramatic but this recipe changed my life. Having grown up in Brazil eating pao de queijo, I missed it so much once my dairy allergy worsened as I got older. Now I can finally enjoy pao de queijo again and these are so good I could cry. My dad (who is Brazilian) had them and said he couldn't even tell the difference, and I didn't even use nutritional yeast! On my second time making them I realized I actually (accidentally) have been using cassava flour/starch instead of tapioca starch/flour but they turned out perfectly still. I can't thank you enough for this wonderful recipe Tessa!
Tessa
I love it! Thank you, Gabby, for such a kind note!
Christina M
I’ve made these several times and they are so unbelievably good! I now try to eat as oil free as possible so I am wondering if there is anything that can replace the oil in the recipe? Or can the amount of oil be cut down at all?
Tessa
Hi Christina! Thanks so much. I haven't played with an oil alternative, but I would worry that decreasing the amount would affect the overall texture. It's possible that something like applesauce could potentially work in its place, but I would need to test that out. :)
Ellie
Fabulous recipe! I made the cheese balls a lot smaller so got about 30-35 and they were very cute looking and very delicious! Felt very close to cheese bread with real cheese. Thank you so much for this ray of sunshine in an otherwise very challenging elimination diet I'm following :)
Tessa
You are so welcome! Thank you for your kind note!
Sabine
Hello.
I used this recipe to make cheese sauce today (the one with carrot and potato). I did not use potato, but used tapioca starch (per your recipe) instead. It came out perfect.
I'm definitely going to try the full recipe, as I loved ordering the buttery version of these Brazilian bread balls when I visit The Coffee Shop, in Union Square, NY. Now all I have to do is come up with a vegan version of their seasoned cheese fries, and learn how to make Caipirinhas, and I won't miss The Coffee Shop at all.
Thank you so much for sharing this recipe.
Tessa
That's awesome! I love The Coffee Shop too. A vegan version of those seasoned cheese fries would be amazing.
Peta
These were delicious, I used sweet potato and added some rosemary.
Tessa
That is awesome! Thank you!
Maya Yuristha
Hi! I’ve tried making this and it blow my mind!!! Super deliciouuuus! Thank u for sharing this. anyway, may i know how do you count the calorie? It it 200Kcal for all this recipe? Or how many serving? Thank you
Tessa
Thank you!! This recipe makes about 12 cheese bread balls, so the nutrition information is for one cheese bread ball.
Roxanne
Absolutely delicious and dangerously moreish! Thank you so much for this recipe!
Tessa
So happy you enjoyed it! Thank you!
MJ
Hi, thank you, your a life saver. However i need your help because mine did not turn out like yours. The inside was gummy, outside normal. The inside looked like mozerella cheese all rubbery gooey and gummy. I followed instructions exactly. I ate them, probably should've have.
Tessa
Hi! Thank you! The insides will be a bit gummy due to the tapioca starch, but shouldn't be overwhelmingly so. You can always try a little less tapioca starch or a little more cooked potato.
Rita D
Hi Tessa!!
thanks for the recipe.
Dough turned out sticky and moist. so I couldn't really form the balls it. what did I do wrong? measured the ingredients exactly as per recipe?
still baked them and they looked similar to whats on the pictures, but stuck to the parchment paper and are like jelly inside?
Tessa
Hi Rita! I'm not sure what went wrong, but you could always add a little more tapioca starch until it is easier to roll into balls. They will be a bit jelly inside - that is due to the tapioca starch.
Nuno Dias
Is is OK to substitute the garlic powder for fresh garlic?
Tessa
I think that would work just fine!
Jana
Today I tried to make it according to your recipe Brazilian “cheese” Bread and it's so delicious! Tell me, what kind of consistency should be inside? it seemed to me a bit like chewing gum and it seems I did something wrong ..
Thank you for the answer and for the delicious recipes
Tessa
Thank you, Jana! I'm happy you liked it! The inside should be a bit chewy/stretchy due to the tapioca starch.
Carolina Torres
Hello. I ussually make the cheese ones for my kids and freeze them in batches. Could i freeze this recipe and cook them for breakfast once needed?
Tessa
Hi Carolina - I have never tried freezing and baking them later. I would like to think that would work but still need to try it out. If you freeze a small batch, I'd love to hear!
Emily Garcia
Hi Tessa, you made the unthinkable possible! cheese bread without cheese! amazing texture!
I did it without the pepper and added nutritional yeast.
I tried to do it a second time with potatoes flakes and oat milk instead of boiling water, but I lost the texture, why would that happen? any tips?
Tessa
Thanks, Emily! I'm not quite sure why it would lose the texture except that potato flakes may not have the same amount of starch in them. The starch is necessary for that chewy texture.
Diana
Hi!
I’m thinking about making your vegan cheese bread today but I’m wondering if I can make the dough and refrigerate it overnight and bake tomorrow?
Tessa
Hi Diana! I have never tried refrigerating it before baking - I would worry that this may take away from the "stretchiness".
Emily
You could make the little balls and freeze it. When you are ready to eat them, just bake them frozen ;)
Kay
I just saw this on tv and they actually refrigerated it for two hours before balling and cooking. Said it helped to firm it up and make it a little less sticky.
Can't wait to try this!
Tessa
That's awesome! I have not tried chilling them beforehand. Would love to hear if that works well for you.
Cat
I just did these. It was the best thing ever!! Really really amazing!
The dough was very liquify so I had to add more flour but they turned out amazing!!!!
Thank you for this wonderful recipe!
Tessa
Thank you!! So glad you enjoyed them!
Vicky
Even though my dough was very sticky after following the recipe the way it was written , all I had to was add a lot of extra tapioca starch to make the dough good enough to make balls from them! Do you think there's anyway to reduce the oil? To make a healthier version of it? Thank you.
P. S. These were delicious and approved by my meat eater hubby
Tessa
Hi Vicky! Thank you! I am worried that reducing the oil may make the baked end product harder. If you try it, I'd love to hear how that goes. So glad your husband liked them too!!!
Ed
Hello!
Are you able to change the tapioca starch to something else? I can’t find anywhere in Ireland.
Tessa
Hi Ed! Unfortunately, the tapioca starch is crucial to this particular recipe. I wish I had a substitute to suggest!
Hannah
These are absolutely delicious and addictive. The texture is god-like. I made this without onion powder as I couldn't find any, but instead used a little bit of Herbamare salt. I don't think it would be as delicious without the nutritional yeast. I will make this a million times again I swear. I plan on making a garlic herb margarine (as in vegan butter) for it - we'll see how that goes!
Tessa
Thank you, Hannah! That garlic herb butter sounds like it would be amazing with these! :)