Ingredients
Method
- Make the paste: Heat the milk and olive oil, then pour over the tapioca starch — it forms a sticky paste. This scalds the starch and gives the chewy texture.
- Add egg & cheese: Add the egg and grated parmesan, then knead into a smooth dough. Roll into balls.
- Bake: Bake at 200°C for 15–18 minutes, until puffed and golden. Best eaten warm. Raw balls freeze well — bake straight from frozen.
Notes
Coeliac notes
• Naturally gluten-free by design — tapioca starch plus cheese, no flour anywhere. This is why pão de queijo is such a safe order in Brazilian bakeries (still confirm the kitchen does not dust trays with wheat flour).
• Cheese: parmesan and hard cheeses are naturally GF — but grate your own, as some pre-grated cheeses use a wheat-derived anti-caking starch.
• Tapioca starch is naturally GF; buy plain (certified/labelled GF if you react to traces).
• Allergens: contains egg and dairy.
• When a label is unclear, treat it as "not for me".
• Naturally gluten-free by design — tapioca starch plus cheese, no flour anywhere. This is why pão de queijo is such a safe order in Brazilian bakeries (still confirm the kitchen does not dust trays with wheat flour).
• Cheese: parmesan and hard cheeses are naturally GF — but grate your own, as some pre-grated cheeses use a wheat-derived anti-caking starch.
• Tapioca starch is naturally GF; buy plain (certified/labelled GF if you react to traces).
• Allergens: contains egg and dairy.
• When a label is unclear, treat it as "not for me".