MundoAndino Home : Andes Argentina Guide at MundoAndino
Cheese bun
Cheese buns, cheese puffs or cheese breads are small, cheese-flavored rolls, a popular snack and breakfast food in Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay and northern Argentina. The snack is often sold from streetside stands or by vendors carrying a heat-preserving container. Usually inexpensive, they are popular among all ages.
They are known as pao de queijo ([] or similar) 'cheese bread' in Portuguese and chipa or cunape in Guarani, especially in Santa Cruz de la Sierra.
They are distinctive not only because they are made of cassava or corn flour, but also because the inside is chewy and moist. If poorly done, they may seem uncooked or doughy. Their size may range from one to six inches in diameter, with about two inches of height. In Paraguay and Argentina, smaller chipa can also be found.
Brazil
In Brazil, pao de queijo is a popular breakfast item along with coffee. Made of cassava flour, pao de queijo is sold mainly at snack bars and bakeries. The "Casa do Pao de Queijo" chain has expanded greatly in the past few years, based on their recipe that produces a distinctive, slightly sour and somewhat lopsided version. Pao de queijo can also be bought frozen at supermarkets to be baked at home, including between most popular brands Forno de Minas and Casa do Pao de Queijo. Additionally, in Brazil, cheese puff mix packages are easily found in most supermarkets. Popular brands are 'Yoki' and 'Hikari'.
Paraguay and Northeastern Argentina
In the Guarani region, the Chipas are often baked in smaller doughnuts or buns that are called ''chipa'i or chipacitos. These are sold in small paper bags by street sellers of big cities and small towns, even as far south as Buenos Aires, where stands with small ovens keep the chipaswarm at the Buenos Aires Metro.
Bolivia and Argentine Northwest
Called Cunape, they are made of either cassava or maize flour. Cunapes are usually baked in the mornings and sold later on the streets, while being transported in polystyrene containers. Such vendors (Chiperos) 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).
See also
List of Brazilian dishes
Gougere
External link
G&G Gourmet, a US manufacturer of pao de queijo''.
Need more information for your travel research or homework?
Ask your questions at the forum about Argentine cuisine or help others to find answers.
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article Cheese bun
