Pandesal Recipe
We often hear about how convenient it is to start with a blank canvas– to work with the simplest elements in order to create something entirely new and vibrant. I could say that this does not only apply to art, as this works also in the field of cooking. Some of the most exciting food…
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We often hear about how convenient it is to start with a blank canvas– to work with the simplest elements in order to create something entirely new and vibrant. I could say that this does not only apply to art, as this works also in the field of cooking. Some of the most exciting food to work with are those with a level of simplicity to them that make them the perfect base for something delightful and tasty. And a dish that runs right along these lines perfectly is the most popular Filipino bread there is. Read on if you’re interested in a most fluffy, and simply tasty Pandesal recipe. And alongside this, read about some trivia on the beloved bread!
History of Pandesal
This is because the famous bread originated from a need to turn to innovation when early Filipino bakers were looking for a cheaper option for flour. Pandesal, in turn, was originally made from wheat flour. Additionally, American wheat soon became more affordable than rice in the 1900s. And so this bread and other recipes that largely made use of wheat grew in popularity.
Commercial yeast, canned dairy, and baking pans also became cheaper to produce. This is because of the massive population of American immigrants in the earlier part of the 20th century. This only helped increase the demand for pandesal.
However, it also evolved from a bread that was present in the country before the American colonization. Pan de suelo or “floor bread” was popularized by the Spaniards upon their arrival in the Philippines. And it is still popular in the country today. But it is comparably less of a household name than the familiar pandesal or “salt bread”.
Despite not possessing the richest flavors, it is an incredible go-to for Filipinos looking for a versatile snack. It works as a savory treat, as it makes for a great sandwich with a bit of corned beef, ham, or most meat you might be able to name! Alternatively, most locals also opt for simple sweet fillings for this bread. You might have heard of the infallible combinations of pandesal and condensed milk, or with peanut butter.
The possibilities are endless for this blank canvas of a bread. But it can also taste great on its own– compact, fluffy, and delightfully salty-sweet!
How to Make Pandesal
Start stirring 1 pouch of rapid rise yeast, ½ cup of white sugar, and 1 ¼ cup of warm, fresh milk. Keep doing this until you can see that the yeast and sugar have dissolved completely. Then in a separate mixing bowl, combine the dry ingredients, starting off with the 2 cups of all-purpose flour, 2 cups of bread flour, sugar, 1 teaspoon of salt, and 1 teaspoon of baking powder. Stir this as well.
Then incorporate 1 raw egg, 1 tablespoons of melted butter, 1 tablespoon of cooking oil, as well as your yeast-sugar-milk mixture in the mixing bowl containing your dry ingredients. Mix this again until your dough has formed. Then with clean hands, mix your ingredients and make sure they are blended well together.
Use a flat surface for kneading the dough until you achieve a fine texture. You could also utilize a Stand Mixer with a dough hook if you’d like to have an easier kneading process. Also, mold the dough until it becomes a round shape. Then place it back in your mixing bowl and cover it with a damp cloth. You will be waiting for at least 1 hour to let the dough rise.
Separate the dough evenly
Place your dough on a flat surface, and using a dough slicer, separate this into 4 equal parts. Form a cylindrical shape with these parts by rolling them, then slice each cylindrical dough diagonally. Take note that these slices will later be our individual pieces of pandesal.
After this, roll your sliced dough over breadcrumbs, and put this in a baking tray lined with wax paper. Since we expect our pieces of pandesal will be rising, make sure to provide enough space among the dough. Then leave it in the tray with breadcrumbs for 10 to 15 minutes more for it to rise.
Get your oven ready for baking by pre-heating it at 375 °F for a total of 10 minutes. Then we’re good to go with our tray of dough! Bake this in your oven for 15 minutes. When this is done, turn your oven off. Then place your warm, delicious batch fresh out of the oven on your serving plate or tray of choice.
You might want to try these dynamic, delicious combinations
Pandesal and Sardines Pizza
If you have some leftover at your disposal, I have a few suggestions to elevate your day-old bread. One of them is this savory, creamy and cheesy Pandesal and Sardines Pizza recipe. You could try this for a more flavorful bite of your classic salt bread. Peppered with red pepper flakes, cheddar cheese and tomato paste, your taste buds will love the subtle sweetness with this one of a kind pizza.
A Simple Filipino Breakfast
Now what is a classic breakfast back home without a batch of freshly baked bread? I put together this Simple Filipino Breakfast to marry some of our local breakfast favorites in one filling, flavorful plate. Other than the classic hotdogs, fried eggs and pandesal combination, I also listed a couple of great Filipino breakfast concoctions, such as sinangag and beef tapa.
Ginisang Sardinas (Sautéed Sardines)
Canned sardines, in itself, can already provide for a pretty flavorful filling for your pandesal, and is actually among the savory favorites to have with your bread. However, these sautéed sardines give your usual fish filling or viand a fresh, simple spin in incorporating a bit of citrus, garlic and onions. These will bring out the taste in your sardines, while reducing the sometimes unpleasant saltwater taste of canned fish.
Tuna Sandwich Spread
Making a sandwich spread is largely convenient because making a big batch could mean having a guaranteed delicious snack for days to come. And getting our hands on a basic, but unmistakably flavorful and delicious tuna Sandwich Spread makes it an even easier, practical process. Just grab a couple pieces of pandesal from our recipe earlier, fill it with some of this mildly sweet, delectable spread, and your afternoon’s practically made!
How do you like your pandesal? Let us know in the comments!
Did you make this? If you snap a photo, please be sure tag us on Instagram at @panlasangpinoy or hashtag #panlasangpinoy so we can see your creations!
Pandesal
Ingredients
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 2 cups bread flour
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- 5 tbsp butter melted
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 1/4 cup fresh milk warm
- 1 pouch rapid rise yeast
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 cup bread crumbs
- 1 piece raw egg
- 1 tbsp cooking oil
Instructions
- Combine the yeast, sugar, and warm milk and stir until the yeast and sugar are fully dissolved
- In the mixing bowl, combine the dry ingredients starting with the flour then the sugar, salt, and baking powder . Mix well by stirring
- Add the egg, butter, cooking oil, and yeast-sugar-milk mixture in the mixing bowl with the dry ingredients then mix again until a dough is formed. Use your clean hands to effectively mix the ingredients.
- In a flat surface, knead the dough until the texture becomes fine. For faster and easier kneading, you may use a Stand Mixer with dough hook.
- Mold the dough until shape becomes round then put back in the mixing bowl. Cover the mixing bowl with damp cloth and let the dough rise for at least 1 hour
- Put the dough back to the flat surface and divide into 4 equal parts using a dough slicer
- Roll each part until it forms a cylindrical shape
- Slice the cylindrical dough diagonally (These slices will be the individual pieces of the pandesal)
- Roll the sliced dough over the breadcrumbs and place in a baking tray with wax paper (makes sure to provide gaps between dough as this will rise later on)
- Leave the sliced dough with breadcrumbs in the tray for another 10 to 15 minutes to rise
- Pre-heat the oven at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 10 minutes
- Put the tray with dough in the oven and bake for 15 minutes
- Turn off the oven and remove the freshly baked pandesal.
- Serve hot. Share and enjoy!
Nutrition Information
Watch how to make it
EVELYN says
Where can we get bread flour?
homhalko says
1 pouch = 1/4 oz
vane says
make sure the milk isn’t too hot or cold. if you have a candy thermometer use it, 100 degrees fahrenheit is the ideal temperature for the yeast. u have to make sure too that your yeast is not expired or the yeast has been stocked in your cabinet for so long. hope that helps.. =)
Panlasang Pinoy says
Thanks for covering vane. I appreciate it.
Panlasang Pinoy says
Thanks Vanie.
Panlasang Pinoy says
Good to know that. I’m glad to know na nag try ka mag experiment. I’ved been encouraging everyone to do the same para naman may bago tayong idea na matutunan. Have a good day!
Adrian @ Food Rehab says
WE never get this variety here in Australia. Only the round soft kind. Thanks for this, I’ll be making it soon. Nothing beats home cooking right!?
Panlasang Pinoy says
We’ll yeah but I won’t use that as a tagline though for legal purposes 😉 You know what I mean 🙂
Panlasang Pinoy says
Marie, is that the self rising flour? You can use that too and add the same yeast measurement. Di naman masyadong malayo ang difference nya compared to an ordinary bread flour.
Kelly says
I use shortening instead of oil so your pandesal will be soft and will stay soft for several days. I also use UNBLEACHED all purpose flour. Kuya, thank you for this website, it is so great to find all these recipes! The only bad thing is it made me homesick! :-). Keep up the great work! xoxoox
arnel says
Thank u for a recipe!now iknow how to cook.thanks u very much.mabuhay panlasang pinoy.say u again………………..
Jnhet says
i baked the pandesal yesterday and it was really good. we ate it with butter. my hubby, mom, daughter and i liked it very much. its easy to do 🙂
Diday says
I think in pouch there’s 7 grams so it’s like 1/4 ounces or 1.5 teaspoon, i just made some today of this pandesal and they are so good….
JEN AYENTO says
i wanna try this recipe but may I please know the exact
measurement of that yeast in a pouch. cause where i am right now i haven’t seen yeast in a pouch, they sell in in bulk or in jars or little cans. so please can i get the right amount of that ingredients.
thank you!!!! mabuhay!!
Josh says
Thanks for this recipe. I’ll try this out today. I really miss eating pandesal and I’ve tried other recipes but yours has so many compliments. Lucky for me here in Oz we have all the ingredients. I would just like to know if the left over dough is suitable for freezing/refrigeration for later or do I need to use it all in one sitting?
Thanks in advance
Josh
Panlasang Pinoy says
chriscel, I would still suggest using bread flour if you cannot find all-purpose flour. The taste and texture might be different if you use other types of flour. The following (in my opinion) should NOT be used unless you want to make another variation: wheat flour, corn flour, peasemeal, rice flour, buck wheat, peanut flour, and rye flour.
Panlasang Pinoy says
Ella, you can add a little flour in the mixing bowl or sprinkle more when kneading. It is normal to be little sticky at first until after kneading. Hope this helps.
rochelle says
can we use fresh yeast instead of rapid yeast? and is the butter salted or unsalted?
fhaye says
Hi Noemi,
Thanks for the info.,
terimakasi 🙂 fhaye
noemi says
wow! this recipe is a wish come true, its 12mn here in KL , we just saw the recipe 2 hrs ago and the pandesal is baking in our oven now, im pretty sure our pinoy officemates would be surprised and indulged eating a pandesal tomorrow morning 🙂
keep up the good work flooding your website with the great meals we’ve grown to enjoy. This is something we can really say, proudly pinoy!
Panlasang Pinoy says
You are welcome Lanie, we are always working hand-in-hand to provide you with more interesting recipes.
Sharmayne says
im going to try this!!!!!!!!!!!!!