Pandesal ( Filipino Bread Rolls)

Bite into the slightly toasted top and into the soft and light insides of these pandesal and you will see why it is the most loved bread in the Philippines.

Oh, pandesal in the sweet hours of the morning! Nothing beats a warm tray of these freshly baked Filipino-style dinner rolls with the morning cup of tea or coffee. Those golden, crusty but soft bread dusted in toasted crumbs are pretty hard to resist.

Pandesal is one of the most raved about recipes here on the blog. I don’t get to bake them very often the past years but a recent makeover of this blog post reminded me of just how amazing they are.

Pandesal is probably the Philippines’ favorite bread. There is something about these golden dinner rolls that are dusted with crumbs that make them so out of the ordinary. A bread that is delicious on its own, or dipped in coffee.

For a filling version, we slice the bun in half and fill it with sliced hotdogs, fried egg, and even sauteed corned beef. Oh, the little things that bring us so much joy!

The Perfect Pandesal Recipe

• These pandesal are lightly toasted on the outside. The nice golden exterior has a nice tender-crisp texture, and it renders a nice toasty flavor. Just the way I like it.
• The inside is soft and light. It is not dense and tight-knit, but not too airy either. Just pure crumb perfection.
• They are pillowy soft out of the over AND remain soft the days after.
• Eat them plain, dip them in coffee, slather Nutella, slather butter. You decide how to enjoy it. Lately, we slather it with non-hydrogenated margarine. I think it’s the only way to enjoy it now, and nothing else 🙂

The Process

In a bowl of a stand mixer, pour the milk and then sprinkle the yeast. Sprinkle approximately 1-2 teaspoons of the sugar in there as well. Let this mixture sit for 7-12 minutes until it looks thick and creamy.

Add the eggs, the remaining sugar, and the oil. Stir to combine. In a bowl, combine 4 cups of flour and 1 tsp of salt. Gradually add this mixture to the mixing bowl, about 1 cup at a time, stirring well after adding.

Now attach the dough hook to the mixer, and on medium speed, mix the dough for 10 minutes. During this period the dough will start to take form, gathering slowly in the center.

After ten minutes of mixing, slowly add more flour with the mixer still running, about 1-2 tbsp at a time. As you add, the dough will gather more and more and it will start to clean the sides of the bowl.

Continue the mixing and adding, until the dough gathers in the center of the bowl and cleans the sides and bottom of the bowl entirely.

You will also hear the slapping sounds that the dough makes against the bowl. This should take around 10 minutes more, for a total of 20 minutes or so in the mixer.

You may also need to increase the mixer speed for the dough to release at the bottom of the bowl. You may need less of the 1/2 cup reserved flour, but not more.

Shape the dough into a ball, and allow it to rise for 1 hour and a half, covered with a clean towel on a bowl.

After rising, gently deflate the dough. Shape it into a log and divide it into 25-28 pieces.

Roll each piece into a plate of bread crumbs, then arrange the balls in a parchment-lined, light-colored baking pan.

Allow these to rise once more, for 30-40 minutes, covered loosely with a clean kitchen towel. Bake the pandesal for 23-25 minutes, or until golden on top.

Let them cool slightly before serving.

Pointers for Making Pandesal

• The milk should not exceed the temperature of 110F. Hotter than that and you risk killing the yeast.
• If the yeast did not turn foamy after 10 minutes. Discard the mixture and start again.
• The recipe calls for 4 and 1/2 cups of flour. 4 cups are added initially to the dough. The remaining 1/2 cup will be added one tablespoon at a time just until the dough gathers into the center of the bowl. You may not have to use all of the 1/2 cup of flour.
• Use a light-colored baking pan to avoid too much browning of the bottom of the pandesal.

p.s. These will be so good with this Sweet and Spicy Squid or this Filipino Style Pancit Canton.

More Bread Recipes:

• Mamon Recipe
• The Best Ensaymada
• Cassava Cake
• Ube Cheesecake
• Chocolate Mamon
• Yema Rolls
• Coconut Buns with Milky Sweet Filling
• Japanese Milk Buns
• Spanish Bread
• Hawaiian Rolls
• Sweet Cheese Rolls
• Sweet Beehive Buns
• Milk and Sugar Mini Buns
• Pineapple Buns

Continue to Content

Pandesal ( Filipino Bread Rolls)

Yield: 28

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Additional Time: 2 hours

Total Time: 55 minutes

Bite into the slightly toasted top and into the soft and light insides of these pandesal and you will see why it is the most loved bread in the Philippines.

Print

Ingredients

• 2 and 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
• 1 and 1/4 cup warm milk ( heated to 105-115 F)
• 4 and 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, divided
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup of sugar
• 1/3 cup canola oil
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
• bread crumbs, for dusting the pandesal dough

Instructions

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, stir together the warm milk, yeast and about a tablespoon of the sugar. Let this mixture stand until it is foamy. In another bowl, combine 4 cups of flour and salt.
2. Once the yeast mixture is foamy, add in the eggs, sugar and oil to the bowl of stand mixer. Gradually add the flour mixture, about a cup at a time while stirring with a wooden spatula or spoon. Briefly mix everything together until a shaggy dough forms.
3. Attach the dough hook to the stand mixer and run the mixer on medium speed to start kneading the dough. After ten minutes of mixing, gradually sprinkle little amounts of flour to the dough ( about a tablespoon at a time) to help in the kneading process. Continue to knead until the dough gathers in the center and is cleaning the sides and bottom of the bowl. This should take about 20 minutes or so and you should only have used up to 1/2 cup of flour. Gather the dough into a ball. Place it inside a bowl, cover with a kitchen towel and let stand in room temperature to rise for an hour, or until the size is doubled. Meanwhile, line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
4. Gently deflate the dough. Divide it into 25-28 equal sized portions. Smooth and shape each portion into an imperfect ball, about 2 and 1/2 to 3 inches in size. Roll each portion of dough in the bread crumbs and place in the baking sheet. Allow little spaces in between portions. Cover the rolls with a kitchen towel and let rise for 40 minutes. Preheat oven to 350 F. Bake the pandesal for 23-25 minutes or until the top is lightly golden. Serve warm. Store leftovers in a tightly closed container at room temperature.

Notes

Use a light-colored baking pan to avoid over-browning of the bottom of the pandesal.

To store leftovers, keep them in a tightly covered container at room temperature. These stay soft for days!

Recommended Products

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  Wilton Performance Pans Aluminum Large Sheet Cake Pan, 12 x 18-Inch, Aluminum
• 
  Oster FPSTSMPL1 Planetary Stand Mixer, Black, 4.5 qt

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 28 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 120Total Fat: 5gSaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 4gCholesterol: 14mgSodium: 54mgCarbohydrates: 16gFiber: 1gSugar: 4gProtein: 2g