Pandesal Explained

Pandesal
Alternate Name:Pan de sal
Country:Philippines
Course:Breakfast
Type:Bread
Main Ingredient:Flour, yeast, sugar, salt, oil

Pandesal, also known as Pan de sal (Spanish; Castilian: pan de sal|salt bread, lit. "salt bread") is a staple bread roll in the Philippines commonly eaten for breakfast.[1] It is made of flour, yeast, sugar, oil, and salt.[2] [3]

Description

Pandesal is a popular yeast-raised bread in the Philippines. Individual loaves are shaped by rolling the dough into long logs (bastón, Spanish for "stick") which are rolled in fine bread crumbs. These are then portioned, allowed to rise, and baked.

It is most commonly served hot and may be eaten as is, or dipped in coffee, tsokolate (hot chocolate), or milk. It can also be complemented with butter, margarine, cheese, jam, peanut butter, chocolate spread, or other fillings like eggs, sardines and meat.

Its taste and texture closely resemble those of the Puerto Rican pan de agua, French croissant, and Mexican bolillos. Contrary to its name, pandesal tastes slightly sweet rather than salty. Most bakeries produce pandesal in the morning for breakfast consumption, though some bake pandesal the whole day.[4] [5]

Variants

Some pandesal in supermarkets and some bakeries are less crusty and lighter in color. These also tend to have more sugar than the traditional pandesal, which only has 1.75% sugar.[6]

In Siargao Island, famous as a surfing spot, an oval-shaped version is locally known as "pan de surf" as it resembles a surfboard. It is baked on makeshift ovens fueled with coconut husks, and usually sold alongside pan de coco.[7] [8]

Dried and ground-up malunggay or moringa leaves are sometimes mixed into the flour for added nutritional content; this is called "malunggay pandesal" or "malunggay bread".[6]

A popular new variant of pandesal is ube cheese pandesal, which has a purple yam (ube) and cheese filling. It is characteristically purple like all ube-based dishes.[9] Other contemporary variants include chocolate, matcha, strawberry and blueberry flavors.[6]

A soft, yellowish type of Filipino bread roll that is similar to pandesal except that it uses eggs, milk, and butter or margarine is known as Señorita bread, Spanish bread, or pan de kastila. Unlike the pandesal, it commonly has sweet fillings. It is unrelated to the Spanish pan de horno (also known in English as "Spanish bread").[10]

History

The precursor of the pandesal was pan de suelo ("floor bread"), a local Spanish-Filipino version of the French baguette baked directly on the floor of a wood-fired oven called a pugón. It was made with wheat flour and was harder and crustier than the pandesal. Since wheat is not natively produced in the Philippines, bakers eventually switched to more affordable yet inferior flour, resulting in the softer, doughy texture of the pandesal.[1] [11]

Pandesal flourished in the American colonial era in the early 1900s, when cheaper American wheat became readily available. It has since become a staple breakfast bread in the Philippines.[1] [12]

Baking of pandesal in pugón has declined due to a nationwide ban on cutting mangrove trees for fuel, and bakers shifted to using gas-fired ovens.[6]

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Shah. Khushbu. How Pandesal Became a Filipino Breakfast Staple. Eater. February 16, 2016 . April 23, 2017.
  2. http://www.pinoyslang.com/?d=pandesal&b=p "Pandesal."
  3. Web site: Pandesal (Filipino Bread Rolls)-The Little Epicurean. August 20, 2015. July 20, 2016.
  4. https://web.archive.org/web/20081121070349/http://www.applepiepatispate.com/bread/pan-de-sal-filipino-salted-bread-rolls/ applepiepatispate.com
  5. Web site: Pandesal - kawaling pinoy. December 11, 2013. July 20, 2016.
  6. News: Grana . Rhia . The rise and rise of flavored pandesal, or how a humble bread became a canvas for Pinoy creativity . October 18, 2020 . ANCX . October 18, 2020.
  7. Web site: Catoto . Roel . Pan de Surf . MindaNews . November 28, 2018. September 26, 2013.
  8. News: Siargao beyond surfing: A 'Biyahe ni Drew' itinerary . November 28, 2018 . GMA News Online . April 24, 2015.
  9. Web site: Ube Cheese Pandesal . Kawaling Pinoy . June 3, 2020 . July 11, 2020.
  10. Web site: Orillos . Jenny . Pinoy Bread: 10 Best Panaderia Classics . Spot.ph . May 1, 2020.
  11. Web site: Estrella. Serna. The Secret History Behind Pan de Regla and Other Panaderia Eats. Pepper. April 23, 2017. April 9, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210409180623/https://pepper.ph/panaderia-eats/. dead.
  12. Web site: Pan de Sal: Philippine National Bread The Daily Roar. admin. thedailyroar.com. January 18, 2014 . July 20, 2016.