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There's a bread that nearly everyone in Brazil eats, and almost no one in America has heard of. It's not pão de queijo (cheese bread). It's pão francês.
Brazil has around 220 million people, and most eat this bread on a regular basis. It's found warm throughout the day at every bakery, cafe, and market in the country. Many people can buy it just a short walk from their home.
Unlike many European breads that have made their way to the US, pão francês is still hard to find (which is why we started Empire Bread Club). It features a thin, crispy crust and a soft, fluffy interior, offering a distinct contrast to the thick crusts and chewy texture of traditional European breads.
From Breakfast to BBQ: How to Eat Pão Francês
At Empire Bread club, we think the best thing about pão francês is how many ways you can use it. In Brazil, you'll find it at the table for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. It shows up for afternoon snacks, as a side at restaurants, and at weekend get-togethers and churrascos.
For breakfast, popular dishes include the famous misto quente, which is a hot ham and cheese sandwich. Another favorite is pão na chapa, which means "grilled bread". It is the bread sliced in half and toasted in a skillet with butter.
It is also the best bread for sandwiches, like the Brazilian bauru. This sandwich is filled with roast beef, melted cheese, and tomatoes. The light, fluffy inside stays out of the way, letting the flavor of the meat and cheese shine. Plus, the thin, crunchy crust holds everything together so your hands stay clean while you eat.
In the US, it pairs perfectly with barbecue meats such as brisket or pulled pork. Our pão francês is also an excellent side you can throw on the grill when hosting your next barbecue!
Names and Variations
If you travel around Brazil, you'll find pão francês has many different regional names. Pão de sal is second most popular name, and commonly used in Rio de Janeiro. Other names include pãozinho, cacetinho, filão, and carioquinha. Since none of those are very easy to say in English, we keep it simple. We just call it Brazilian style French bread. At the end of the day, what matters is it's delicious, convenient, and versatile!
You'll also find a few variations on the classic roll. There's a popular whole wheat version, called pão francês integral. Mini pão francês is also common, especially for parties. It's a smaller version of pão francês often found alongside 'salgadinhos' or salty snacks as appetizers. You can find many other custom variations at local bakeries across the country as well, including versions of garlic bread (pão de alho), cheese melted on top, and stuffed with meat and other fillings (recheado).
For us, the classic roll is best just because it is so easy to keep around. It is the perfect size for everyday meals, and you can fill it, toast it, or top it with what you like best.
Pão Francês in the US
It is hard to find pão francês in the US. The bread usually goes stale in just a few hours, and we do not have local bakeries on every corner like they do in Brazil. To fix that, we created a recipe that we can ship anywhere in the country.
Our bread stays fresh in transit, and you freeze it at home until you're ready to bake. When we developed our recipe, what we refused to put in our bread became just as important as what went in it. Most shelf-stable breads rely on heavy additives and preservatives to extend their life. We chose a different path, putting in the work to craft a high-quality sandwich roll entirely free of artificial ingredients.
Making the bread quick and easy to prepare was another priority. In Brazil, you can walk five minutes down the street to get fresh bread. We didn't want you waiting 20 minutes for your oven to bake a frozen roll from scratch. Instead, our bread warms up in just 7 minutes. It's about the same time it takes to walk to a bakery in Brazil, and it is faster than brewing your morning coffee!
We started Empire Bread Club because we missed having that fresh, daily bread. If you want to taste what people all over Brazil eat every single day, you can order a box today!
Common Questions
Is pão francês the same as pão de queijo?
No. Pão de queijo is a chewy cheese bread made with tapioca flour. Pão francês is a typical white bread, with a lighter interior and thin, crispy crust.
How do you eat pão francês?
Any way you can imagine. Plain with butter, with requeijão (Brazilian cream cheese), with doce de leite or Nutella, or built into sandwiches like the Bauru or a hot ham-and-cheese. It shows up at breakfast, lunch, dinner, and the afternoon coffee break.
Can you buy pão francês in the US?
Fresh from a bakery, it's rare. That's why we bake it and ship it. Ours arrives ready for your freezer, and you bake it at home in about 7 minutes.
