Biscoito de Polvilho: The Crackly Cassava Crackers You Cannot Stop Eating

Light, airy, salty biscoito de polvilho made from sour cassava starch. A classic Brazilian snack that is gluten-free by nature — recipe and tips.

Every Brazilian beach has someone walking the sand with an enormous clear bag of these, and every Brazilian abroad has tried to smuggle a bag home. Biscoito de polvilho are impossibly light — a crisp shell around what is basically air — and they taste of salt, a little sourness from the starch, and nothing else.

They are made from polvilho azedo, sour cassava starch, which is the same magic ingredient behind pão de queijo. There is no wheat anywhere near this recipe and there never was.

The technique is closer to choux pastry than to cookies: you scald the starch with hot oil and water, beat in eggs, and pipe. The result puffs in the oven and hollows out on its own.

PREP 20 min

TOTAL 50 min

SERVINGS about 40 crackers

DIFFICULTY medium

INGREDIENTS

• 2 cups polvilho azedo (sour cassava starch)

• 1/2 cup water

• 1/3 cup neutral oil

• 1 1/2 teaspoons fine sea salt

• 2 eggs, at room temperature

• 1/2 cup whole milk, at room temperature, as needed

METHOD

1. Scald the starch. Put the starch and salt in a large bowl. Bring the water and oil to a rolling boil in a small pan and pour it over the starch all at once, stirring with a wooden spoon. It will look lumpy and dry. Let it cool for 5 minutes.

   
   

2. Beat in the eggs. Add the eggs and beat hard — with a stand mixer or a very determined arm — until the dough turns smooth and elastic. Add the milk a tablespoon at a time until it is soft enough to pipe but still holds a ridge, like thick frosting.

   
   

3. Pipe. Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Line two trays with parchment. Fill a piping bag fitted with a large star tip and pipe rings or short sticks, leaving space between them — they double in size.

   
   

4. Bake. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes until puffed, pale golden and completely dry to the touch. Do not open the oven for the first 15 minutes. Cool fully on the tray; they crisp as they cool.

NOTES

The starch: It must be polvilho azedo (sour), not doce (sweet). The sour starch is what makes them puff and hollow.

Humidity: These go soft within hours in a humid kitchen. Store in an airtight container the moment they are cool, and re-crisp in a low oven if needed.

Flavour: Add a teaspoon of dried oregano, a pinch of chilli flakes, or two tablespoons of grated parmesan to the dough if you like.