Pandesal Recipe
Pandesal is a classic Filipino bread roll that is particularly eaten for breakfast. It is soft and airy and slightly sweet. Normally eaten as a sandwich with one’s favorite filling.
Pandesal is probably the most popular bread in the Philippines. It is a favorite breakfast that can be eaten on its own, dunked in coffee or with filling like coconut jam, peanut butter, cheese, cheese spread, corned beef, egg, hotdogs or practically anything you can think of or whatever leftovers you have laying in your fridge.
One of my faves is mushed spicy sardines…yup! But I remembered a time when we were just small kids, my Kuya Norman’s and I would have ketchup with sugar as filling…eeewww, right? But that tasted so good to us at that time! Haha! Yeah, I have to admit I tried a lot of weird stuff just because my big brother thinks it is good or cool. Hehe!
What is Pandesal?
A traditional Filipino breakfast roll, that used to be sold only in early hours at bakeries or on the streets by vendors on bicycles with loud air horns. They would put the Pandesals in a big insulated box to keep them warm. But, nowadays, some bakeries make them available for the entire day.
It is called Pandesal or Pan de Sal (Spanish) that translate to salted bread although it is actually sweeter than salty. It is soft and fluffy and covered with breadcrumbs.
What are the Ingredients for Pandesal?
Basically, you can already make pandesal with just 5 ingredients: flour, yeast, oil or lard, sugar, and salt. Six if you have to include water.
This recipe replaces the water with milk and adds eggs. Both of them giving these pandesals a softer texture, both inside and to the crust, and gives a richer flavor. The eggs also help the dough rise higher.
I also use butter or sometimes margarine that adds that delicious buttery goodness.
When we were still in Germany, we are surrounded by all the really good bread. But being a Pinay, I still craved for Pandesal from time to time. So I thought of giving it a try, making my own Pandesal…and I am glad I did.
It is one of the easiest bread I’ve ever made!
Getting them directly out from the oven was the best and I loved cutting them into halves and spreading my Pandesal with salted butter while they are still hot.
Other Filipino Bread Recipe to Try:
- Spanish Bread – Similar to Pandesal but with a sweet buttery filling
- Cheese Bread – Sweet dough bread covered in milky streusel
- Ensaymada – pillowy bread topped with buttercream and grated cheese
How to Make Pandesal
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Pandesal Recipe - Soft and Buttery
INGREDIENTS
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup milk - - lukewarm
- 1 egg
- 2 tablespoon butter - - melted (or margarine)
- 1 1/2 teaspoon instant dry yeast - - see Note 1
- 1/4 cup breadcrumbs
INSTRUCTIONS
- In a big bowl, mix together flour, sugar, salt.
- Pour in milk, beaten egg and melted butter. Mix several times until well blended. Make sure that the milk is only mildly warm and not hot.
- Add the instant dry yeast and fold until a sticky dough forms.
- Tip the dough on a floured surface and knead until it becomes smooth and elastic, about 5-10 minutes.
- Form the dough into a ball and lightly coat with oil. Place it in a bowl and cover with a kitchen towel or plastic wrap and place it in a warm area and let it rise until it doubled in size. Depending how warm it is, could take 30 minutes to an hour.
- Punch down the dough and divide into 2 equal parts using a knife or dough slicer. Roll each into a log. Cut each log into 6 smaller pieces.
- Shape each piece into a ball and roll it in breadcrumbs, completely covering all sides.
- Arrange the pieces on a baking sheet living some gaps in between (at least an inch). Leave them to rise for another 10-15 minutes.
- While waiting, preheat oven 370° F /185°C. Bake the Pandesal for 15 minutes or until the sides are a bit browned.
- Remove from oven and serve while hot!
VIDEO
RECIPE NOTES
This post was originally published in September 2015. Updated to include new images and some improvements on the recipe.
For those who still want to use the old recipe, here it is. The main difference is the shaping of the individual rolls. The old version is the traditional pandesal shape that is slightly elongated with pointy ends.
3 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoon instant dry yeast
1/4 cup + 1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup milk
3 tablespoon margarine – or butter (melted)
1 egg
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
In a big bowl, mix together flour and yeast. In a smaller bowl, combine sugar, salt, milk and margarine or butter. Warm liquids in the microwave until warm. Remove from microwave and add the egg and beat several times until well blended. Make sure that the liquids are only mildly warm and not hot.
Pour the liquid mixture over the flour mixture and fold until dough forms. Knead the dough on a clean surface dusted with flour until it becomes smooth and elastic, about 5-10 minutes.
Form the dough into a ball and place the dough in a greased bowl and cover with a kitchen towel or plastic wrap and place it in a warm area and let it rise until it doubled in size. Depending on how warm it is, could take 30 minutes to an hour.
Punch down the dough and divide into 2 equal parts using a knife or dough slicer. Roll each into a log. Cover each log with breadcrumbs. Cut the log sideways into smaller pieces. (about 6 pieces each log). Roll each piece with breadcrumbs again.
Arrange the pieces on a baking sheet living some gaps in between (at least an inch). Leave them to rise for another 10-15 minutes.
While waiting, preheat oven 370° F /185°C. Bake the Pandesal for 15 minutes or until the sides are a bit browned.
Remove from oven and serve while hot!
The dough was too sticky and hard to knead. I had flour on the surface and flour dusted on my hands and it was just impossible to knead.
I found out that flour I used in Germany and the APF I get here in the Philippines (similar to US) hydrates differently. Just add more flour if it is too sticky. It also becomes less sticky as you go on kneading.
Hi
I want to try your pandesal recipe. CanI use self rising flour? Pls. Advise.
Thanks
Ofelia
Hi Ofelia, I would not recommend using self-rising flour for making bread with yeast.
Thanks for getting back to me. I tried it again but this time following your video and it was successful – soft and fluffy! Also, I used the finer/pre sifted all purpose flour so it was easy to knead the dough. Thanks again for sharing!
Hello, I also baked this pandesal and it was somewhat successful but still delicious. The bread was dense inside and wondering if it has to do with my kneading? or does it affect if I use almond milk? Thank you for sharing.
Hi Rosemarie, using water or almond milk should be fine. Was the dough also dense? I find that some flour requires more liquid than other finer ones. Of course, it could also be the yeast and the time you let it rise and also the kneading. manually I usually do it for 10 minutes.
Hi, i made this pandesal recipe, it was a success, my children and husband likes it too. Can i ask if i can place it on the fridge and bake itthe following morning? because pandesal is really good in the morning. Thank you
Hi Melanie, yes you can shape them already and arrange them on a baking sheet then cover with alu or plastic foil. Place them in the fridge to stop or slow down the rising and take them out in the morning…let them come to room temperature and rise as usual. You can also prebake them for 5 minutes and place them in a sealed plastic bag and finish baking in the morning.
Hi Bebs, thanks for your reply! another question what will happen if I reduced the amount of sugar? or can i replace it with brown sugar instead.
Thank you.
Pandesal actually should only be with salt as the name imply. So go ahead and reduce the sugar as much as you like.
Thank you so much for such an easy recipe. I made pandesal using this and it was really easy. I made half with cheese filling, the other half plain. My family loved it. It was indeed soft 😊
Glad it all went well, Eds and that the family enjoyed it!
The best bettery and soft pan de sal ever.
Aaawww! Thanks Ivy! Happy that you like it!
My pandesal turned out a bit too heavy rather than airy/fluffy inside. The rolls also cracked. What did I do wrong?
Hi Joanna, this happens sometimes depending on the brand of flour used. In Germany, the flour they have is finer than the ones here in the Philippines or in US. Add a little more water and make sure that you knead it enough (7-10 minutes)
Hi, can i substitute wheat flour to the all purpose? And will it be same measurements?
Do you mean whole wheat flour? APF is also wheat flour. The texture will, of course, be different. I suggest making it only half whole wheat and half APF. But be prepared to have a coarser textured pandesal with less volume.
hi! I tried to use your recipe of pandesal coz it is my first time to cook something like this. I love cooking and I want to learn more on how to make pastry and baking.But anyways, back to your recipe, I did try today and it looks good but the problem is, the underneath of the pandesal becomes hard and on top is good as well as the taste. I do not know why it did not rise the flour since I measured correctly all the ingredients except that I did not make thr milk luke warm. I avr question if the milk did make it luke warm is there a possibilty that the flour will not rise? I let the flour to be rise for 30 minutes. Please help me and advice what to do. Thank you and looking forward.
I’m just wondering if it’s possible to use evap milk to make pandesal or just fresh milk
Thanks
Sure you can…just dilute evaporated milk with water at least 1:1 ratio since evaporated milk is too thick.
It’s my second time to make pandesal. I wonder why it’s always burned at the bottom?
Are you using gas oven? If so, place another baking sheet to the bottom rack below where your pandesal are. This did the trick for me when I switched to gas oven from using electric when we were in Germany.
This is my second time making pandesal, it turned out so good! I always make bread every time I have a free time, from your recipe, either ensaymada or spanish bread😍these are my housemates favorite bread🤗thanks for sharing your yummy recipes🤗🤗
Your housemates are lucky to have you, Angela. Glad you like our recipes…
Hi Bebs,
This is my 2nd try of your pandesal recipe. Followed your instruction carefully including measurement but my dough is very dense and dry. I added 3tbsp of milk but still heavy. I used all purpose flour. I baked it and it was very heavy, almost hard to eat.
I have tried your other bread recipes and it came it out great but this one for some reason doesn’t turn oit well. Not sure what is wrong.
Hi Ice, I know that some type of flour absorbs more liquids than others. The finer the flour the lesser liquid you need. May I know what brand of all-purpose flour did you use? Did you use proper measuring cups used for baking?
Thank you for the wonderful recipe 🙂 i made it x2 recipe and it turns out soo well..lahat ng kaflat ko tuwang tuwa dpat daw early morning ang baking session.. much love from dubai..
Very good to hear that Heidi! Do try our other bread recipes like, ensaymada and Spanish bread…
Hi! I was just wondering why the dough is sooo dry, like the liquids are not enough at all. I follwed your ingredients correctly. So, what could be wrong? Pls help??
Hi Joy, I made this pandesal recipe several times and contrary to being dry, the dough is actually a little sticky as it should be. Make sure you are using proper measuring tools and measure correctly. If it still is too dry, then increase your water to 1 cup instead of 3/4 cup.
Thanks for this recipee. My son likes the bread. My son said its so… delicious. Thank you again.
Happy that your son likes it, Ann.
Can I use bread flour for pandesal?
Sure you can, Weng. But expect a little denser outcome which is also good if that is what you like.
Hi Bebs,
I love cooking and baking and I really love your recipes! I have tried some of your recipes and it was successful and my family loves them!
But one thing I noticed like this recipe of pandesal. Your written instructions are not the same with regards to the video. I hope you can correct it please. Because i tried this recipe today and followed the instructions without watching the video. I combined the yeast and flour together first as instructed. But in your video, you put the yeast first before the flour. And my recipe failed this time. It did not rise. The liquids are warm and not hot. So i didn’t know what went wrong until I watched your video.
Thank you so much and more power!
Best Regards
Marilou
Hi Marilou,
Proofing yeast (adding lukewarm water to it) is actually just to make sure that it is still good. You can skip this step if you are sure that your yeast is still active, this applies both for active dry yeast and instant yeast. So it should not make a difference if you add it directly to the flour or proof it first. What I suggest is to test your yeast, if you have still any, to see if it is still good. Just dissolve 1 tsp of sugar in a 1/2 cup warm water (110°F-115°F) and sprinkle 1 packet or 1 tbsp of your yeast and stir. It should dissolve completely and foam vigorously within 5 – 10 minutes. If it does not bubble a lot or at all, then the yeast is dead.
Note also that I used instant yeast for this recipe which rises much faster. Active dry yeast will take a longer time to rise.
Could you send me a link to the video for making pandesal?
I can’t find it on this page:
https://www.foxyfolksy.com/pandesal-recipe/
Thank you
Hi Maria, it is now in the recipe box just below the recipe. But in any case here is also the Youtube link: https://youtu.be/V_WM2mluaSs
hi bebs,
if i will use active dry yeast instead of instant yeast,how many teaspoon should i put?thank you
Just use the same amount, Glaiza.
Hi Bebs,
I would like to ask if I can put filing before I bake it? Like pork giniling?
Thanks.
Hi Anne, sure you can. Pork giniling sounds great. You can also try corned beef or ham and cheese. 🙂
Did you use metric or imperial measurements when you made your bread? I’m cross-checking the conversions and the metric measurements don’t exactly match. All I have is a digital scale.
Hi Beb! I haven`t tried making bread before but would like to give pandesal a try. Is it possible to make the dough ahead of time? Like day before? Can I freeze the dough for later use? If so, at what stage?
Sure you can make it a day ahead Shella. Once you formed them into pandesal size and before the final rising, cover them with a plastic cling wrap (sheet included) and put the whole thing in the fridge (no need to freeze). It will rise slowly and will be ready for baking the next day.
Silly question, but hiw do you proof the instant yeast? Mix with sugar and warm the milk?
Thank you so much for the recipe. I have yet to find the best pandesal recipe ever, hoping this will be it!
Hi Aims, not silly at all and that is correct. you just mix the yeast with a teaspoon of sugar and half a cup to a cup of lukewarm water or milk (taken from the existing ingredients). After about 5 minutes, it should be frothy and that is how you know your yeast is still ok. Do not use hot water as it will kill the yeast.
Hi Bebs,
i tried already your spanish bread and i say wooow ang sarap. And now want to try your pandesal. Thank you for sharing your recipe. God bless
Nice to hear you like the Spanish bread May! I am sure you will like the pandesal too and the other Filipino breads I made here.
I heat up the milk for 1 minute but it’s too hot and the dough didn’t rise?
Hi Jenny, if it was too hot then it will definitely kill the yeast. The liquids (after the addition of egg) should only be mildly warm to lukewarm.
Hi Bebs,
Just wanna make sure, do I have to sift the flour before measuring?
Hi Dina, it will not harm if you do, but I find there is no need for making bread.
Hi Bebs! Can I use bread maker for pan de sal or spanish bread? Thanks.
Hi Donna, I see recipes for rolls done in bread machines so I think you could try it.
Hi, it looks delicious, i’ll try it, can i use bread flour?
Hi Alicia, if you prefer your pandesal to be denser and slightly chewy then sure go ahead. 🙂
hi, what flour did you use? just all purpose or bread flour? and did you use instant dry yeast?
Hi Niki, yes I used all-purpose flour and instant dry yeast. You can also use active dry yeast, just proof it before using…
okay thank you!! i’ve tried your siopao recipe and my family loved it! i only asked because im using the same instant dried yeast i used when i made siopao, and i remember from your video that i had to wait 5mins before combining the yeast mixture with the flour mixture.
I can see how this might confuse you. Instant dry yeast usually does not need proofing but sometimes I still do it just to make sure that my yeast is still good, just to be sure that I will not waste all the other ingredients (and work) because of bad yeast. But if you are absolutely sure that your instant dry yeast is good then just skip the proo fing.
I can see how this might confuse you. Instant dry yeast usually does not need proofing but sometimes I still do it just to make sure that my yeast is still good, just to be sure that I will not waste all the other ingredients (and work) because of bad yeast. But if you are absolutely sure that your instant dry yeast is good then just skip the proofing.
Hi Bebs, here is April a Filipina, also living in Germany. May question lang ako, ano ang gamit mo na Flour sa Pandesal or Spanish Bread, ito ba ay Weizen Mehl Typ 405? Thank You.
LG
Hi April, you can use either Typ 405 or 550 Weizen Mehl. 405 is almost the same as the cake flour and 550 is like all-purpose flour but they are both ok to use for Pandesal.
Hi! I tried the recipe. The dough was not elastic at all. Did I miss anything?
I noticed that there is no water in the recipe.
I replaced the water with milk for a softer pandesal. Did you use a measuring cup to measure the flour and milk? Or that you measured them correctly?
Iam a retiree but I’m still able to make breads if you will share your recipes for a bakery breads. Thank you Have. God Bless!!!!!
Hi Bebs,
this recipe does not require for the yeast to bloom?
It is because I used an instant yeast that does not require blooming but you can always do it to be sure ?