Crispy Portuguese Papo Secos Recipe — Homemade Crusty Rolls

Crusty on the outside and soft and chewy inside, these homemade crusty Portuguese rolls are ideal for sandwiches. They’re also perfect for dunking into soup or stew, or serving as dinner rolls.

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Ask most South Africans to name their favourite bread roll and you’ll often hear “Portuguese rolls“. Sold by the thousands in bakeries and supermarkets across the country, these distinctively shaped, crusty rolls also appear on restaurant bread boards and are commonly turned into garlic rolls.

Since moving back to the UK—where these rolls are harder to find—I’ve been trying to recreate the perfect crusty Portuguese roll at home. This recipe finally matches the rolls I remember: a crunchy exterior with a soft, chewy interior.

Bite through the crisp crust and you’ll find a slightly spongy, tender crumb that soaks up sauces, soups and stews beautifully. They’re especially good alongside rich dishes such as trinchado. A light dusting of flour on the outside remains from shaping the dough and adds to their rustic appearance.

A simple trick to boost crustiness is to place a deep baking tray filled with water on the bottom shelf of the oven as it preheats. Keep that water in while the rolls bake—steam helps the crust develop a satisfying crunch.

These rolls are also called papo secos, which literally translates from Portuguese as “dry talk”—a curious name for such a delicious roll. Maybe the reference comes from their lightly floured surface.

Recipe notes

• Prep time – 20 minutes
• Rising and proofing time – 2 hours
• Cooking time – 20 minutes
• Yield – 12 rolls
• Calories – 179 per roll
• Main equipment – Kenwood Chef stand mixer (optional). A mixer makes kneading easier, but you can knead by hand.

How to make Portuguese rolls at home

These Papo Secos are straightforward to make. A stand mixer with a dough hook saves effort, but hand-kneading for about 10 minutes produces equally good results if you don’t mind the extra work.

You’ll need standard bread ingredients: strong white (bread) flour, instant yeast, a little sugar, lukewarm milk and water, plus butter and salt to enrich the dough and give the crumb a soft texture.

Measure the milk and water into a jug and warm them until lukewarm. Stir in the sugar and instant yeast and let it start to foam. Meanwhile, add the bread flour, salt and butter to the bowl of your mixer (or a large mixing bowl if kneading by hand). The butter does not need to be mixed in at this stage.

Once the yeast has begun to froth, pour the liquid into the flour. Mix on low speed for about 2 minutes to combine, then increase to medium and continue for another 5 minutes until the dough forms a soft ball; it may still be slightly sticky.

If kneading by hand, combine the liquid and flour with a flat knife until roughly mixed, then knead for at least 10 minutes, adding a little extra flour if the dough is too sticky.

Cover the dough and leave it in a warm, draught-free place for about 1 hour, until doubled in size.

Punch the dough down, flatten it into a disk and transfer to a well-floured surface to shape.

Shape the papo secos

Shaping gives these rolls their classic look, but you can make them round if you prefer.

Divide the dough into 12 equal pieces and roll each into a ball.

Flatten each ball slightly, press the side of your hand into the centre to make a deep indentation, then bring the sides up and pinch the ends together to seal. This creates the distinctive elongated shape.

Proof and bake

Place the shaped rolls a few centimetres apart on a lightly floured or parchment-lined baking sheet to prevent sticking. Cover with a clean cloth and proof for another hour until doubled in size. Don’t crowd them—leave room to expand.

Ten minutes before baking, put a deep tray filled with water on the oven’s bottom shelf and preheat to 190°C / 375°F. Brush the tops of the rolls lightly with milk and bake in the centre of the oven for 20 minutes, until golden brown and crisp.

Remove the rolls from the oven and cool uncovered for best crust texture.

Your questions answered

What to serve with Portuguese rolls

These rolls are versatile. Fill them with ham and tomato or cheese for simple sandwiches, or use them for burgers with boerewors patties. They shine when dunked into soups and stews—try them with hearty beef vegetable soup or spiced chicken liver dishes.

They’re excellent split and spread with lots of butter, or turned into garlic rolls under the grill until golden and crispy.

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Other bread recipes

If you enjoy baking bread, try these other recipes for inspiration:

• No-knead crusty artisan bread
• Homemade hot dog rolls
• No-knead soft dinner rolls
• Easy wholemeal soda bread
• No-knead seeded Irish soda bread with buttermilk
• Crusty German bread rolls (Brotchen)

Recipe – Crusty Portuguese rolls (papo secos)

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