Delicious Chipa Rolls (A Type of Cheese Rolls)

Submitted by Chef #327349

"This is a traditional recipe from the north of Argentina and Paraguay. They are truly delicious cheese rolls, which are quite easy to make, freeze perfectly either raw or cooked, and are definitely crowd-pleasers. In case you can´t find tapioca flour/starch where you live, you can buy it at Amazon, for instance. I have never met anyone who doesn´t like them!!!"

 

• Ready In: 45mins
• Ingredients: 8
• Yields: 40 chipa, approximately
• Serves: 10

ingredients

• 2 1⁄4 cups tapioca flour (500g) or 2 1/4 cups tapioca starch (500g)
• 4 eggs
• 3⁄4 cup butter (200g)
• 2 teaspoons salt, to taste
• pepper, to taste
• 1⁄2 lb parmesan cheese (grated, 250g)
• 1⁄2 lb green cheese (250g) or 1/2 lb mozzarella cheese (250g)
• 1⁄2 1/2 lb goat cheese (250g, chopped into small squares) or 1/2 lb any other hard cheese (250g, chopped into small squares)

directions

1. Put the tapioca in a big bowl (it is quite thin so it can make a mess), along with coldish butter (chopped roughly), the mozzarella or any semi-soft cheese (also roughly cut to make the process easier), the grated parmesan cheese, and the eggs.
2. Start mixing the ingredients by hand until the dough is somewhat formed.
3. Add the hard cheese cut into small squares to the dough and keep kneading until you have a homogeneous dough (with the exception of the hard cheese squares, which aren´t supposed to blend in).
4. Refrigerate for 30 minutes or so. This step can be skipped if in a hurry and they´ll still come out great.
5. Take small pieces of dough and form little balls with it.
6. Cook in a 400°F oven for around 15 mins, checking every 5 mins or so. The result should be crunchy outside and softer inside.

Reviews

[Robin H.]

I have to add this to my review. Please, please, PLEASE never, ever bake chipa with a bowl of water beneath the rolls. One of the best features of chipa (along with its delicious flavor) is that after baking, it has a thick (about 1/8 to a 1/4 inch) crust on the outside, with a wonderfully gooey inside. A bowl of water beneath the rolls would soften the outside and take from this wonderful roll one of the features that makes it so addictive!

 

[Luci C.]

Chipa is not Argentinean at all, it's Paraguayan. Please edit it to be said that it's a Paraguayan dish that Argentina might serve on some regions. That said it's best eaten right after it's made, should be baked with a bowl of water underneath the chipa. It's addicting. The recipe comes close to how my mom makes it. Four stars just because the inaccurate orgin of Argentina.