Bolillos

Recipe by The Big Book of Bread
Not Yet Reviewed

Also know as pan francés or pan blanco, bolillos are made and eaten throughout Mexico and Central America (and anywhere else with a large Mexican or Central American community). They have a crisp, thin crust that shatters when you bite into them, and a fluffy, tender crumb. Bollilo rolls are perhaps most famous as the bread of choice for tortas, those deliciously oversized pressed sandwiches filled with everything from ham and cheese to fried chicken cutlets and chiles. Find more bread recipes in the Big Book of Bread. 

Prep
25 mins
Bake
25 to 30 mins
Total
3 hrs
Yield
six 6" rolls
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Bolillos - select to zoom
Bolillos - select to zoom
Bolillos - select to zoom
Bolillos - select to zoom

Instructions

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  1. Weigh your flour; or measure it by gently spooning it into a cup, then sweeping off any excess.  

  2. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, lard or butter, sugar, salt, yeast, and water. Mix until no dry patches of flour remain and a soft, sticky dough forms. Cover and allow it to rest for 15 minutes.  

  3. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and knead until a tacky, springy dough forms, about 5 to 8 minutes. The dough will be sticky at first but will smooth out quickly; to make it easier to handle, use a bowl scraper or bench knife to scrape the dough off your work surface as you knead, which will speed up the process and reduce the amount of flour required for kneading (adding too much flour at this stage can make your rolls denser). Alternatively, the dough can be made in a mixer fitted with the dough hook; mix on medium-low speed until no dry patches of flour remain, then increase to medium and mix until the dough is smooth, elastic, and pulls away from the sides of the bowl, about 5 minutes. 

  4. Return the dough to the bowl, cover, and let it rise until puffy and doubled in size, about 1 hour.   

  5. Use a bowl scraper to gently ease the dough out of the bowl onto a lightly floured work surface. With a bowl scraper or knife, divide the dough into 6 even pieces (about 150g each).

  6. Gently press down on each piece to remove any bubbles, then preshape them into cylinders. Place the dough pieces seam-side down and about 2" apart on a lightly floured surface. Cover and let them rest for 10 minutes.  

  7. Place one piece of dough seam-side up on a lightly floured surface. Gently deflate the dough, pressing it into a 5" x 3" rectangle. Shape the dough into a 6" bâtard with slightly tapered ends and place it on a piece of parchment. Repeat with the remaining dough, evenly spacing them on the parchment.  

  8. Cover the shaped bolillos and let them rest at room temperature until very puffy, 30 to 45 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 450°F with a baking stone placed on the middle rack and an empty cast iron skillet on the rack below. If possible, adjust the stone and pan so that the skillet isn't directly under the stone, making it easier for steam to reach the baking rolls.  
     

  9. Use a baker’s lame or razor blade to score a straight line vertically down the center of each roll. Using a baker’s peel or an unrimmed baking sheet, load the rolls (still on the parchment) into the oven, then pour about 1 cup (roughly 227g) of warm water into the skillet.

  10. Bake the bolillos for 25 to 30 minutes, until the crust is firm, crisp, and deep golden brown and the rolls feel light for their size. Remove from the oven and transfer the bolillos to a wire rack to cool completely. These rolls are best enjoyed the day they’re baked; the crust will soften and lose crispness if stored. 

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