Kapihan Sourdough Pandesal

Pan De Sal is the everyday bread that everyone can afford. Although there remains a wide wealth divide in the Philippines, everyone from rich to poor can afford Pan de Sal.

It should be fresh, affordable, and delicious. Despite salt being in the name, the bread is slightly sweet. The Filipino palate has an affinity for sweet things; we even enjoy spaghetti with a sweet sauce, and Pan de Sal is eaten throughout the day, both for breakfast and merienda, our snack time. A traditional Pan de Sal is a rough, small oval shape and is baked in a Pugon or hearth oven. The traditional dough usually contains quite a bit of fat, which leads to it not rising much. Butter is expensive and not widely available in the Philippines, so bakers mainly use margarine or in some cases rendered pork or duck fat.

“This bread is coated in small bread crumbs for texture and, when fresh out the oven, should have a crispy exterior and fluffy interior. Pan De Sal is best enjoyed as a classic combination with coffee in the mornings. It’s really versatile bread, where you can add jams – usually mango, guava, or a sweet gherkin mayo called lady’s choice – and Eden cheese. But a really good Pan De Sal should have the texture and flavour to enjoy in its own right.

Kapihan’s version of the Pan De Sal is made with sourdough. This is important as it gives the bread a subtle tang, desired structure, and helps keep for longer unlike other pandesals which can dry out very quickly. We have a Mallungay version which adds a faint bitterness but is also packed full of antioxidants. 3 Cheese version together with filled pandesal are also ways we have used pandesal as a base.

The best way to enjoy pandesal is fresh in the morning hot from the oven. We open at 7.30am on weekdays and 8 am on weekends. Our pandesal will be ready for you.