Street Basket · Cassava Cheese Bread

Chipa

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Street vendors called chiperas have sold these warm, chewy rolls from baskets and buses for so long that Paraguay counts at least 70 regional variations.

Chipa is a small, chewy roll made from cassava starch, egg, fat, and cheese, baked until it forms a golden crust around a springy interior. It's sold year-round by street vendors and bus-aisle hawkers carrying warm baskets wrapped in cloth.

Why it's made this way: Chipa grew from the fusion of Guaraní cassava-flour baking traditions with cheese, milk, and eggs introduced by Jesuit missionaries.