Rabanada (Brazilian-Style French Toast) Recipe
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Rabanada usually makes an appearance on the Brazilian breakfast table around Christmastime, but it’s so delicious we whip it up all year long. Most recipes call for the bread to be soaked briefly, fried, and sprinkled with cinnamon sugar. Our version sits overnight before frying to allow the custard to really soak in. Then, like a churro, we completely cover it in a cinnamon-cocoa-sugar mixture. Team this with our Marinated Mango or Grapefruit Spike, and you’re set for Sunday brunch.
What to buy: Use unsweetened cocoa powder in this recipe.
We prefer the custardy texture that results from using a narrow (about 2 inches wide) baguette rather than a thicker one; however any size baguette will work.
Game plan: Frying the bread for 8 to 10 minutes makes for a crispy outside and a custardy interior, but go ahead and adjust the cooking time to your French toast preferences.
This recipe was featured as part of our Father’s Day Breakfast menu.
- 1 medium sweet or sourdough baguette
- 3 large eggs
- 3/4 cup sweetened condensed milk
- 6 tablespoons whole milk
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon fine salt
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- Vegetable oil, for frying
- Cut baguette on the bias into 1-inch-thick slices (you should have about 16 slices).
- Place eggs, condensed milk, whole milk, vanilla extract, and salt in a medium bowl and whisk until evenly combined. Pour mixture into a shallow dish that will snugly hold all of the bread (such as a glass baking dish or a large pie plate) and add baguette slices. Turn slices to coat well in the mixture. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until egg mixture is almost completely absorbed, at least 4 hours or up to overnight.
- Place sugar, cocoa powder, and cinnamon in a small bowl and mix until evenly distributed; set aside.
- When the bread has finished soaking, fill a medium pot with oil to a depth of 2 inches. Heat over medium heat until the oil registers 330°F on a deep-fat thermometer. Place reserved cinnamon-cocoa mixture on a plate and set aside. Line another plate with paper towels and set aside.
- Remove bread slices from the egg mixture, allowing any excess to drip off. Place 4 to 6 pieces of bread in the hot oil (being sure not to overcrowd the pot). Fry until bread slices are dark golden brown on one side, about 4 to 5 minutes. (You’ll want the oil to maintain a temperature of 325°F while the bread is frying; adjust the heat as necessary to achieve this.) Flip and fry another 4 to 5 minutes. Remove to the paper-towel-lined plate to drain.
- While still hot, dredge French toast in the cinnamon-cocoa mixture and shake off any excess. Repeat the frying process with the remaining bread slices and serve.
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This recipe is not Brasilian, is very very PORTUGUESE. In the country side they are call FATIAS PARIDAS. Research research, if you don't no ask. Thank you
i made it for a project in class everyone loved it great recipe!!! :)
I made rabanada this morning using Aida's recipe. It is *outrageously* good. No other French toast like it.
JoyM, substituing regular milk for sweetened, condensed is fine. The only difference is the amount of moisture and sugar in the milk...you would have to adjust your cooking times for the added moisture. Technically, you could make your own sweentened, condensed by reducing milk in a saucepan to your desired consistency and adding your choice of sweetener... honey would be fantastic! Also, if you want a better "custardy" interior for your deep fried french toast, only use the egg yolk in your dredging mixture. The yolk (fat) will create the custard and will not souffles in an oven. Egg white (protein) will curdle a proper custard and souffles quite nicely - it will create a lighter, "fluffier" product. Really though, they both taste heavenly, and its all about the texture you want to put in your mouth and in the mouths of hungry guests :)
JoyM, one used to be able to buy Lactaid drops to add to dairy products (they work over several hours). For some reason, they've been discontinued in the US but I think they're still available in Canada. Check eBay for sellers--the drops keep a long time and you can add them not only to milk but yogurt, sweetened condensed or evaporated milk, etc. They're good to have around even if you're not lactose intolerant in case you're preparing a dairy meal for a friend who is. I'm not, but my mom is, plus I've had two boyfriends who were so I know the drill.
This recipe sounds great, but I can't eat sweetened condensed milk because I'm badly lactose intolerant. I can drink the lactose-free regular milk. Any suggestions for how to adjust this recipe by using regular milk and sugar, maybe, in place of the condensed milk?
I like this idea.and I'll try it. My more "traditional" French Toast is a simple mixture of eggs, milk, a drop of vanilla and maybe a capfull or two of brandy. The bread I like to use is a good home made pullman type sandwich loaf. It has the required density to hold together but is tender enough not to be chewy. I usually soak it for about an hour and gently fry it in butter. Then I flip it over in the pan and cook it in a 325 oven for about 10 minutes. I find that the oven heat allows the custard to cook through to that nice creamy texture without burning the egg on the surface. Also, the toast "souffles" for a nice presentation.
I'm curious to try this recipe, being a French toast fan. My current recipe of choice is Mark Bittman's and Jose Andres one for torrijas castellanas, that makes by far the greatest French toast I've ever had. I'm surprised that this recipe calls for a baguette, and not a denser bread (such as real white bread-not Wonder, brioche, or challah). Is that a traditional Brazilian choice? I usually soak my bread for 10-15 minutes and those slices (I cut the slices about an inch to inch and-a-half thick) soak up all the batter, making for that bread pudding/custardy-interior, while frying in olive oil creates the crispy exterior. The recipe uses half cream, half milk, not sweetned condensed. I'll have to head to the kitchen with this recipe in hand...
Hey Farofa.... so nice to read a comment from a Brazilian reader! I'm from Blumenau and I work here at Chow. I have to confess that when Aïda asked me about Rabanada I had no idea of what it was. You know, in the south they are not very popular. But I'll try to make them at home now. Your line about Papai Noel had me smiling.... Como vai a Ilha Bela? hehehe abraços...
I like the Brazilian Santa more... This recipe has me drooling.
Yes, I like it too... My grandmother's rabanadas are very creamy, and she soaks the bread longer than most people (not as long as 8 hours, but about 1 or 2). Sometimes she adds Port to the milk, which gives a distinctive "richer" taste. The traditional recipe is much simpler. Just like portuguese Fatias Paridas or french Pain Perdu, it uses just bread, milk, eggs, oil, cinnammon and sugar. What I enjoy about Aïdas Rabanadas is how brazilian they are! Not joking: our cooking is creative, multicultural, eager to incorporate new ingredients and mostly free of prejudices (sometimes we exagerate, but that's another story). We love sweet condensed milk. In so many traditional recipes (like Arroz Doce or Pudim de Pão) it now substitutes plain milk, and many people doesn't even know how they were made before condensed milk existed. An we love also chocolate. If something is good, may be better with chocolate. I'll try the cocoa version next time. By the way, some families serve their's with orange or Port syrup. I made some very good ones substituting part of the milk for coconut milk, which may be perfect with the cocoa powder. Rabanadas are mostly a dessert, served at the large Christmas eve's buffet. The leftovers become creamier and are a special treat at Christmas morning breakfast table. (my family usually makes more rabanadas and hides a plate, to ensure that there WILL be leftovers) . By the way... that's what we leave for Papai Noel (Santa Claus) rabanadas and a glass of Port.
I like the concept of 8 hour soaking-hopefully the brea won't fall apart-crisp outside and custardy inside sounds delicious-never tried it with cocoa powder--must try this-something different-thanks.