Ube Bread Recipe (How to Make Soft Ube Pandesal with Cheese Inside)

You will get a full recipe for ube pandesal stuffed with melted cheese, a Filipino bread roll with a vivid purple crumb, a lightly sweet dough, and a gooey savory center. By the end, you will have everything you need to bake these from scratch at home!

Table of Contents

• What Is Ube Bread?
• Which Cheese Please?
• Ingredients
• How to Make Ube Pandesal with Cheese
• Recipe Tips
• Serving Ideas
• Ooh Baby, Ube!
• Frequently Asked Questions

What Is Ube Bread?

When people search for ube bread, they are usually after one of two things: a loaf or a roll. This recipe delivers the roll version, specifically ube pandesal, and it is the better starting point many.

Pandesal is the most common bread in the Philippines. The name translates to “salt bread,” which is slightly misleading since these rolls are actually mildly sweet, not salty. They are soft, fluffy, and coated in fine breadcrumbs that give the outside a faint crust while the inside stays pillowy.

Ube pandesal takes that same roll and works ube into the dough, turning it a vivid purple and adding a subtly earthy, vanilla-like sweetness.

The cheese filling is not optional in the way a garnish is optional. It is the whole point. The salt from the melted cheese cuts through the sweet ube dough in a way that makes each bite more interesting than the last.

Filipino bakeries sell these filled with processed quick-melt cheese, and that combination has built a devoted following for a reason.

What Is Ube?

Ube is a purple yam (Dioscorea alata) that grows across Southeast Asia and is deeply embedded in Filipino food culture. It shows up in ice cream, cakes, jam, kakanin (rice cakes), and bread.

The flavor is mild and slightly sweet with a nutty, vanilla-adjacent quality that is distinct from taro or purple sweet potato, which are sometimes sold as substitutes.

For baking, ube most commonly appears in three forms:

Form	What It Is	Best Use
Ube halaya	Cooked, sweetened ube jam	Dough, fillings, swirl patterns
Ube extract	Concentrated flavoring and color	Intensifying color and flavor
Ube powder	Dehydrated ube, needs rehydrating	Substitute when halaya is unavailable
Fresh ube	Steamed and mashed	Most natural flavor, requires prep

For these pandesal, ube halaya combined with a small amount of ube extract gives the best result. The halaya adds genuine flavor and body to the dough. The extract helps the purple color survive the oven, since ube’s anthocyanin pigments are sensitive to heat and tend to fade without some help.

Which Cheese Please?

Not all cheese behaves the same inside a bread roll. Here is how the most common options compare:

Cheese	Melt Quality	Flavor	Notes
Quick-melt cheese (Eden, Velveeta)	Excellent	Mild, salty, creamy	The classic Filipino bakery choice
Sharp cheddar, sliced	Good	Tangy, pronounced	More contrast against the sweet dough
Gouda	Very good	Buttery, mild	Melts cleanly with a smooth finish
Mozzarella	Good	Mild, stretchy	Goes stringy when eaten warm
Cream cheese	Soft, stays in pockets	Tangy, rich	Does not melt flat; gives a cheesecake-like center

Quick-melt cheese is the traditional pick and the one most Filipino ube pandesal recipes use. It melts into a smooth, creamy layer that distributes evenly through the roll. Sharp cheddar is a good substitute if you want a more assertive cheese flavor. Use about 1 teaspoon to 1 tablespoon of filling per roll, depending on the size of your dough balls.

Ingredients

For the Dough

Ingredient	Amount
Bread flour	300g (about 2 1/2 cups)
Granulated sugar	50g (1/4 cup)
Salt	5g (1 tsp)
Instant yeast	6g (2 tsp)
Whole milk, warm	120ml (1/2 cup)
Large egg	1
Ube halaya	120g (about 1/2 cup)
Ube extract	1/2 tsp
Unsalted butter, softened	40g (3 tbsp)

For the Filling

Ingredient	Amount
Quick-melt cheese or sharp cheddar	100g (about 3.5 oz), cut into 12 small cubes or pieces

For the Coating and Egg Wash

Ingredient	Amount
Fine breadcrumbs	60g (about 1/2 cup)
Egg yolk	1
Milk	1 tbsp

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How to Make Ube Pandesal with Cheese

Step 1: Bloom the Yeast

1. Warm the milk to around 38°C (100°F). It should feel comfortably warm when you touch it, not hot. Above 46°C (115°F) will kill the yeast.
2. Stir in 1 tablespoon of the measured sugar and all of the yeast. Let sit for 5 to 10 minutes until the surface is foamy and active.
3. If the mixture does not foam, the yeast is inactive or the milk was too hot. Start over with fresh yeast before continuing.

Step 2: Mix the Dough

1. In a stand mixer bowl, whisk together the bread flour, remaining sugar, and salt.
2. Add the yeast mixture, egg, ube halaya, and ube extract.
3. Mix on low speed with the dough hook until a rough, shaggy dough comes together, about 2 minutes.
4. Increase to medium speed and knead for 5 minutes.
5. Add the softened butter one tablespoon at a time. Wait for each piece to fully incorporate before adding the next. The dough will look rough and might come apart briefly during this process; keep going.
6. Once all the butter is in, continue kneading on medium-high for another 8 to 10 minutes. The dough is ready when it is smooth, elastic, and slightly tacky but not sticky. It should pass the windowpane test: stretch a small piece gently between your fingers until it is thin enough to see light through without tearing.

Step 3: First Rise

1. Shape the dough into a smooth ball and place it in a lightly oiled bowl. Turn it once to coat.
2. Cover with plastic wrap or a clean damp towel.
3. Let rise at room temperature, around 24 to 27°C (75 to 80°F), until doubled in size. This takes 1 to 1.5 hours. If your kitchen is cold, place the covered bowl in an oven with just the light on.

Step 4: Prepare the Cheese Filling

1. While the dough rises, cut the cheese into 12 small, equal-sized cubes or pieces, roughly 8g each.
2. Keep the cheese cold in the refrigerator until you are ready to stuff the rolls. Cold cheese is much easier to work with and holds its shape better during shaping.

Step 5: Divide and Shape the Rolls

1. Gently punch down the risen dough and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface.
2. Divide into 12 equal pieces, roughly 50 to 55g each. A kitchen scale makes this easier and gives you uniform rolls that bake at the same rate.
3. Take one piece of dough and flatten it into a small disc, about 8 cm (3 inches) across.
4. Place one piece of cold cheese in the center.
5. Pull the edges of the dough up and around the cheese, gathering them together at the top and pinching firmly to seal. Roll the filled dough ball between your palms to smooth it out.
6. Roll the ball in breadcrumbs until fully coated, pressing lightly so they stick.
7. Repeat with the remaining dough and cheese.

Step 6: Arrange and Second Rise (Proof)

1. Place the coated rolls on a parchment-lined baking sheet, leaving about 3 to 4 cm (1.5 inches) between each.
2. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let proof for 45 minutes to 1 hour, until the rolls have puffed noticeably and are touching or nearly touching.
3. Do not rush this step. Rolls that have not proofed long enough will bake up dense and the cheese will not melt as smoothly into the crumb.

Step 7: Egg Wash and Bake

1. Preheat your oven to 180°C (355°F).
2. Whisk the egg yolk and milk together and brush lightly over the tops of the rolls. A gentle touch here avoids deflating them.
3. Bake for 14 to 18 minutes, until the tops are golden brown and the rolls feel set when you press them lightly.
4. The cheese inside will be fully melted. Let the rolls rest for 5 minutes before eating so the filling settles slightly.

Recipe Tips

Getting the Purple to Stay

Ube’s color comes from anthocyanins, plant pigments that break down under heat and acidic conditions. A few things help the purple survive baking:

• Use ube extract alongside halaya. Extract contains concentrated, more heat-stable color. Without it, the dough often bakes up muted brown or gray-purple.
• Do not overbake. Higher heat and longer bake times accelerate color loss. Pull the rolls as soon as they are golden.
• Avoid acidic additions. Lemon juice, vinegar, and buttermilk all push the color toward brown. Standard dairy ingredients are fine.

Getting the Texture Right

Problem	Likely Cause	Fix
Dense, heavy rolls	Under-proofed or yeast failed	Confirm yeast is active; proof until rolls are visibly puffed
Gummy interior	Under-baked	Add 2 to 3 more minutes; the cheese can slow heat transfer
Dry, tough crumb	Too much flour or overbaked	Spoon and level flour; do not add extra during kneading
Flat rolls that spread	Over-proofed	Watch the second rise; bake when rolls are puffed but still hold shape
Cheese leaking out	Seams not sealed	Pinch the top closure firmly and roll smooth before coating

Measuring Flour Correctly

Adding too much flour is the most common reason ube pandesal comes out dry. Do not scoop the cup directly into the flour bag, which compacts it significantly. Instead, spoon flour into the measuring cup and level off the top with a straight edge. Better yet, use a kitchen scale.

Working with Ube Halaya

Jarred ube halaya varies a lot by brand. Some are thick and stiff; others are looser and wetter. If yours is on the runny side, reduce the milk in the dough by 15 to 20ml. If it tastes very sweet, cut the sugar in the recipe back by 1 tablespoon. The dough should feel soft and slightly sticky before the butter goes in, not wet or sloppy.

Hand Kneading

A stand mixer makes this easier but is not required. If kneading by hand, plan for 15 to 20 minutes total. The dough will feel very sticky at first from the ube halaya and butter. Resist adding flour and use the slap-and-fold method on the counter to develop the gluten. It will come together.

Storing Ube Pandesal

Storage	How Long	Notes
Room temperature, airtight	1 to 2 days	Best eaten the same day or the next morning
Refrigerator	Up to 5 days	Reheat in a 160°C (320°F) oven for 5 minutes before eating
Freezer	Up to 2 months	Freeze fully cooled rolls; reheat from frozen at 175°C (350°F) for 10 to 12 minutes

Ube pandesal is best eaten warm when the cheese is still soft. Day-old rolls reheat well in the oven and taste very close to fresh.

Serving Ideas

Ube pandesal with cheese is a complete snack on its own, but a few combinations are especially good:

• Warm from the oven with butter: The butter melts into the breadcrumb crust and the cheese inside is still gooey.
• With a cup of hot chocolate or barako coffee: The classic Filipino breakfast pairing. The bitterness of the coffee balances the sweet dough well.
• Split and spread with more ube halaya: Leans fully into the ube flavor and makes a good afternoon snack.
• With scrambled eggs on the side: Rounds out the meal and the savory cheese ties the whole plate together.
• Split and used as a small sandwich: The soft crumb holds up well to fillings like corned beef, spam, or longganisa.

Related:

• What to Eat With Sourdough Bread?
• 26 Sourdough Recipes for 2026
• Whole Grain Wheat Sourdough Hamburger Buns With Tarragon

Ooh Baby, Ube!

Ube pandesal with cheese does not need a long explanation for why it works. Sweet, fluffy dough meets melted savory cheese, and the combination has made these rolls a staple in Filipino tables for decades. The purple color is a bonus that makes them hard to resist before you even take a bite.

Make a batch, eat them warm, and keep the leftovers sealed tightly for breakfast the next day.

Frequently Asked Questions

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