A ''bolillo'' () (in Mexico) or ''pan francés'' (in Central America) (meaning "French bread") is a type of savory bread made in Mexico and Central America. It is a variation of the

baguette A baguette (; ) is a long, thin type of bread of French origin that is commonly made from basic lean dough (the dough, though not the shape, is defined by French law). It is distinguishable by its length and crisp crust. A baguette has a dia ...

, but shorter in length and is often baked in a

stone oven A masonry oven, colloquially known as a brick oven or stone oven, is an oven consisting of a baking chamber made of fireproof brick, concrete, stone, clay (clay oven), or cob (cob oven). Though traditionally wood-fired, coal-fired ovens were c ...

. Brought to Mexico City in the 1860s by Emperor Maximilian's troupe of cooks, its use quickly spread throughout the country. It is roughly long, in the shape of an ovoid, with a crunchy crust and a soft inside known as ''migajón'' (). It is the main ingredient for ''

torta Torta is a culinary term that can, depending on the cuisine, refer to cakes, pies, flatbreads, sandwiches, or omelettes. Usually, it refers to: * cake or pie in South America, much of Europe, and southern Philippines * flatbread in Spain * a ...

s'' and '' molletes''. It has a slash on top made with a slashing tool or bread lame, which permits the exhaust of steam and the expansion of bread without stressing its skin. A variation of the bolillo is the 'telera', which is very similar, but in this case, is usually softer and as a current trend sweeter. Other variations include ''bolillos'' made of alternate ingredients such as whole wheat, wheat germ, or flax.

Names

The ''bolillo'' is a variation of the

, and thus often has names in the local language reflecting this. In Guadalajara and Sonora, they are called ''birotes'' which are often made with sourdough. In northern Mexico, they are known both as ''bolillos'' and ''pan blanco'', whereas in northeast Mexico it is known as ''pan francés''. In Sinaloa, they are called ''torcido'' and ''birote''. In Central America, especially in El Salvador, it is also known as ''pan francés'' and in Guatemala it is known as ''pirujo''. In

Panama Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Co ...

, a similar but longer type of bread is known as ''flauta ''(flute) while ''pan francés ''refers to the thinner, crustier French baguette. In

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

, a similar bread is made and known as ''pão francês'' or ''pão de sal'' ("bread of salt"). In the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

, another similar baguette-derived bread is known as '' pan de sal'' (also "bread of salt").

Slang

''Bolillo'' is a

slang Slang is vocabulary (words, phrases, and linguistic usages) of an informal register, common in spoken conversation but avoided in formal writing. It also sometimes refers to the language generally exclusive to the members of particular in-g ...

term used in some parts of

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

and the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

as an insult to refer to Mexicanos or Chicanos who act "White" because Bolillos are brown on the outside, but white on the inside. A more common meaning is used when a person says the expression "''puro bolillo''" (lit. "only French bread"), which is equivalent with the English slang word ''zilch''.

References

{{Mexican cuisine Cuisine of the Southwestern United States Mexican breads Mexican slang Salvadoran cuisine Spanish slang