Ube pandesal is where two Filipino treasures meet: pandesal, the soft roll whose smell fills kitchens across the archipelago at daybreak, and ube, the purple yam with its vanilla-and-hazelnut flavour. Rolled in a fine layer of breadcrumbs, golden from the oven and deep purple when you tear them open, these little rolls turn any breakfast into an occasion. At Ubedia we make this ube pandesal recipe with our ube powder from Kinampay of the Visayas, the premium Filipino variety known for its intense natural colour and delicate aroma. No colouring needed: the purple comes from the yam alone. In this guide you will find the exact quantities, the step-by-step method and our tips for a soft, stretchy crumb and a tender crust. Allow around 2 h 30 in total (including proving) for a dozen rolls. Once you have the technique, ube pandesal will quickly become a weekend ritual.
The ingredient behind this recipe: Natural Ube Powder 200 g — 16.90 € (≈50 drinks), 100% purple yam, no additives, shipped from Aix-en-Provence within 72 h.
What is pandesal (and why make it with ube)?
Pandesal — literally “salt bread” in Philippine Spanish — is the everyday bread of the Philippines: lightly sweet, airy, rolled in breadcrumbs before baking. It is eaten warm, plain, spread with butter or filled with cheese. In the ube pandesal version, ube powder turns the dough a spectacular purple and brings that distinctive flavour, somewhere between vanilla and hazelnut, which pairs perfectly with the brioche-like softness. It is one of the most enjoyable ways to cook purple yam, in the tradition of the great classics such as ube halaya, the traditional jam that forms the base of so many Filipino desserts.
Ingredients for 12 ube pandesal
Preparation: 30 min · Proving: 1 h 30 · Baking: 15 min · Makes 12 rolls.
- 500 g wheat flour (T45 or T55)
- 3 tbsp of ube powder (about 20 g)
- 60 g sugar
- 7 g dried baker's yeast (or 20 g fresh yeast)
- 1 tsp salt
- 180 ml warm milk
- 1 egg
- 50 g soft butter
- 2 to 3 tbsp fine breadcrumbs (for coating)
The choice of powder makes all the difference: a pure powder, with no additives or colouring, guarantees a clear purple and an authentic taste. Choose the size that fits how often you cook — the full rundown is in our ube powder buying guide.
The recipe step by step
- Activate the yeast. In a bowl, mix the warm milk with a spoonful of sugar and the yeast. Leave to stand for 10 minutes: a foam should form on the surface.
- Make the purple dough. In a large bowl, combine the flour, the ube powder, the rest of the sugar and the salt. Make a well, add the beaten egg and the milk-and-yeast mixture.
- Knead. Work the dough for 5 minutes, then add the soft butter piece by piece. Knead for another 10 minutes, until the dough is supple, smooth and slightly sticky. It takes on a lovely, even purple hue.
- First prove. Cover with a damp cloth and leave to rise for 1 hour in a warm place, until the dough has doubled in size.
- Shape. Knock back the dough, divide into 12 equal pieces and roll each one into a ball. Roll each ball briefly in the breadcrumbs to coat.
- Second prove. Place the balls on a lined baking tray, well spaced. Cover and leave to rise for 30 minutes.
- Bake. Bake at 180 °C (fan) for 13 to 15 minutes. The ube pandesal should stay tender: do not let them brown too much, so the purple colour is preserved.
- Eat them warm. Let them cool for 5 minutes, then enjoy plain or spread. The crumb reveals a deep purple and an irresistible ube aroma.
Our tips for a successful ube pandesal
Getting the purple right
The shade depends directly on the quality and quantity of the powder. Three tablespoons give a pronounced purple without bitterness. For an even deeper colour, go up to 4 tablespoons and reduce the flour very slightly. Avoid baking too long or too hot, which dulls the colour.
Getting a stretchy crumb
The secret to a soft ube pandesal lies in the kneading and in butter that is properly worked in. Do not skimp on kneading time: it is what develops the gluten network responsible for that light, stretchy texture. Warm milk (never hot) also protects the action of the yeast.
Measuring the ube powder
As with all our recipes, the right dose avoids surprises. You will find all our benchmarks — spoons, grams, portions — in the ube powder dosage guide. For pandesal, stay at around 4% of the weight of the flour.
Tempting variations
Ube pandesal lends itself to endless twists. Fill them with mild cheese before the second prove for the sweet-and-savoury version that is typically Filipino. Or tuck a spoonful of ube halaya into the heart of each ball for a roll that is purple outside and meltingly soft inside. Do you love a stretchy, buttery crumb? Keep going with our ube brioche, another great classic of purple baking. And to go with your pandesal at breakfast, nothing beats a homemade ube latte.
Storing them
Ube pandesal keeps for 2 days at room temperature, in a cloth bag or an airtight tin. Give them a few seconds in the toaster or the oven to bring back their softness. They also freeze very well: wrap them individually once cooled.
Ubedia ube powder for your pandesal
For a naturally purple, fragrant ube pandesal, everything starts with the powder. Ours comes from the Kinampay variety of the Visayas, 100% purple yam and nothing else, sourced directly from Filipino growers for full batch-by-batch traceability — no additives, no colouring, no added sugar, and packed in France, in Aix-en-Provence. If you bake regularly, the 200 g size offers the best value for quantity. Want to move between breads, lattes and desserts? The Duo Rituel pairs the 200 g natural powder with a 100 g flavour of your choice.
- Ube Powder 200 g — the best-seller, ideal for cooking
- Duo Rituel — 200 g natural + one 100 g flavour of your choice
Browse all our ube powder recipes to keep exploring the purple superfood of the Philippines, from breakfast to dessert.
