History

The name comes from the caco, the flat stone disc the bread is baked on, not from any shape of loaf. Sweet potato was a cheap and abundant crop on Madeira's terraces, and mashing it into the dough made a soft bread that stayed edible for days without an oven, which most rural households did not have. The garlic butter is a later addition and now inseparable from it. In Funchal the bread arrives before you order, is used to mop the drippings under an espetada, and is sold split and filled as a street snack.

Common allergens: Gluten, Milk

Make it at home

Yield Makes 6Hands-on 30 minTotal 2 hr 30 minDifficulty Intermediate

Ingredients

  • 300g sweet potato, peeled and cut into chunks
  • 500g strong white bread flour
  • 7g dried yeast
  • 10g fine salt
  • 150ml warm water, plus more as needed
  • 100g softened butter
  • 3 garlic cloves, crushed
  • Small handful of parsley, finely chopped

Method

  1. Boil the sweet potato until completely soft, about 15 minutes, then drain well and mash smooth. Let it cool to lukewarm.
  2. Mix the flour, yeast and salt in a bowl, add the mashed sweet potato and work in the warm water a little at a time until you have a soft, slightly sticky dough.
  3. Knead for 10 minutes until smooth and elastic, then cover and prove for 1 hour 30 minutes until doubled.
  4. Knock back and divide into 6 pieces. Shape each into a ball, then flatten to a disc about 15cm across and 2cm thick.
  5. Rest the discs under a cloth for 20 minutes while you heat a heavy cast-iron pan or flat griddle over a medium flame.
  6. Cook each bread dry, no oil, for 6 to 8 minutes a side until the surface is scorched in patches and the bread sounds hollow.
  7. Beat the butter with the crushed garlic and parsley. Split each hot bread horizontally and spread the garlic butter inside so it melts through.

Tip from the editors. The pan must be properly hot before the first bread goes in, or the dough steams and stays pale instead of blistering.

Where to eat bolo do caco

Bolo do caco in Funchal

Casa das Espetadas ★ 4.1

Portuguese (grill)€€LidoFri-Tue 18:30-22:30, closed Wednesday and Thursday

Casa das Espetadas cooks Madeira's laurel-skewer espetada over wood in Funchal, with beef, chicken, tuna and pork versions off the same fire.

Signature: Espetada, Bolo do caco, Wood-oven plates

Order: Beef espetada on the bay-laurel skewer, hung at the table.

Tip: Closed Wednesday and Thursday, and the terrace runs folklore and fado on some evenings.

Estrada Monumental 175-177, 9000-100 Funchal

Casal da Penha ★ 4.4

Portuguese€€LidoMon-Sat 11:00-22:30, closed Sunday

Casal da Penha is a family-run Funchal restaurant just off the hotel strip, with a classic dining room, a Madeiran terrace and a grilled fish carte.

Signature: Espetada, Grilled codfish, Bolo do caco

Order: Espetada on the laurel skewer, or the grilled codfish that fills most tables here.

Tip: The terrace is the reason to come. Ask for it when you book rather than on arrival.

Beco da Ataíde 1, 9000-604 Funchal

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