Every confeiteira knows the moment: the brigadeiro dough came out perfect, the order is for 100, and the party is tomorrow. Rolling by hand works for a family dessert. For a paying customer it is slow, it tires your hands, and no two pieces come out the same size.
Customers notice size before they taste anything. A box where every brigadeiro is identical looks professional, and it lets you price by the piece with confidence. Below is the full process our customers use to go from one pan of dough to 50 finished, coated and boxed brigadeiros, with the tools that make each step faster.
Start With a Base That Rolls Well
A brigadeiro that holds its shape starts in the pan. For one batch you need one can (14 oz / 395g) of sweetened condensed milk, one tablespoon of butter and two to three tablespoons of cocoa powder. For a richer gourmet base, replace the cocoa with 50g of chopped semisweet chocolate.
Cook everything over low heat, stirring without stopping, for 10 to 15 minutes. The dough is ready when you tilt the pan and it slides as one mass, leaving the bottom of the pan visible for a few seconds. Brazilian bakers call this ponto de enrolar, the rolling point. Undercooked dough sticks to your hands, and overcooked dough cracks.
Spread the dough on a buttered plate, press plastic wrap against the surface and let it cool completely. Warm dough cannot be portioned or rolled cleanly. One can makes about 25 brigadeiros at 15g, so plan on two cans for a box of 50.
New Flavors: Strawberry and Passion Fruit
Chocolate is the classic, but a box with two or three colors looks more special and sells for more. Make a white base (condensed milk and butter, no cocoa) and stir in Mavalério Strawberry Brigadeiro Powder Mix or Mavalério Passion Fruit Brigadeiro Powder Mix, both $4.49 per 45g jar.
The powder flavors and colors at the same time, so you get a pink or sunny yellow brigadeiro without liquid food coloring. Add it a little at a time while the base is still in the pan, until you reach the color and flavor you want. The full lineup is in our Flavored Dessert Mix collection.
Portion: 50 Identical Brigadeiros in One Pass
This is the step that saves the most time. A portioning board has 50 cavities of the same size. Spread the cooled dough across the board, level it, and push the portions out with the ejector stick that comes with it. Fifty pieces, all the same weight, in a few minutes.
Pick the size that matches what you sell:
- 13g: the traditional party size, best for large orders and dessert tables (13g Portioning Board by Caparroz)
- 15g: the all-purpose gourmet size (15g Portioning Board, $59)
- 18g: the premium size for gift boxes, and the board our customers buy most (18g Portioning Board, $59, or the BlueStar 18g board at $51.57)
A flat BlueStar Professional Leveling Spatula ($5.80) makes leveling clean: one pass across the board and every cavity is filled to the same line, which is what keeps the weights equal.
Roll: Perfectly Round, Without Tired Hands
Portioned dough still needs rolling. Lightly butter your hands and roll each piece between your palms for a few seconds. For big orders, a Rounder Tool for Brigadeiros ($4.99) is faster: place the portions in the cavities, close it and shake gently. It holds portions up to 16g, so it pairs naturally with the 13g and 15g boards. Every model is in our Rounder (Boleador) collection.
Coat: Crispies, Vermicelli or Both
The coating is the first thing customers see, and it is where a homemade brigadeiro starts to look gourmet. Coat each ball right after rolling, while the surface is still slightly tacky, and press gently so the coating sticks evenly.
- Chocolate Crispies (3mm) and White Chocolate Flavored Crispies (3mm): a fine, even crunch over a soft center. Our crispies are the best-selling products in the store.
- 3mm DUO Crispies: white and chocolate in one jar, for a two-tone look with no mixing.
- Dark Chocolate Vermicelli by Guittard: the smooth, classic brigadeiro finish in a deep, premium chocolate.
Crispies are $14.99 per 1.2lb (544g) jar and the vermicelli is $18.57 per 1lb bag. One jar of crispies coats roughly 150 to 200 brigadeiros, so coating adds only a few cents per piece. Try a strawberry base with White Chocolate Crispies next to a chocolate base with vermicelli, and your box has two colors and two textures. Every flavor is in the Crispies collection.
Cup and Box It Like a Product
Every brigadeiro goes into a cup. Premium Greaseproof Paper Candy Cups are made in Brazil and do not absorb butter, so they stay clean in the box. A pack of 100 is $2.35. For a more upscale look, Clear Mini Dessert Liners ($5.99 per 50) or Plain White Mini Dessert Liners ($3.00 per 50) frame each piece. More colors are in the Mini Paper Cups collection.
Two boxes cover most orders: the Candy and Brigadeiro Box for 25 Candies ($19.70 per pack of 10) and the Box for 50 Candies and Brigadeiros ($28.37 per pack of 10). Both have removable trays that keep every piece in place on the way to the party. For smaller gift formats, see our guide to dessert kits made at home.
Seller Math: What a Box of 50 Costs You
Here is the finishing and packaging cost for one box of 50, using the prices above:
- 50 paper cups: about $1.18
- Crispies coating: about $3.75
- One 50-count box: about $2.84
That is under $8 for everything except the dough itself (two cans of condensed milk, butter and cocoa from the grocery store). Gourmet brigadeiros commonly sell for $1.50 to $3 each depending on your market, so a box of 50 lands between $75 and $150. Count your ingredients and your time honestly, then price the presentation. A uniform, coated, boxed brigadeiro is compared to chocolatier truffles, not to grocery-store candy. A $59 portioning board pays for itself on the first order.
Quick Answers
How many brigadeiros does one can of condensed milk make? About 29 at 13g, 25 at 15g and 21 at 18g. The exact count depends on how long you cook the dough.
Why is my brigadeiro dough too soft to roll? It was either undercooked or is still warm. Let it cool completely, chill it for an hour, or return it to low heat for a few more minutes next time.
Why do my brigadeiros crack when I roll them? The dough was cooked too long or is too cold. Let it sit at room temperature for 15 minutes and roll with lightly buttered hands.
How far ahead can I make brigadeiros? Two to three days at cool room temperature in a closed box, or about a week refrigerated. Rolled, uncoated balls can be frozen for up to a month; thaw them in the refrigerator and coat them before delivery.
Do crispies lose their crunch? They are crunchiest in the first two days. For orders made further ahead, coat closer to delivery.
What is the difference between a brigadeiro and a truffle? A brigadeiro is made from sweetened condensed milk cooked with butter and cocoa or chocolate. A truffle is made from ganache, chocolate melted with cream. Brigadeiros are softer and chewier, and they are Brazil's favorite party sweet.
Can I sell brigadeiros I make at home? In many states, yes. Check your state's cottage food rules for what you can sell from a home kitchen and how it must be labeled.
Everything for Brigadeiros, in One Place
A portioning board, a rounder, a jar of crispies, cups and a box: that is a complete brigadeiro production line, and it is the same setup our customers use to fill their biggest orders. You can find all of it in the ViaCheff Brigadeiro Collection. Making treats for this month? Our Halloween guide shows how to color and stamp brigadeiros for October parties.
Holiday orders start in November. Set up your line now, and the busy season gets easier instead of harder.
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