bolillo

American  

[buh-lee-oh, baw-lee-yaw] / bəˈli oʊ, bɔˈli jɔ /

noun

Mexican Cooking.

bolillos plural

1. a crusty hard roll with a soft center.

2. a sandwich made with this roll.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• bolillos
  plural

Etymology

Origin of bolillo

First recorded in 1970–75; from Spanish, equivalent to boll(o) “bun, roll” (with gender change from Latin bulla “bubble, knob”; + -illo diminutive suffix; cf. bola, boil ¹)

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

bolillo bolillos

“Mexico doesn’t replicate European bread because it doesn’t have to,” Edgar Nuñez, a celebrated Mexican chef who studied in France, wrote on X in response to the bolillo dustup.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 22, 2025

For the version shared here, because I didn’t have access to a bolillo or telera, I picked up a baguette.

From Seattle Times ● Nov. 29, 2021

If you can't find ciabatta rolls, stick with a similarly tender bread, such as bolillo rolls, lightly toasted pullman or sourdough bread slices, so the fish stays intact in the sandwich when you bite down.

From Salon ● Sep. 29, 2021

But at home, you might use your oven, and a kaiser roll, a small ciabatta or a bolillo from a corner bodega.

From New York Times ● Apr. 13, 2018

For the Moto dish Cuban Missile Crisis, the constituents of a Cuban pork sandwich – bolillo bread, pork shoulder, pickles – were flattened out, rolled up, fried and wrapped in a collard green.

From The Guardian ● Apr. 6, 2018

Sometimes it’s a crinkly cellophane bag full of bolillos still faintly warm from the oven.

From Salon ● May 22, 2026

"There's conchas, but there's also the salty bread, like bolillos and teleras," she said, later adding, "They didn't do their due diligence. And that's not that hard to do."

From Salon ● Nov. 6, 2022

I bought raisins, almonds, lard, and bread in the form of bolillos — fluffy French rolls.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 8, 2022

In Mexico City, individual bolillos are commonly used.

From Seattle Times ● Nov. 29, 2021

The rich smell of freshly baked bolillos hangs in the air.

From Washington Post