5 FOODS TO TRY IN BRAZIL

With roots in indigenous peoples and Portuguese colonization, to influences from African slaves and later waves of immigrants from Italy, Japan, and the Middle East, Brazil’s culture and food reflect all these groups.

Feijoada is perhaps Brazil’s best-known meal. It’s a feast that’s traditionally served on Wednesdays and Saturdays. Meant to be eaten with family and possibly over a caipirinha while listening to samba, feijoada is a filling meal with many parts.

The main component of feijoada is beans and rice, but these are no ordinary beans. Traditional feijoada is made of black beans cooked in a thick sauce with meat, such as sausage, ribs, and dried pork or beef. Feijoada is typically served with the following four items: collard greens that have been lightly cooked, orange slices, fried bananas, and farofa, or toasted cassava flour that adds a crunchy texture to the meal.

Bacalhau or salted codfish, is a traditional food that came to Brazil through the Portuguese. Today this fish is preserved in salt just as it was in the past. Nowadays it’s common to see large pieces of salted cod in the markets.

Brazilians purchase the fish for special occasions and often serve it baked with potatoes, peppers, onions, tomatoes, and olives.

Brazilians love to relax on the weekends with a family churrasco, or barbecue. In fact, many Brazilians even have a barbecue area in their yard or apartment building for this specific purpose.

The Brazilian barbecue often consists of barbecued steak and sausage plus the common Brazilian condiment, vinagrete, a mix of finely chopped tomatoes, onions and herbs in olive oil, vinegar, salt, and lime juice. It’s then eaten with mini baguettes. Of course, freshly prepared caipirinhas, or drinks made with alcohol, lime juice, and sugar, are usually served at any barbecue.

One of the best things about Brazilian food is the salgados (salty snacks) that are available at just about every café and even some gas stations. Brazilians love to grab a couple of these with a cup of sugar cane or cashew fruit juice.

Four of the most common salgados are pão de queijo, esfiha, coxinha, and empadinhas, but Brazil has a complex food scene, so a visit to the country’s various regions will leave you with many more options. You can find these tasty snacks at botecos (cafés where coffee, beer, and snacks are served) or at outdoor markets.

Pão de queijo (cheese bread) is warm balls of bread filled with soft cheese. Esfiha is a bread pocket filled with ground beef, herbs, onions, and tomato; sometimes a vegetarian version with collard greens and cheese is available. Esfihas are often served open-faced like a small pizza. Coxinha is a triangle-shaped snack of savory shredded chicken covered in dough and deep-fried. Empadinhas are like small pot pies typically filled with hearts of palm and a savory sauce.

Pastel is actually another type of salgado, but it really deserves its own separate mention. A pastel is dough topped with your choice of filling, then folded and deep-fried.

Common fillings are “pizza” (mozzarella cheese, tomato, and basil), bacalhau (salted cod with herbs and onion), and carne (ground beef and hard-boiled eggs). Pasteis can be purchased at a pastelaria or almost any outdoor market.

Source Gadventures