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78 recipes

Afogado do DivinoBeef and potato stew

In São Luiz do Paraitinga in the hills of São Paulo state, the Festa do Divino Espírito Santo at Pentecost ends with a meal for everyone: huge pots of afogado, beef 'drowned' in a rich broth with potatoes, tomato, onion, garlic and herbs, served with pirão (a cassava-flour porridge made from the broth) and rice. Volunteers cook it in the town's kitchens through the night, and anyone who comes is fed. Chef's tip: brown the beef in small batches so it sears rather than stews, which gives the broth its deep colour.

175 min

Brazilian Meat

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Pajagua mascadaBeef and cassava patties

Pajagua mascada is a Paraguayan street-food classic that appears on every table for the San Juan festival on 24 June, when bonfires burn and the night is full of games and traditional food. Minced beef is mixed with mashed cassava, onion, garlic and a little egg and flour, shaped into flat patties and fried until crisp. The name comes from Guaraní and refers to the 'chewing' of old Paraguayan cooks, who made it from leftover meat. Chef's tip: dry the boiled cassava well and remove its woody core, which keeps the patties light and crunchy.

60 min

Paraguayan Meat

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Espetinho de carneGrilled beef skewers

All through Brazilian Carnival, from Salvador's street parties to the blocos of Rio, the smoke of espetinho grills drifts along the pavements, and a skewer of beef with a spoonful of farofa is the snack that keeps revellers dancing all night. Chunks of rump are seasoned with garlic, coarse salt and lime, threaded onto skewers and grilled hard and fast over charcoal. Marinate the beef in the fridge. The common mistake is packing the pieces tightly, which steams them instead of charring. Chef's tip: soak wooden skewers for 30 minutes so they don't burn before the meat is done.

35 min

Brazilian Meat

by KrazyBadal 0 views

SequilhosCornstarch condensed milk cookies

Brazilian grandmothers keep a tin of sequilhos (seh-KEEL-yos) on the shelf for afternoon cafezinho, and children in São Paulo and Minas Gerais grow up pinching them from it. Made almost entirely from cornstarch, butter and sweetened condensed milk, they bake pale and chalky-looking, then dissolve on the tongue like a cloud of milky sugar. A fork pressed into each ball leaves the classic stripes. This version adds one egg yolk for a little richness; plenty of families leave it out, and the cookies are just as good. Because there is no wheat, they are naturally gluten free. Chef's tip: lift one off the tray after the minimum time and check the base; it should be the faintest cream-gold, not brown, or the melting texture turns sandy.

35 min

Brazilian Baking

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Mané peladoCassava, coconut and cheese cake

On farms around Goiânia and across the Goiás cerrado, mané pelado is the cake for coffee time and for June festivals: raw cassava grated straight into the bowl, mixed with fresh coconut, eggs, sugar and a handful of grated cheese, then baked until the top is deep golden. It is dense, moist and slightly chewy, sweet with a faint salty edge from the cheese. There's no flour, so it is naturally gluten free. Cutting it hot is the mistake to avoid; the starch needs time to set, and warm slices are gummy, so let it cool fully. Use sweet cassava (the ordinary kind sold for cooking), always cooked through; frozen grated cassava works well. The cheese in Goiás is a semi-cured queijo minas; any mild, salty semi-hard cheese works, or a vegetarian alternative. Chef's tip: grate the cassava on the fine side of the grater; coarse shreds stay stringy.

80 min

Brazilian Baking

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Bolo de bananaUpside-down banana cake

Ask a Brazilian what was on the table for café da tarde as a child and the answer is often this: a soft cake turned out of its tin with a glossy layer of caramelised banana and cinnamon on top, eaten with a small strong coffee. Home cooks make it with overripe bananas from the fruit bowl, and many mix the batter in a blender. The crumb is light and moist, the top sticky and fragrant. Eggless versions exist, but this one uses eggs for a springier cake. Cooking the caramel too far is the usual slip: once it goes past amber it turns bitter, so pull the pan off the heat while it is still the colour of honey. Chef's tip: cut the bananas lengthwise rather than into rounds; long slices lie flat in neat rows and don't slide when you turn the cake out.

70 min

Brazilian Baking

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Bolo de coco geladoChilled coconut cake

Wrapped in squares of foil and kept in the fridge of Brazilian padarias and birthday parties, bolo de coco gelado ('cold coconut cake') is a soft white sheet cake drenched while warm in coconut milk sweetened with condensed milk, then buried under grated coconut. Eaten straight from the fridge it is cool, damp and milky, a little like a coconut tres leches but less sweet. It is a favourite for hot afternoons, children's parties and festas juninas, and it actually improves after a night's rest. Pouring the soak over a cold cake is the common mistake; it sits on top in a puddle, so poke the cake while it's still warm and add the soak a ladle at a time. Chef's tip: wrap each square in foil before chilling, the way bakeries do; the coconut stays moist and the squares travel well to a party.

120 min

Brazilian Baking

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Vitamina de banana (Brazilian banana smoothie)

In Brazil a smoothie is a vitamina, and vitamina de banana is what parents from São Paulo to Recife whizz up for breakfast or when children get home from school hungry. Ripe banana, cold milk and a spoonful of oats make a thick, naturally sweet drink that fills a gap until dinner, so no sugar is needed. It contains milk and gluten (oats, unless labelled gluten free). Chef's tip: use bananas with brown freckles on the skin; they are sweeter and blend creamier than green-tipped ones.

5 min

Brazilian Drinks

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Pão doceSweet custard bread

A long, shiny braid of sweet bread with a ribbon of vanilla custard and a sprinkle of coconut down the middle is one of the most familiar sights in a Brazilian padaria, sold by the slice for the late-afternoon coffee break known as the café da tarde. The enriched dough is soft and milky, and the syrup brushed on as it leaves the oven gives the crust its sticky shine. Chef's tip: make the custard first so it is completely cold before it goes onto the dough.

85 min

Brazilian Baking

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Torta de nozesWalnut tart

In the South and in São Paulo, where Italian, German and Portuguese baking traditions meet, a walnut tart is a fixture of the Christmas dessert table, often brought by an aunt who has made it the same way for decades. A crisp, sweet shortcrust holds a filling of chopped walnuts set in condensed milk and eggs, which bakes into a soft, toffee-like caramel. It slices best the next day, so it is a good make-ahead for the busy 24th. Chef's tip: blind-bake the crust until it is properly golden, or the rich filling will leave the base soggy.

95 min

Brazilian Baking

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Pão de melHoney spice cakes

Sold wrapped in coloured foil at padarias and by street vendors in São Paulo and all over the South, pão de mel is a small, soft honey-and-spice cake filled with doce de leite and sealed in a crisp shell of chocolate. It is the classic Easter and Christmas gift in many families, and a popular homemade treat to sell for extra income. Cinnamon, clove and nutmeg give it a gingerbread warmth. Chef's tip: let the cakes cool completely before dipping, or the chocolate slides off and turns streaky.

60 min

Brazilian Baking

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SonhoCustard-filled doughnut

Sonho means dream, and in the padarias of Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo these round, sugar-crusted doughnuts split open with a thick vanilla custard are the treat children point to through the glass. They came with Portuguese bakers and are now eaten at any hour, with a cafezinho in the morning or as an after-school snack. The dough is soft and lightly scented with lemon, and frying at a moderate heat gives the pale ring around the middle that bakers look for. Chef's tip: keep the oil at 165 °C so the centres cook through before the outside darkens.

90 min

Brazilian Baking

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Bolo de fubáCornmeal cake

On farms in Minas Gerais and the interior of São Paulo, a golden cornmeal cake comes out of the oven most afternoons to go with a strong cafezinho, and it is still the cake grandmothers bake when visitors arrive. Fine fubá gives a soft, slightly grainy crumb with a sweet corn flavour, and a pinch of fennel seed, called erva-doce, adds a gentle aniseed note. It is a blender-and-bowl recipe with no creaming. Chef's tip: keep the oven door shut for the first 25 minutes, as this cake sinks easily.

55 min

Brazilian Baking

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Carne de panelaBeef pot roast

Brazil is the land of the panela de pressão, and nearly every family has a pressure cooker hissing on the stove at weekends. Carne de panela is the dish it was made for: cheap cuts of beef browned with onion, garlic and tomato and cooked until they fall apart, with potatoes and carrots soaking up the gravy. It's eaten across the country with white rice and farofa. Chef's tip: brown the meat in batches until it is really dark; that colour becomes the gravy.

90 min

Brazilian Meat

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Nega malucaChocolate cake

Every Brazilian has eaten this dark, moist chocolate cake at a children's party or a family afternoon, cut into squares in the tin with the glossy glaze dripping into each piece. It is mixed by hand in one bowl with oil and hot water, so it is the cake that home bakers from Porto Alegre to Recife can make without thinking. The topping is a simple cocoa and milk syrup boiled until it just coats a spoon. Chef's tip: pour the glaze over while the cake is still warm so it soaks a little into the top.

55 min

Brazilian Baking

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Bolo de laranjaOrange cake

Brazil grows more oranges than anywhere else, and in kitchens from São Paulo state's citrus belt to the Northeast this moist cake uses the whole fruit, peel and all, blended straight into the batter. It is the cake for a birthday at home, the school bake sale or a Sunday afternoon, and the warm syrup poured over at the end keeps it soft for days. Made with oil, it contains no butter or milk. Chef's tip: trim off both ends of the oranges and remove every seed, which would make the cake bitter.

60 min

Brazilian Baking

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Lentilha de Ano NovoNew Year lentil stew

Just after the fireworks at midnight on 31 December, Brazilians from Copacabana to small towns in the interior eat a spoonful of lentils, because the little coin-shaped seeds are said to bring money in the year ahead. Many families keep a pot of this warm stew of lentils, tomato, carrot and smoked paprika on the stove all through the Réveillon party. It also makes a good weekday supper with rice. Chef's tip: keep it at a gentle simmer so the lentils hold their shape, as they are meant to look like little coins.

50 min

Brazilian Curries

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Calabresa aceboladaSausage with onions

Calabresa is Brazil's smoked pork sausage, mildly spiced with chilli and fennel, and in bars across the country a sizzling plate of it fried with onions lands on the table with toothpicks, farofa or bread and a round of drinks. At home it is a ten-minute snack or a quick lunch with rice and beans. The sausage edges caramelise in their own fat, then the onions soften in it until sweet but still with a little bite. Chef's tip: slice the sausage on a sharp diagonal so each piece has more surface to brown.

20 min

Brazilian Meat

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Panqueca de carneBeef-filled pancakes

Brazilian panquecas are thin pancakes, closer to crêpes, rolled around a savoury filling and baked under tomato sauce and cheese, a much-loved weekend lunch for families and a favourite with children. Beef mince filling is the classic, cooked with onion, garlic, tomato and parsley. The vegetarian alternative is spinach and ricotta, made the same way with vegetarian cheeses. Chef's tip: make the pancakes ahead and stack them with baking paper between; they assemble in minutes.

70 min

Brazilian Meat

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Bife à rolêStuffed beef rolls

A favourite for Sunday lunch in Brazilian homes, bife à rolê are thin slices of beef rolled around sticks of carrot, gherkin and smoked bacon, which is pork, then browned and braised slowly in tomato sauce. When you slice through a roll you see a neat spiral, and the sauce is rich enough to spoon over rice or mashed potato. The dish came to Brazil with German and Portuguese settlers and became part of everyday cooking. Chef's tip: secure each roll with two toothpicks crossed in an X so it doesn't unroll as it braises.

100 min

Brazilian Meat

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Bife aceboladoSteak with onions

Ask for a prato feito in any Brazilian lanchonete and there's a good chance the meat will be bife acebolado: a thin, garlicky steak seared hard and buried under soft, golden onions. It sits beside white rice, beans, a little salad and often a fried egg. The onions soak up the pan juices and are half the pleasure. Chef's tip: deglaze the pan with a splash of water after the onions; those browned bits are the sauce.

25 min

Brazilian Meat

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Filé à parmegianaBreaded beef with tomato and cheese

Born in the Italian-run restaurants of São Paulo and now a pride of Rio's botecos, filé à parmegiana is served in portions big enough for two, with white rice and chips. Beef fillet is pounded thin, breaded and fried, then covered in tomato sauce and mozzarella and baked until bubbling. It's crisp underneath, gooey on top and very generous. For a vegetarian version, use thick slices of aubergine, salted and patted dry, with vegetarian cheeses. Chef's tip: pound the meat evenly so it fries in the time it takes the crust to turn golden.

50 min

Brazilian Meat

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Lombo de porco assadoRoast pork loin

Brazilians like pork on the Réveillon table because a pig roots forward as it feeds, a sign of progress in the new year, while chicken and turkey scratch backwards. This boneless pork loin is soaked overnight in garlic, lime, orange and paprika, then roasted over potatoes and onions that drink up the juices. It is the centrepiece of many New Year's Eve dinners in São Paulo and Minas Gerais, sliced thin with farofa and rice. Chef's tip: take the pork out at 63 °C in the centre and let it rest; it stays juicy and slightly pink.

100 min

Brazilian Meat

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Caipirinha

Brazil's national drink lives on every boteco counter in São Paulo, but it tastes best on a hot Saturday beside a pot of feijoada, or handed over from a beach vendor's cart. It is a short, rough-cut drink for adults only: a whole lime chopped into wedges, crushed with sugar right in the glass, packed with crushed ice and drowned in cachaça, the sugarcane spirit with a grassy, faintly funky edge that rum does not have. Each sip moves from sharp lime oil to cold sweetness to a warm cane finish, with a little crunchy sugar at the bottom to stir back up. The usual mistake is pounding the lime to a pulp: the white pith and the core turn bitter within minutes. Cut out the central white strip, press each wedge only until the juice runs and the skin smells of lime oil, then stop. It is ready when the sugar has mostly melted into a cloudy syrup and the glass frosts on the outside. Cachaça is strong, so sip slowly and drink responsibly. Chef's tip: roll the lime hard on the board before cutting and choose thin-skinned, heavy limes; a thick-skinned lime makes a bitter caipirinha however gently you muddle.

5 min

Brazilian Drinks

by KrazyBadal 0 views

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