Feijoada
Feijoada is a stew of black beans and several types of meat and sausages, and it is considered the national dish of Brazil. Feijoada is cooked slowly preferably in a clay pot, in which it will be served too. Serve accompanied with farofa, white rice, Mineira style greens and slices of fresh orange.
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Tips:
Trim some fat off the meat to make the dish lighter.
You can play with various meats to see what works the best for you, substitute some pork for beef etc., but use some smoked meat to get the authentic taste.
Use the pork foot for its gelatin to get the authentic texture, also at the final stage before adding the coriander leaves, take out about 1 cup of beans, mash them and return them back.
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500g (1 lbs 3 oz) black beans
200g (7 oz) smoked bacon
500g (1 lbs 3 oz) pork rib
500g (1 lbs 3 oz) chorizo sausages
500g pork shoulder
1 pork foot (optional)
4 onions
4 garlic cloves
fresh chilli pepper
3-4 bay leaves
1 cup coriander leaves (cilantro)
1 cup cachaça
salt
pepper
Preparation time: 3 hrs. + 12 hrs. soaking the beans
Difficulty level: Easy
Servings: 10
Special equipment: Clay pot (optional)
Ingredients
Preparation
Soak the beans in water overnight, then drain.
Cut the bacon into ½" cubes. Cut the chorizo into thick slices. Separate the ribs. Cut the pork shoulder into 5 cm (2") cubes. Chop the onions, thinly, slice the garlic and the chili pepper.
Heat a large heavy skillet or a wok, put olive oil, add the bacon and sauté until golden brown. Set aside, keeping the oil in the pan.
Sauté the rest of the meats except the pork foot in batches and set aside. Season each batch with salt and pepper.
Sauté the onion, and chili until soft. Add the garlic, salt and pepper and sauté for another minute, then transfer together with all the meats, the beans and bay leaves to a clay pot. Put enough water to cover.
Bring to a boil and reduce the heat to a low simmer. Cover and cook for 2 hrs. or until the beans are soft and the meat is tender. Discard the pork foot if used. Add the coriander leaves, thinly chopped, cachaça, salt and pepper to taste and cook for another 5 minutes.