My newest food obsession is Brazilian food. It started with our Iron Chef: World Cuisine evening and has grown as I've had it more and more. The ingredients are simple, but so savory and delicious. Above are photos from this great restaurant in Braziltown NYC.
Also, for good Brazilian food in Seattle check out http://www.temperodobrasil.net/
Their version of Brazil's national dish is to die for!
Feijoada Brazil’s national dish! Feijoada is said to have been the "luxury" dish of African slaves on Brazilian colonial farms. It’s typically enjoyed on the weekends, after a day long preparation. This hearty, rich stew of black beans and a variety of specially selected meats - beef, smoked pork, sausages, bacon and hamhock – is slowly cooked for several hours, over low heat until the savory, rich flavors have developed. Served with rice, sautéed collard greens and orange slices.
Below you will find one of my favorite dishes, Moqueca which is a coconut seafood stew.
From Bahia state on the north eastern coast. Two versions, this one has African influence and can be traced back about 300 years.
Ingredients
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, cut into 1/4inch dice
1 red bell pepper, cored, seeded, and cut into 1/4inch dice
1 green bell pepper, cored, seeded, and cut into 1/4inch dice
1 yellow bell pepper, cored, seeded, and cut into 1/4inch dice
2 plum tomatoes, seeded and cut into 1/4inch dice
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 serrano chiles, stemmed, seeded, and minced
3 cups fish stock or bottled clam juice
1 can (14 1/2 ounce) canned coconut milk
6 green onions, white and light green parts only, finely sliced
2 cloves garlic, plus 1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 pound sea scallops
1 pound monkfish fillets, cut into 1inch cubes
1 pound rock shrimp, shelled and deveined
Juice of 1 lime
2 tablespoons dende oil (see Note)
1/3 cup loosely packed cilantro leaves, coarsely chopped
1/3 cup unsweetened coconut shards, lightly toasted, for garnish
2 limes, flesh cut into supremes and diced
Fried plantains, for serving (optional)
Cooked white rice, for serving (optional)
Directions
Heat a large castiron and enamel or other heavy casserole over low heat and add the olive oil. Sweat the onion and peppers together for about 5 minutes, or until nicely softened. Add the tomatoes, salt, pepper, and chiles and cook for 2 minutes more. Add the fish stock and coconut milk and bring the mixture to a simmer. Cook for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the peppers are tender. Add the green onions and all the fish, cover, and cook for 5 to 7 minutes more, stirring together gently twice during the cooking time. Add the lime juice, dende oil, and cilantro and simmer for 5 minutes more. Serve in large heated bowls, sprinkled with the toasted coconut and diced limes. Offer fried plantains and white rice on the side, if desired.
Note: Dende oil is Brazilian palm oil, available in Latin American markets. Be sure to get the Brazilian rather than the West African product, which is much heavier. Or use half the amount of the West African palm oil and substitute vegetable oil for the other half.
Ingredients
2 1/2 pounds red snapper, cut into 2-inch pieces (or substitute with grouper, red fish, flounder, striped bass, escolar or any other white fleshed fish)
1 cup roughly chopped onion, plus 1 cup julienned onion
2 cups roughly chopped tomatoes, plus 2 tomatoes sliced into 1/4 inch rounds
2 cloves garlic, plus 1 tablespoon minced garlic
5 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves
2 teaspoons salt
3 tablespoons fresh-squeezed lime juice
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup Piri Piri, recipe follows
1 (14.5-ounce) can coconut milk
Directions
Place the fish in a large non-reactive mixing bowl. In the carafe of a blender, combine the chopped onion, the chopped tomatoes, 2 cloves of garlic, 1 tablespoon of cilantro, 1 teaspoon of salt, and the lime juice. Blend until smooth in the blender, then pour directly over the fish. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour.
Heat a large saute pan over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil to the pan, and once hot, add the julienned onions to the pan and saute, stirring often until translucent, about 3 to 4 minutes. Add the minced garlic to the pan and saute for an additional 30 seconds. Pour the fish and the marinade into the saute pan and add the remaining teaspoon of salt, the Piri Piri, and the coconut milk and stir to combine. Once the liquid comes to a boil, dot the top of the pan with the sliced tomatoes and cover with a lid. Reduce the heat to medium-low and continue to cook until the flesh starts to flake, about 10 minutes.
Remove the cover from the pan and sprinkle the remaining 4 tablespoons of cilantro over the fish. Serve accompanied by steamed white rice.
Piri Piri:
1 tablespoon, plus 1/2 cup olive oil
5 cloves garlic, smashed
4 cayenne chile peppers, stemmed, ribs and seeds removed, and rough chopped (or substitute other hot red peppers)
1/4 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon salt
Heat a small saute pan over medium-high heat. Add 1 tablespoon of the olive oil to the pan. Once the oil is hot, add the garlic and peppers to the pan. Saute, stirring often, until the edges of the garlic start to turn brown, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the lemon juice to the pan, and remove from the heat.
Place the contents of the saute pan in a blender and add the salt. Puree the peppers and garlic in the blender until mostly smooth. Drizzle the remaining 1/2 cup of olive oil through the feed tube of the lid of the blender. Let cool before using, and store refrigerated in an airtight container.
Yield: 3/4 cup
