The country may even be completing 200 years of Independence , however, has not yet decided on a national recipe. And, well, do you have to decide?
Brazil retains almost 20% of all species found in the world. In other words, it has one of the greatest biodiversity on the planet and, therefore, ammunition for an infinite recipe – which still needs to be discovered and valued by its own people.
While we are busy with this, we invite 9 foreign chefs who live here to share their favorite recipes.
Brazilian passion
Chef at Hotel Unique and judge of the “Top Chef Brasil”, Emmanuel Bassoleil born in Burgundy, in France. Amazingly, more than half of his life he worked as a cook in Brazil.
For 33 years in these parts, he still hesitates: “I don’t know if I’ve made my stomach Brazilian, but if there’s a product that I use and abuse, it’s the crumbs . It always fascinated me. You accompany a barbecue, a fish, you can make it with bacon, with egg. I like it very much. And then there’s the caipirinha, which certainly won my liver.”
Equally enthusiastic about caipirinha – with good cachaça, of course -, the Japanese Kaori Muranaka of Quito Quito Izakaya , in São Paulo, loves to discover unknown recipes: “The first time I ate sarapatel, it was a friend who cooked it. I really liked. I didn’t even know what it was, but I felt the texture of each thing and found it very tasty.”
In everyday life, she likes to add farofa and vinaigrette, because it is “very good when mixed”. Speaking of mixing: “I love the liver with eggplant. I had never eaten eggplant in Japan and its bitterness goes very well with liver”.
Born in Piura, the Peruvian Marisabel woodman of La Peruana, assertive: “The recipe I like the most is the stew both Bahian and Espirito Santo, but my favorite is Bahian”.
The chef loves it so much that she usually prepares it at home: “It reminds me of the Peruvian fish stew, but with coconut milk, which is very good and we don’t use it there. And the palm oil, the coriander, which I add a lot, the peppers. I adore!”
She adds: “I make a banana farofinha with caramelized onions, with manioc and corn flour and lots of butter, but the mush is my favorite side dish”.
For this, the chef makes use of the restaurant’s broths “which are full-bodied”. “Aside from that, I use shredded fish, chopped tomatoes, peppers, onions, a little garlic, palm oil and finish with a little of the broth from the moqueca itself”, she teaches.
Already Dagoberto Torres traded Chaparral, Colombia, for an internship at SUN . and the desire to learn a new language.
Right away, I felt a great affinity with Brazilian food, because there are many similarities with my region, such as stews, a swamped cow, a good feijoada. I still don’t speak the language as I wanted to.
Dagoberto Torres
in front of Barú Mariqueria one of the most awarded fish restaurants in the country, the chef reveals:
“Seven years ago, I went to Espírito Santo for the first time and tried moqueca. I remember exactly the place, the Atlântica restaurant, in Vila Velha. The simplicity of the dish, the flavor, the way of eating, of sending the pan to the table, everything fascinated me. I started to eat in several places until I arrived at Juarez [chef Juarez Campos]which is wonderful”.
More than just appreciating, Dago has brought the dish to your everyday life. “I have my clay pot, my annatto. I’m always prepared to do. I know there is this competition between moqueca from Bahia and from Espírito Santo, but I confess that my heart has already decided”.
Since 2013 in Brazil, Catalan Gerard Barberan gives Bottega Bernacca of Kuro It’s from Gran Bar Bernacca did not go into the merits of the origin of his favorite Brazilian recipe, but for good connoisseurs, few words are enough.
“Basically it is a delicious dish, the combination with the mush, with the farofinha, with a pepper. And there’s coconut milk, which reminds me a lot of a Thai curry, which is another cuisine that I love”, she defines.
the belgian Willem Vandeven share the leadership of Mani with the powerful Helena Rizzo . If he wasn’t a gaucho chef in his life, he is also married to Carol Albuquerque of taraz.
That’s why, in addition to joining the team of moqueca lovers (from Bahia, it’s worth mentioning), he became a fan of barbecue .
“Now that we have a little house, what we do most is barbecue, which has nothing to do with Belgium. I don’t eat a lot of meat, but once a week, putting a whole piece on the grill, eating it with vinaigrette, farofa and pepper, is really good. I think if I went back to Belgium I wouldn’t know how to live without it anymore”.
Born in Liguria, Nadia Pizzo , Executive Chef at Rascal understands the appreciation of the Belgian colleague.
I’m in love with farofa and feijoada because they were the first very Brazilian foods I came across when I arrived here, almost ten years ago.
Nadia Pizzo
The predilection? feijoada . “For me, it’s a party food, it gives a sparkle in the eyes. And not just the feijoada itself, but all the side dishes: the vinaigrette, the cabbage, the orange. I think it’s a perfect mix of salty and sweet, with fruit. Despite knowing how to make it, I don’t usually prepare feijoada, but at Ráscal every month the employees make one and I take a hot one home. I adore!”
Two years in Brazil and four with the São Paulo chef Luana Sabino gave the mexican Eduardo Ortiz of Metzi , a good repertoire: “I got to know feijoada years ago, in a Brazilian restaurant in New Jersey, but it didn’t make an impact”. Here, the story was different.
“When I arrived, the first thing I loved was pão de queijo, with cottage cheese, for breakfast. Until one day Luana’s parents took me to try a real feijoada, in a pub. It was really, really good. I was impressed with the flavors, it reminded me of the puercos frijoles from Mexico, but more complex”.
Today, Edu hits the Bar do Biu : “I don’t even wait for it to be Wednesday to eat, like any other day. Until every day. It is definitely my favorite dish in Brazil, but I also really like the acarajé from Casa de Ieda”.
In addition to being a fan of the beach and coconut water, the New Yorker I know Shiroma gives iron and flour fell in love with garlic bread : “I like it so much that I have to go to Galeto Sat’s in Botafogo every week. It is the best of Rio de Janeiro”.
By the way, in honor of the beloved recipe, the pizzaiolo created a hipsterized and generous version based on garlic cream and padano money and mozzarella, roasted in wood and sprinkled with parsley, which is now his best seller.
Source: CNN Brasil
Bruce Belcher is a seasoned author with over 5 years of experience in world news. He writes for online news websites and provides in-depth analysis on the world stock market. Bruce is known for his insightful perspectives and commitment to keeping the public informed.
