Feijoada
Chef Victor Vasconcellos of Paulista Deli in Los Angeles runs the restaurant with his wife, Adriana, preparing authentic Brazillian fare inspired by the multicultural food of their hometown, São Paulo.
We asked the chef to provide his recipe for Brazillian feijoada, and he definitely did not disappoint.
Vasconcellos notes that when preparing this recipe, it’s “very common in Brazil to have different pots with the meats separated, then people can serve themselves just with the ones they like most.”
He also teaches us that if you let the dish rest overnight—even for eight hours—the flavors are going to “brighten better.”
Enjoy!
Ingredients
Feijoada:
- 1.6 kg. black beans
- 200 g. smoked sausage
- 200 g. spicy sausage
- 250 g. salted dried beef (Brazilian-style carne seca)
- 250 g. smoked pork ribs
- 200 g. pork loin
- 250 g. Brazilian fresh sausage
- 200 g. chopped onion
- 50 g. chopped garlic
- 4 leaves of bayleaf
- 150 g. chopped leeks
- 150 g. chopped celery
- 120 g. hickory smoked bacon
- 35 g. lard
- Salt, to taste
- 1 blood orange
- 70 ml. cachaça
Optional meats:
- 2 pieces pig ears
- 2 pieces of pig tail
- 2 pieces pig feet
Sides:
Pork chops:
- 2.5 kg. fresh pork chops (1-inch thickness)
Collard greens:
- 4 bunches collard greens
- 1 tsp. Butter
- Salt, to taste
- Chopped garlic, to taste
Valencia orange:
- 1 kg. Valencia orange
Farofa
- 200 g. yucca flour
- 100 g. butter
- 80 g. bacon
- Salt, to taste
Beans broth vinaigrette:
- 150 ml. broth of beans
- 15 g. Brazilian sweet pepper (Comarí do Pará)
- 15 g. Brazilian hot pepper (Malagueta)
- 15 g. chopped onion
- ½ bunch scallion
- 30 ml. vinegar (apple cider or rice)
- Pinch of salt
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Method
Pork chops:
Put your favorite dried rub on the pork chops.
Grill for 10 minutes before serving.
Collard greens:
Cut very thin, and then in a sauce-pan, quickly stir-fry adding a little bit of chopped garlic and butter.
Valencia orange:
Peel and slice.
Farofa:
Put the bacon (diced) and butter together in a pot on low-heat until it gets brown and crispy. Then, add the yucca flour and toast for at least 30 minutes on low-heat.
Beans broth vinaigrette:
Chop and mix everything together.
Add 200 milliliters of broth from the cooked beans. Stir together.
Feijoada:
In a big casserole over medium-heat, add garlic and lard until they get a nice golden color; do not burn.
Add lard, leeks, celery, onion and bacon. Slowly cook until everything gets a nice golden color.
Add all the meats in whole pieces; it will be way better to remove when they are cooked. Add the cachaça; let the alcohol evaporate for 1 minute. (You can also carefully light the fire, but the alcohol will burn fast and add a little bit of smokiness.)
Add the beans. Cover with cold water 4 fingers above the bottom of the pan.
Once it starts boiling, lower the heat, cover with a lid, and let cook until the meats start to get ready.
Once in a while, check the amount of water; add more if you see the beans are coming to the surface.
Once the beans are well-cooked, turn the heat to high and let boil for 10 minutes to get a thicker broth. Adjust the salt, and add some pepper if you like.
After removing the cooked meats, let it cool down a little bit, and then cut into squares per your preference. I recommend medium to small dices (not too small or it will disappear). Sausages should be sliced rather than diced.
Combine all the ingredients in a pot. Reheat and serve.
Notes:
The Brazilian salted dried beef should be soaked in water for 1 or 2 days prior to removing the salt. Frequently changing the water is very important.
Meat’s cook time:
Sausages: 25 to 30 minutes
Pork loin: 35 to 40 minutes
Pork ribs: 60 to 70 minutes
Dried beef: 90 minutes
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