Feijoada

Serves a lot of hungry people, you might want to cut this in half. Here, shown served with rice, collard greens, oranges and some vinegar-y hot sauce to balance the richness.

This is a rich meat and bean stew, the national dish of Brazil; you could compare it to French Cassoulet. We got this from our friends who were stationed in Rio in the 1970’s, they got it from their cook. It compares quite favorably to the ones I’ve had at Brazilian restaurants and churrascarias.  

We haven’t used the pig ears our original recipe calls for, and over the years we’ve been dialing down the meat a bit too. I’m guessing the meat-heavy proportions of the original were aimed at more affluent folks; it’s still plenty rich. I cook some of the beans long to dissolve into the sauce for body, and some less so they stay whole and provide texture. I expect there are as many styles of Feijoada as there are Chili con Carne in the States.

1 pound Black Beans, dried (or 4 pounds canned)

½ pound Fat Back (salty), cut into 6 pieces

2 large Onions, chopped coarse

5 cloves Garlic, sliced

3 Bay Leaves

½ pound Kielbasa, sliced into half-moons

1 pound Chuck Roast, boneless, cut into 8 pieces

1 pound Short Ribs (2-4 rib sections, on bone)

6 Cup Pork Stock (or Beef, or Water if you have to)

Soak dried Beans overnight, just covered in water.

Heat Fatback to render some fat.

Add Onions, Garlic, bay and saute until translucent; reserve to plate.

Season Chuck and Ribs with Salt and Pepper;

brown on all sides in rendered fat, don’t crowd the pan, use batches if needed,

then reserve to plate.

Drain off excess fat, reserving if you need it for body later.

Add half the rehydrated beans, the Stock, Onions, Garlic, and Bay and cook an hour or so until the beans are done -- time depends on how fresh the beans are.

Reserve half the beans.

Mash the beans in the liquid to thicken the sauce you’re developing.

Add back all the Meats; the stock should cover everything, if not, add more.

Simmer another hour or two until the meat is almost done;

I like the meat falling apart tender but not disintegrating.

Add the reserved cooked beans, adjust seasonings (including reserved fat if it seems a little lacking in rich body), and bring back to simmer.

Serve with rice, collard greens, slices of orange and a tangy sauce like Texas Petes or Franks. The citrus and vinegar cut the richness of the feijoada. Top with Farofa if you can find it (there’s even a bacon-flavored farofa :-).