Portuguese Feijoada Recipe (2024)

by Maria Campos

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This is a staple plate in Portugal. This is the type of food that “avós” — grandmas — of all Portugal cook for a regular weeknight meal. A Portuguese feijoada is the most comforting meal that you can ever make with cheap and easy to find ingredients.

Portuguese Feijoada Recipe (1)

Feijoada is a “simple” plate that was created by the poor Portuguese families that only had grains, vegetables and pork meat as the main source of food. This is an all you have in the fridge + some beans (black, red or white beans) + some sort of meat (sausages in this case).

“Feijoada” comes from the word “feijão”, which mean beans. This plate is basically a thick beans soup.

Usually, it is served with a big plate of plain white rice or with some bread. The goal is that the rice absorbs the juices of the feijoada and the flavor.

Portuguese Feijoada Recipe (2)

This plate has a homey feel bite after bite. You can taste the heritage and the Portuguese culture through this plate.

A traditional Portuguese feijoada has three major ingredients that are the secret for a real traditional result:

  • The pork: You can choose ears, ribs, shoulder or a simple sausage.
  • The beans: The traditional like to use red pinto beans. But you can mix with other beans as long as the red beans are the bigger portion of the mix.
  • The bay leaf: This is where the flavor is. You can add other ingredients, even make swaps with the pork and make a vegetarian feijoada. But if you don’t use a bay leaf while simmering you will never get that rich broth.

Usually, this plate includes some type of “green”. It can be cabbage (the most traditional), turnip greens or spinach (the option that I use for this recipe).

Portuguese Feijoada Recipe (3)

If you like this traditional Portuguese recipe maybe you will like these too:

Portuguese Francesinha sandwich

Pasteis de nata (custard tart)

Bolo do caco (sweet potato bread)

Portuguese tuna tart

I see you in the next recipe 🙂

Portuguese Feijoada Recipe (4)

4.65 from 14 votes

Portuguese Feijoada Recipe (5)

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Portuguese Feijoada Recipe

This is a staple plate in Portugal. This is the type of food that “avós” --- grandmas --- of all Portugal cook for a regular weeknight meal. A Portuguese feijoada is the most comforting meal that you can ever make with cheap and easy to find ingredients.

Course:Main Course

Cuisine:Portuguese

Keyword:feijoada, portuguese food,

Servings: 3 people

Ingredients

  • 1onion cut into dices
  • 1carrot cut into dices
  • 1medium potato cut into dices
  • 1stalk of celery cut into small pieces
  • 1Portuguese chorizo(note 1)
  • 1medium can420 gr red pinto beans (with the liquid of the can)
  • ½can210 gr white beans drained.
  • 2cupsfresh spinach
  • 1garlic clove minced
  • 1tbsptomato paste
  • 1cupof meat broth(note 2)
  • 1cupwater
  • 1bay leaf
  • 1tspthyme
  • Sprinkle of pepper
  • 1tspolive oil

Instructions

  1. In a big sauté pan over medium heat pour the olive oil and cook the chorizo cut into slices. Remove the chorizo from the pan when it is semi-crispy and has released its natural oil. That’s the key for the flavor.

  2. Toss the onion and after a couple minutes add the garlic and cook until the onion is almost transparent.

  3. Toss the carrot, the potato, the celery and the tomato paste. Stir well.

  4. Add the red pinto beans (with the liquid), the white beans, the chorizo and the spinach. Pour the meat broth and the water. Season with the bay leaf, thyme, and pepper (note 3). Simmer for about 15 minutes over medium heat.

  5. Remove the bay leaf and serve with some fluffy white rice.

Recipe Notes

  1. If there is no way you can get Portuguese or Spanish chorizo you can use a good quality pork sausage.
  2. You can also use a meat bouillon cube and add a cup of water, instead of meat broth.
  3. I don’t add extra salt to this recipe because the chorizo and the meat broth have enough salt for me. But you can add a little bit of salt if you feel it’s needed.

Portuguese Feijoada Recipe (6)

Maria Campos

I’m Maria and I love cooking—and mostly EATING—food from all around the world. I’ve been sharing my abuela’s secret Latin-American recipes for the last 7 years with the world on this blog. I’ve been a full-time food blogger for many years and I’m always trying new delicious meals that don’t require a culinary degree or a Michelin-star chef. I also love traveling, cats, and knitting.

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Portuguese Feijoada Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is the difference between Brazilian and Portuguese feijoada? ›

The word 'feijão' means beans in Portuguese. While the Portuguese used the cream-coloured feijão-fradinho (black-eyed bean), in Brazil it's the black beans that get a thumbs-up.

Is feijoada eaten in Portugal? ›

Feijoada is a common name given to dishes from Portuguese-speaking countries such as Portugal, Brazil, Angola, East Timor, Mozambique, and Macau, where it is made from a mixture of meat and white, black or red beans, usually accompanied by rice.

What does feijoada consist of? ›

Feijoada is a black bean stew that is brewed with a variety of salted and smoked pork and beef products from carne-seca to smoked pork spareribs. The more traditional feijoada also includes “cheaper” cuts such as pig's ears, feet and tails, and beef tongue.

Is feijoada good for you? ›

The national dish of Brazil is Feijoada. Eaten daily in some households, this highly nutritious, comforting stew is made up of beans, kale and cassava. This is traditionally a meat dish, but can made vegetarian as well.

Is Brazilian Portuguese different from regular Portuguese? ›

Brazilian and European Portuguese have distinct differences. However, they are not dialects of each other because they are both “standard versions of Portuguese” that underwent different linguistic changes over time due to the geographic, cultural, and historical differences,” he adds.

Which country invented feijoada? ›

First documented in Recife, State of Pernambuco, feijoada has been described as a national dish of Brazil, especially of Pernambuco and Bahia, as other parts of Brazil have other regional dishes.

What is the most known Portuguese food? ›

Bacalhau (Salt Cod): This is one of the most famous dishes in Portugal and can be found in almost every Portuguese restaurant. The cod is usually soaked for a few days to remove the salt, then cooked in various ways, such as baked, grilled, or fried.

What do you drink with feijoada? ›

A full-bodied red wine is the ideal pairing for feijoada, with some acidity and tannins to cut through the fat. You could try a nice Syrah from Serra da Mantiquera in Brazil, or a Merlot or red blend from Serra Gaucha in Brazil which would both work well.

Why is feijoada served with orange? ›

Feijoada is traditionally served with orange slices because the citrus helps to balance the heavy, rich flavors of the stew.

What is a good side dish for feijoada? ›

Feijoada is always served with fresh chunks of oranges, sauteed and shredded “couve” (similar to collard greens), farofa, and white rice. The best way to serve it is to assemble all the goodies in a buffet type setting, so that each guest can make their own plate.

What is the difference between feijoada and feijão? ›

Black beans (or turtle beans) were also the staple food of Afro-Brazilian slaves. With the addition of pork to the stew, the feijão become feijoada, which is often served to guests on special occasions.

What does feijoada taste like? ›

A hearty black bean stew made with beef and pork, feijoada is an intense explosion of flavours, and when mixed with other dishes, it can satisfy even the most demanding palate – not to mention provide Carnival-goers enough energy to enjoy the marathon days and nights of revelry.

What is the national dish of Brazil? ›

Feijoada, Brazil's national dish, is a stew loaded with black beans and meats of every description: smoked pork loin, bacon and sausage such as chorizo.

What is the difference between Boa and Bom Portuguese? ›

Bom, is for masculine things. Boa is for feminine. You will never hear someone say "tudo boa" - never. That's because tudo is non-specific and thus, it defaults to masculine.

How different is Brazilian Portuguese from Spanish? ›

The most significant difference between Spanish and Portuguese is that Portuguese has a far richer phonology, meaning it has more sounds than Spanish. For example, Spanish has only five vowels, while Portuguese has nine. In Spanish, almost every single phoneme is tied to a single letter.

Why is it called Brazilian Portuguese? ›

Here in Brazil, it took place in 1500 by the Portuguese navigator Pedro Alvarez Cabral and that's why Portuguese colonization was established in Brazil. Consequently, Brazil inherited the Portuguese language and it's still the official language.

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