40 typical Brazilian foods that you must try

Brazil has an outstanding gastronomy underpinned by its cultural diversity of Portuguese, European, Aboriginal and African heritage.

Keep reading so you can get to know 40 typical Brazilian foods, which have all the flavor of the jungle, the sea, the rivers, the mountains and the plains of this immense South American nation.

1. Gaucho steak

It is one of the typical dishes of southern Brazil, especially in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, one of the main granaries and meat producers in the nation.

It was the quintessential hearty meal of the gauchos (Brazilian cowboys) after their arduous days herding cattle. Now it is a dish that tourists always prefer when they visit Brazil.

It is prepared with a piece of picanha (sirloin) and enough coarse salt. The piece is cut into 4 cm thick steaks, which are threaded onto a metal skewer or chuzo. Insert the large pieces first, then the smaller ones, as these will cook faster and can be easily removed from the skewer.

The skewering and cooking are done by placing the fat cover of the steaks facing the same side, with the skewers approximately 40 cm from the embers. When the meat begins to sweat, coarse salt is added and spread over the pieces by hand. It is cooked for 20 minutes on each side, eliminating the flames that rise.

2. Vatapa

Traditional dish of the gastronomy of Bahia where it is eaten to accompany the acarayés (bean and shrimp buns).

Vatapá can be made with fresh and dried shrimp, salted cod, and beef. It has the texture of a cream and is also popular in the state of Pará.

To prepare the recipe with 100 grams of dried shrimp, you need 4 loaves of bread, 2 cups of coconut milk, 2 onions, 2 bell peppers, a tomato, a little coriander, a tablespoon of grated ginger, 50 grams of chestnuts, 50 grams peanut, salt and pepper to taste.

The bread is soaked in coconut milk until it dissolves, then it is blended and reserved in a saucepan. Separately, blend the onions, peppers, tomato, coriander, chestnut, peanut and ginger. Season with salt and pepper and pour into the saucepan with the mixture of bread and coconut milk. Add the dried shrimp and cook for 20 minutes over low heat (if the coconut milk burns, it makes the dish bitter) stirring until it thickens.

3. Pirarucu jacket

The pirarucú is the second largest freshwater fish after the beluga sturgeon, and can reach 250 kilos in weight.

This recipe calls for a kilo of salty pirarucú, 5 ripe bananas, 200 grams of cassava flour, 200 cc of olive oil and coconut milk, 2 onions and 4 large potatoes, 4 tomatoes and a small pepper.

The fish is left to soak overnight in the refrigerator and the next day it is boiled for 15 minutes in clean water. Drain, crumble and reserve.

Chop the onion, tomato and pepper into small pieces and sauté in the olive oil until softened. Add the shredded fish and let it fry for minutes, adding half the coconut milk to keep it moist. Mix the flour and the rest of the coconut milk to make some crumbs. The plantains and potatoes are fried and in an oven container, 4 layers are made (crumbs, fish, plantains and French fries) and baked for 10 minutes before serving.

4. Quindim

It is a typical dessert from the Brazilian northeast prepared with egg yolks and grated coconut. It is believed that it was created in the 17th century by African slaves who took advantage of the extensive coconut plantations in that area of the country.

To make a recipe with 5 egg yolks, you need a cup of grated coconut, a cup of sugar, a tablespoon of butter and an egg white.

Preheat the oven to 180 °C and mix the butter, sugar and grated coconut in a bowl. In another container, mix the yolks with the white until they are well integrated and add them to the first preparation. Mix well.

Put the contents in round cake or muffin tins and place them in a larger one with water to make a bain-marie in the oven. Bake until the tops of the quindim are golden brown without the water drying out. Cool, unmold and take to the fridge to eat the cold dessert.

5. Acarayé

The acarayé or acarajé is a kind of fritter from Afro-Brazilian cuisine prepared with dried beans and shrimp. It is eaten in Bahia and in the northeast of Brazil to accompany vatapá.

It was the African slaves who introduced this dish to the country, a recipe related to Candomblé and other African-American religious traditions.

For 4 servings of acarayés, 250 grams of careta beans (fradinho), 2 tablespoons of dried shrimp, a cup of shrimp or fish broth, an onion, a teaspoon of salt and palm oil (dendé oil) are used.

The beans are soaked and rinsed several times. Drain and blend the diced onion, shrimp and salt together with the broth, until forming a homogeneous paste.

Heat half a cup of oil and fry the pasta by spoonfuls, browning on both sides and placing the fritters on absorbent paper to remove excess fat. The acarayés are accompanied with vatapá.

6. Sarapatel

Sarapatel is a Portuguese dish from Alto Alentejo that the Lusitanians prepare with viscera of pork, lamb and kid.

Brazilians from the north of the country adopted the recipe and make it with offal and pork entrails. It is usually served with rice and farofa (cassava flour).

To prepare it you need a kilo of sarapatel or pork offal (tongue, liver, heart, bacon, blood), 4 tomatoes, 3 onions, a pepper, 5 cloves of garlic, 4 tablespoons of vinegar, 3 bay leaves, half a cup of oil, cilantro, green onion to taste, salt and pepper.

Remove a little of the blood and wash the pieces of viscera with enough lemon, putting them to boil in water.

Cut the pieces into small cubes, salt and pepper and season with vinegar, bay leaf, tomato, onion, pepper, coriander, green onion and finely chopped garlic, adding a little of the blood set aside.

Heat the oil and add the zarapatel cooking and stirring for 15 minutes. Little by little, add the rest of the blood with water until the preparation is cooked (30 minutes).

7. Paçoca de amendoim

It is one of the most popular Brazilian desserts consumed especially during Holy Week and in the festas juninas (June festivities), traditional celebrations that begin on June 13, the day of Saint Anthony, continuing on the 24th (Saint John) and the 29th. (Saint Peter and Saint Paul). Not to be confused with paçoca de pilão, which is a savory meat-based dish.

To prepare several paçocas, you only need 250 grams of cassava flour, the same amount of roasted peanuts and 5 tablespoons of sugar.

After preheating the oven to 180º C, the peanuts are baked for 5 minutes in a container. After baking, take the dried fruit for a minute to the blender or food processor.

Add the manioc flour plus the sugar and continue processing for 5 minutes. This mixture is poured into molds and unmolds when it hardens.

If you don’t have molds spread the mixture on a flat surface (a layer 3 cm thick) and then cut into squares.

8. Canjica

It is another typical sweet from Brazil prepared and consumed during the June festivities in the Northeast region. However, in bakeries and candy stores it is available all year round.

Its basic ingredients are white or green corn, milk (regular or condensed), grated coconut and peanuts.

A typical canjica recipe calls for 200 grams of corn, a can of condensed milk, 50 grams of grated coconut and about 100 grams of peanuts.

The corn is left to soak overnight. The next day the water is discarded and the seed is put in a saucepan together with the condensed milk, the peanuts and the sugar, stirring well until a uniform mixture is formed.

Add the liter of water and put the saucepan over low heat until the corn is soft and the preparation thickens. Add the grated coconut, mix well and continue cooking for another 5 minutes.

The canjicas are served very cold with sprinkled ground cinnamon.

9. Sweet Pamonha

The pamoña or pamonha is a sweet tamale common in several Brazilian states, including São Paulo, Paraná, Minas Gerais and Tocantins.

It is one of the gastronomic symbols of the São Paulo city of Piracicaba, where they make the most famous pamonhas in the country.

Small entrepreneurs were already making some 5,000 units a day in the 1960s, to be distributed throughout the state of São Paulo.

The name of the dish comes from the Tupi language and means “sticky”, due to the sticky texture of the dough adhered to the leaves.

For 12 tender ears of corn you will need a cup of coconut milk and a cup of sugar. Remove the leaves from the corn, reserving the best ones to wrap the pamonhas. Shell the corn and blend it together with the coconut milk and sugar, until a uniform mass is formed.

Place a portion of dough on one of the reserved corn husks, wrap well and tie with kitchen twine or thin strips of corn husks. Boil water and cook the pamonhas for an hour, removing them as soon as they are done. Drain and eat hot or cold.

10. Fried sun meat

In Brazil they call meat of the sun salted bovine cuts and left to dry in the sun’s rays for 4 days. This type of meat is called by various names in the country, including carne serenada, carne mole, cacina, carne acacimada, and carne do vento.

Most likely, the preservation technique with salt and solar heat was introduced by the Portuguese, since the Brazilian aborigines have no tradition of preserving food for long periods.

This recipe calls for 500 grams of meat from the sun, an onion, a bunch of green onions and 2 tablespoons of olive oil.

First wash the meat to remove excess salt and cut it into squares. Cut the onion into slices, wash and chop the green onion, heat the olive oil in a pan and fry the vegetables with the meat for 3 minutes. Stir the preparation and continue frying for another 3 to 4 minutes. Serve the fried sun meat with white rice and a salad.

11. Bode Buchada

If you go to the northeast of Brazil, you cannot miss out on trying this delicacy of national cuisine, popular above all in the states of Pernambuco and Ceará.

The northeast of the country is the seat of intense goat farming, so it is natural that one of the emblems of its cuisine is a dish made with the cheapest parts of the goat. Still, buchada can be made with any cattle, and beef and lamb versions are also available.

It is a dish similar to Scottish haggis. The liver, kidneys, lungs, intestines and other viscera of the goat, together with the blood, are placed in a bag made with the stomach of the same specimen, which is sewn and cooked.

In the city of Recife, capital of Pernambuco, there are many restaurants serving typical Brazilian food where you can taste a buchada de bode.

12. Feijão tropeiro

This dish based on beans, bacon and cassava flour, is one of the typical foods of Brazil, particularly in São Paulo, Minas Gerais, Goiás and Mato Grosso. It can also be prepared with dried meat and pork rinds.

In Brazil they called tropeiros to the drivers of carriages pulled by donkeys and horses and this was one of their favorite dishes on the journeys.

Take 200 grams of bacon, 500 grams of purple beans, 200 grams of cassava flour, 5 fried and chopped eggs, 5 crushed cloves of garlic, 1 chopped onion, 2 tablespoons of lard and parsley, green onion, salt and pepper to taste

Cook and reserve the beans and fry the bacon well in a pan along with the garlic and onion. Add the beans and cook for 5 minutes, seasoning and gradually adding the cassava flour. Add the chopped eggs, parsley and green onion. It is eaten with homemade sausages and braised cabbage.

13. Fish and shrimp moqueca

Moqueca is a fish stew that is made over low heat so as not to add water. Two versions are known: the Bahian moqueca in the state of Bahia and the capixaba moqueca, which is an emblematic dish from the state of Espiritu Santo. The first documentary mention of the saucer dates back to 1534.

This recipe is prepared with 4 grouper fillets of 225 grams each, half a kilo of raw and peeled shrimp, 2 tablespoons of olive oil and 2 of palm oil, a finely chopped onion, half a green pepper cut into cubes, a tomato minced, 4 finely chopped garlic cloves, a cup of coconut milk, a lemon, ground chili, salt and pepper to taste.

Season the fish with salt, pepper and lemon juice and marinate for 15 minutes in the refrigerator. Sauté the onion, garlic, tomato and pepper in olive oil until softened. Add the palm oil, fish, shrimp, coconut milk, ground chili, salt and pepper to taste and cook over medium-low heat for 8 to 10 minutes. Serve with white rice.

14. Barreado Paraná

It is the food that symbolizes the state of Paraná and comes from the Portuguese archipelago of the Azores. It is also called barreada meat and it arrived in Brazil with the Portuguese who colonized the Paraná coast in the 16th century.

According to the oldest documentary record, the first Brazilian sweeping was done in the town of Guaraqueçaba, on the coast of Paraná.

The recipe consists of one or several types of lean cuts of beef seasoned with pork bacon, garlic, onion, pepper, cumin, bay leaf and other seasonings to taste, slowly cooked in a large clay pot (even for 20 hours) until they fall apart. It is usually eaten with sliced bananas and white rice.

The paraná barreado was adopted during the colony by the caboclos (name given in Brazil to the mestizos of European and Indian) who lived in the foothills of the Sierra do Mar, off the coast of Paraná.

Later it became and remains a dish associated with Carnival. In Portugal, the first reference to the recipe dates back to the mid-13th century.

15. Osvaldo Aranha Steak

Former Brazilian President of the UN General Assembly and Security Council in the 1940s, Osvaldo Aranha, always ordered a garlicky steak at his favorite restaurant in Rio de Janeiro, which he accompanied with French fries, white rice and farofa de eggs. The waiters called the dish: “Osvaldo Aranha steak”.

For 4 rib eye steaks of 225 grams each, you will need 4 finely sliced cloves of garlic, a tablespoon of olive oil, 2 tablespoons of butter, a handful of finely chopped parsley, salt and pepper to taste.

Heat the olive oil with a tablespoon of butter and seal the seasoned fillets with salt and pepper for between 2 and 4 minutes on each side.

In a small frying pan, melt the other tablespoon of butter and fry the garlic until lightly browned. The fillets are bathed with the garlic and sprinkled with parsley.

The Cosmopolita restaurant continued to prepare the now popular steak after the politician’s death in 1960. The address is Travessa do Mosqueira 4, Lapa, Rio de Janeiro.

16. Goias Cake

Goiás is a state in central Brazil whose capital is Goiânia, which is characterized by its powerful agriculture, livestock and lumber industry.

One of the typical Goian dishes is a round, salty cake that is served hot. There are different sizes, from 15 to more than 30 cm in diameter.

The filling can vary, although they are made predominantly of sirloin, chicken breast and pork leg. However, there is no defined recipe and it is a way to take advantage of leftover meat, chicken, pork, turkey, sausages and cold cuts left over from other meals.

Previously it was called empanada de Goias, changing to the more correct name of cake.

Apart from the meat, it has cheese, olives in tomato sauce and pieces of the bitter heart of palm from guariroba, a palm tree native to Brazil. Some versions contain eggs, green corn, peppers, and other vegetables.

It is usually served at celebrations and festive events such as weddings, birthdays and anniversaries

17. Maniçoba

The main ingredient in this recipe is bitter cassava leaves, which when fresh contain hydrocyanic acid in toxic proportions. To remove it, they are ground and cooked for several days.

The dish was invented by slaves to mix with leftover meat trifles from their masters’ meals.

The cooked and toxic-free leaves are mixed with beef or pork meat and other salted and smoked ingredients.

The dish is also called “fixada paraense” because it is typical of the state of Pará. It is usually eaten with cassava flour, white rice and pepper. It is one of the main dishes at Cirios de Pará parties and is also popular in the state of Sergipe.

In the Museo de la Gente Sergipana, in the city of Aracaju, state capital, there is a space dedicated to the manicoba that highlights its importance for the local culture and the transmission of the elaboration method from parents to children.

The dish is also present in the cuisine of the Reconcavo Bahiano region, particularly in the municipalities of Santo Amaro and Cachoeira.

18. Goaibada

Goaibada is a traditional dessert from the local candy store made from guava paste and Queijo Minas Frescal, a cheese of various presentations used to make the popular cheese bread with dairy and cassava flour.

The goaibada is made both by hand and industrially and in its basic form it is made with the pulp of the fruit, sugar and water.

The craft presentation is usually in square wooden boxes, while the industrial presentation is generally in round containers.

Queijo Minas Frescal is made with cow’s milk and sold in 4 forms: queijo padrão (standard cheese), frescol (fresh), meia-cura (semi-cured) and cured.

This recipe was introduced into Brazilian gastronomy by Bulgarian immigrants.

19. Grilled Black Pacu

The black pacú, also called cachama negra, cherma and tambaqui, is a fish from the Amazon basin that can weigh up to 35 kg. It is a migratory species that travels great distances and whose meat is appreciated for its quality.

Ideally, you should eat a fresh, wild-caught pacu from the river, but if you can only get farm-raised pacu from the supermarket, the recipe will work just as well.

For a specimen of approximately one and a half kilos you will need 50 grams of butter, 2 tablespoons of olive oil, salt, pepper, oregano, thyme, honey, mustard and lemon to taste.

Open the fish in half, clean it and wash it well. Then you put salt and pepper and brush it inside with oil.

Start grilling the fish meat side down while you prepare a dressing with the other ingredients. When the fish skin feels hot, turn it over and brush the meat with the dressing. Brush every 4 to 5 minutes until cooked.

20. Pig’s Knee

The territory that forms the Brazilian state of Santa Catarina had an intense European colonization, especially from Italy, Germany, Portugal and Poland, which marked the gastronomy of the region.

The mixture of European cuisine with the native one allowed to create in Santa Catarina one of the richest cuisines in Brazil.

The Germans brought their passion for pork and pork production is strong in the state. One of the delicacies of Santa Catarina with a German stamp is the pork knee with sauerkraut, prepared with the front legs of the animal seasoned with a mixture of spices and baked for hours.

The obligatory companion is sauerkraut, the fermented cabbage typical of German cuisine.

Florianópolis, capital of Santa Catarina, is not only the Brazilian city with the highest Human Development Index, it also has the best restaurants in the country to eat pork knee with sauerkraut in the most authentic German-Brazilian style.

21. Chicken in brown sauce

Typical dish from the city of Belo Horizonte, capital of the state of Minas Gerais. You will want to enjoy it in a restaurant because if you decide to prepare it you will have to kill a chicken and collect its blood.

In addition to a large chicken and its blood (which must be mixed with 3 tablespoons of vinegar so that it does not curdle), the recipe calls for 2 onions, 2 tomatoes, a large pepper, a green onion stem, a teaspoon of powdered paprika, 6 cloves of garlic, 2 cubes of powdered chicken broth, 4 tablespoons of oil, water, salt and pepper to taste.

Season the chicken pieces with salt, pepper and garlic and fry them in oil until golden brown. Add the chopped vegetables, the other ingredients and cover with water, cooking for 2 hours or until softened (check that it does not dry out). When the chicken is tender, add the blood and cook for 10 more minutes. Serve with white rice and a green salad.

22. Leão Veloso Soup

The diplomat, Pedro Leão Veloso, Minister of Foreign Affairs during the government of Getulio Vargas, brought this dish to Brazil after trying it in Marseille (France).

It has 400 grams of squid, 400 of octopus, 100 of fish fillet, 80 of shrimp and 60 of mussels. In addition, 100 cc of tomato sauce, 100 of fish broth and 300 of water, plus an onion, a pepper, garlic, pepper and salt to taste.

Cook the seafood separately in water, discarding the liquids. Put them together in a saucepan, add the fish broth, the tomato sauce and the other ingredients and cook for 10 minutes.

Seafood restaurants in Rio de Janeiro have Leão Veloso soup on the menu with recipes that have been developed over the last 50 years, some with lobster, prawns, crab and other marine ingredients.

The soup at Umas & Ostras, a restaurant at Rua Barao de Mesquita, 235, Tijuca, Rio de Janeiro, is spectacular.

23. Pork Chops with Rice

Typical recipe from Minas Gerais, the great Brazilian state that produces minerals. It is enough for 5 portions and is prepared with a kilo of pork chops, 1 ½ cups of rice, a pepper cut into strips, half a cup of grated onion, a lemon, oil, 1 ½ cups of broth, water, salt and pepper. taste

Season the pork chops with the juice of a fresh lemon, salt and pepper, half an hour before making the dish and reserve in the refrigerator. Fry the chops until golden brown on both sides, placing them in a baking dish when done.

Drain the fat from the pan, leaving a tablespoon or so, and fry the onion until golden brown. Add the broth and a cup of water to the container of the chops, finally adding the washed and drained rice and the fried onion. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 40 to 50 minutes over medium heat. When there are about 10 minutes left to finish, rectify the salt and pepper and add the pepper in strips.

24. Piranha soup

One of the typical foods of Brazil in Mato Grosso do Sul and other states.

It is a piranha soup with a creamy texture that contains 3 of these clean fish, 2 onions, 2 tomatoes, a hot pepper, 3 tablespoons of soybeans, half a kilo of grated cassava, water, coriander, salt and lemon to taste.

The piranhas are cut in half, washed with lemon, seasoned with salt and reserved.

Heat oil in a cauldron over low heat and stew the fish, adding the vegetables in large pieces and 3 liters of water. Cook until the piranhas melt.

The preparation is strained and the liquid is returned to the cauldron, adding the grated cassava and the soybean and boiling for 6 minutes. Finally, add chopped coriander.

25. Vanilla bonbon with cupuassu

The capuassu is a plant from the Amazon whose pulp is white and rich in pectin and phosphorus. It is widely used in candy stores and in the state of Bahia they prepare a chocolate that contains a can of condensed milk, 2 egg yolks, a teaspoon of vanilla, a cup of fruit pulp, 2 cups of sugar, water and 500 grams of dark chocolate. .

Heat a frying pan and make a sweet with the cupuassu pulp, ¼ cup of water and sugar. A dough is made by heating the condensed milk, yolks and vanilla in another pan, stirring until it loosens from the bottom. The dough is made into balls, filled with sweet cupuassu and finally sprinkled with sugar and dipped in melted chocolate.

26. Spicy Chicken

Paulista recipe made with mocha finger pepper, a very versatile kind of chili from South America used in meat, poultry and seafood dishes.

For 400 grams of chicken breast you need 2 mocha finger peppers, a lemon, 200 grams of mushrooms, 2 cloves of garlic, 4 tablespoons of oil, a tablespoon of brown sugar, a little fresh basil and salt to taste.

Wash the chicken breast with lemon juice and water, chop it into cubes and reserve. Cut the peppers horizontally and remove the seeds.

Crush the peppers in a mortar together with the brown sugar and the garlic cloves, until they are integrated. Heat oil in a deep frying pan and sauté the breast cubes without letting them brown. Add the mushrooms and sauté for a few more minutes adding the pepper paste and stirring. Add salt to taste and continue cooking until the chicken is tender. Turn off the heat, add the basil leaves and serve with white rice.

27. Pitus in coconut

For a kilo of pitus, a highly appreciated shrimp in the kitchen of Espiritu Santo and other states, you need 2 cloves of garlic, 2 chopped onions, 3 tablespoons of chopped coriander, a tablespoon of chopped green onion, 3 tomatoes without skin or seeds chopped, 2 tablespoons of olive oil, a crushed and seedless hot pepper, a cup of coconut shavings, a tablespoon of achiote coloring, lemon juice and salt to taste.

Clean the pitus by removing the head and the shell, wash them with water and lemon and reserve. Mix well in a saucepan the olive oil with 2 tablespoons of lemon juice, the achiote dye and the vegetable ingredients (except the coconut), salting to taste. Add the pitus and coconut shavings to the saucepan and cook over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until the river prawns are tender and cooked through (15 to 20 minutes).

28. Chicken Risotto

Recipe brought to the state of Santa Catarina by Italian immigrants who, together with Germans, Portuguese and other immigrants, have contributed to giving a distinctly European profile to the green belly cuisine (affectionate name of the people of Santa Catarina).

It is prepared with a chicken in pieces, preferably free range, 2 cups of rice, 4 medium tomatoes, a large onion, 2 medium carrots, 15 green bean pods, a medium leek, 2 tablespoons of olive oil, water, parsley, green onion and salt to taste.

Heat the olive oil in a saucepan and sauté the chicken pieces together with the chopped onion and leek. Add half a liter of water and salt to taste and keep on the fire. Add the other finely chopped vegetable dressings and finally the rice, cooking over low heat until the cereal is ready.

29. Sheep ribs with rice

Rio Grande do Sul is a Brazilian state with a great agricultural and livestock vocation, including sheep.

One of its typical dishes is sheep ribs with rice, for which you need a kilo of clean cut and chopped into pieces, a cup of rice, a large chopped onion, a chopped bell pepper, a teaspoon of powdered pepper, 2 tablespoons of pureed garlic, a sprig of basil, 2 tablespoons of oil, water, salt and pepper to taste.

Place the ribs in a bowl, prepare a mixture with the garlic, pepper powder and salt to taste and rub the meat with this paste. Heat the oil over high heat in a frying pan and brown the meat, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking. Add the basil and continue cooking until the ribs are tender (about half an hour).

Add the chopped onion and let it brown slightly. Add the rice, frying it for a few minutes while stirring constantly. Add 2 cups of boiling water, the chopped bell pepper and pepper to taste. Cook until the rice is done.

30. Fried manjubinha

The manjubinha, also called manjuba, pititinga and ginga, is a Brazilian fresh and brackish water fish. It is characteristic of the Manguaba Lagoon, an estuary in the Brazilian state of Alagoas formed by the Paraíba do Meio River as it empties into the Atlantic Ocean.

Manjubinha is eaten fried and is one of the typical Brazilian foods that is easy to make.

For a good fry with a kilo of little fish, vegetable oil, cassava flour, several lemons, fresh coriander, an onion, salt and pepper to taste are required.

Clean the fish leaving the head, wash it with lemon juice, drain it and reserve it. Mix the juice of 2 lemons with the grated onion, chopped cilantro, salt and pepper to taste, leaving to marinate for 15 minutes.

Drain the fish, pass it through cassava flour and fry it in enough oil until crispy. Drain excess fat on absorbent paper and serve with lemon and pepper sauce.

31. Pork ribs with yucca

Pork ribs with cassava is a typical dish from Rio de Janeiro and many Cariocas enjoy it as a powerful weekend meal.

A typical recipe calls for a kilo of ribs, ¾ of a kilo of cooked cassava (cassava), a chopped onion, 2 chopped tomatoes without seed, a bunch of chopped parsley, a cup of broth, 2 cloves of garlic, a lemon, 3 tablespoons of oil, salt and pepper to taste.

Season the ribs with lemon juice and brown the garlic in a pan with hot oil. Add the ribs and fry until golden brown. Season with salt and pepper and add the broth, keeping it on the heat until the meat is cooked and tender.

Add the cooked manioc, onion and tomato and cook for 10 minutes over low heat. Add the parsley and turn off the heat. Serve hot.

32. Minera Stuffed Meat

Minas Gerais is a mining state par excellence and this is one of the favorite dishes of the workers.

It takes 2 kg of pork loin, 5 leaves of kale, a cup of vegetable broth, ½ cup of chopped green olives, 2 cups of cornmeal, 100 grams of margarine, half a mocha finger pepper chopped and without seeds, an onion, half a chopped red pepper, 2 minced garlic cloves and lemon, parsley, salt and pepper to taste.

First, cut the tenderloin into a fillet, put it in a bowl, season with salt and lemon, cover and store in the refrigerator.

Melt the margarine in a large skillet, brown the garlic and onion and sauté the peppers. Add the corn flour, olives, parsley, salt and pepper to taste, stirring until the flour is integrated.

Blanch the cabbage, drain and spread over the meat. Distribute the mixture with the flour over the fillet and roll up the meat, tying with thick kitchen twine. Place the roll in an oiled baking dish, sprinkle with the broth, cover with aluminum foil and bake for 40 minutes in a preheated oven.

33. Tucunaré baked

Typical dish from the state of Amapá, a federal entity in northern Brazil bordering French Guiana.

In the rivers of Amapá there are exotic fish such as tucunaré or pavón, which the people of Amapá prepare roasted, fried, stewed, baked and stuffed.

The tucunaré lives in the Amazon basin and extends to Panama and most of the fish used for cooking weigh between 1 and 3 kilos, although there are specimens that exceed 10 kilos.

A tasty way to eat it is by baking it with garlic, white onion, bell pepper (sweet and hot), green onion and white wine.

Clean and wash the tucunaré with lemon juice, water and reserve. Chop the garlic, onions and peppers and fry for minutes in a hot pan with olive oil, adding a cup of white wine, lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste.

Put the fish in a baking dish, cover with the dressing, cover with aluminum foil and bake until tender and cooked through.

34. Hake in shrimp sauce

Maranhão is a state in northern Brazil with 640 km of Atlantic coast, being the second federal unit with the largest coastline, only surpassed by Bahia.

One of the typical Brazilian foods in Maranhão is hake in shrimp sauce, a dish prepared with the catch of the day that mixes delicious textures, aromas, and flavors.

It is a dish that you can enjoy in the seafood restaurants of São Luís, the state capital, or prepare with a kilo of hake fillets and 200 grams of shrimp. You will also need a large chopped onion, a chopped tomato, 2 minced garlic cloves, oil, lemon and green onion, garlic powder, salt and pepper to taste.

Season the fillets with salt, lemon juice and garlic powder and let them marinate for 30 minutes. Heat a frying pan with oil and sauté the tomato, onion and minced garlic. Add the hake fillets and when they are almost cooked add the shrimp. Cook for 10 more minutes without letting the sauce dry out. Serve with white rice and a salad.

35. Rubacao paraibano

Rubacao is one of the most delicious dishes in Brazil, typical of Paraíba, a northeastern Brazilian state with an Atlantic coastline. It is usually prepared with charqui or sun meat or a mixture of both.

The following recipe calls for 150 grams of jerky, 100 grams of sun meat, a smoked pepperoni sausage, 2 tablespoons of butter, a cup of white rice cooked in salted water, ½ kg of green beans cooked in salted water, a tomato, an onion, ½ hot pepper, a little coriander, a cup of sour cream, a cup of milk and 150 grams of cottage cheese.

Mix the cooked beans and rice in salted water and add the milk. In a frying pan, melt the butter and poach the charqui, the meat in the sun and the sausage cut into pieces. Chop the tomato, onion, pepper and cilantro into small pieces and add them to the pan, stirring and letting them sauté a little. Add the beans with rice and the cottage cheese and let it melt. Add the cream, stir and turn off.

36. Rice with binder

Piauí is a Brazilian state in the northeast whose name means in the language of the Tupi aborigines: “river of small fish”. It is one of the federal units of the country where the contrast between the opulent Brazil of Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo can be appreciated, with the conditions of the poorest and most isolated states.

In Piauí, gastronomy is closely linked to the animals raised by the neighbors, hunted in the mountains or fished in the sea or river. One of these species that the people of Pau have in their pens is the guinea fowl, which they call capote, a symbol of their cuisine.

Arroz con capote is prepared with a chopped guinea fowl, meat that tastes like pheasant. It is tougher than normal free-range chicken, so it needs more cooking time.

The recipe also includes white rice prepared with tea, tomato, onion, green pepper, parsley, green onion, fresh coriander, coriander seeds, garlic, oregano, cumin, bay leaf, vinegar and white wine.

37. Fish stew

In the center-west of Brazil, bordering Bolivia, is the state of Rondonia.

One of the richest dishes in the state is caldeirada, a stew made mainly with river fish such as peacock and tambaqui (black pacú). These caldeiradas are usually made large for the whole family and several guests to eat.

They usually carry fish fillets, potatoes, boiled eggs, tomato, onion, garlic, aromatic herbs and spices, coloring with achiote (urucú) and thickening the preparation with cassava flour.

A common accompaniment to caldeirada is pirão, a popular Brazilian porridge based on manioc flour and fish broth, although they are also made with bean, legume, shrimp, meat or arracacha (creole celery, white carrot) broth.

38. Sergipe Style Crab

The state of Sergipe is the smallest in Brazil with just 21,910 km ² , but its soil is fertile.

Sergipans are fond of eating crabs and in the state there are salt and fresh water crabs, in all sizes and colors.

Gatherings of family and friends to eat the crustacean are common, where the instrument that cannot be missing is a hammer to hit the shell of the largest and extract the meat.

A good place to eat crabs in the city of Aracaju, the state capital, is the Duna Beach restaurant, right on the beach, with a spectacular view of the Dos Náufragos highway.

To accompany the crabs you can drink cold beer, but if you want an exotic local juice, try mangaba, the most popular fruit in the state and also used to make ice cream, juices, sweets and a vinous drink.

39. Fish in coconut milk babassu

This is one of the most exquisite recipes from the state of Tocantins, a federal unit of Brazil in the central part of the country. Its most exotic ingredient is the milk from the fruit of the babassu, a palm also called cusi native to the Amazon.

It is a very versatile fruit that, apart from its gastronomic use, is used to make an oil used in cosmetology and to make biodiesel.

The recipe is prepared with river fish that is cleaned, chopped into pieces and boiled together with tomato, onion, garlic, hot pepper and aromatic herbs. After the vegetables have formed a sauce with the fish, the coconut milk is added, stirring constantly so that it does not curdle.

40. Caipirinha to accompany

Caipirinha is the national drink of Brazil that Brazilians prepare with the attitude of a ceremony.

It is a cocktail that in its authentic recipe has 4 ingredients: cachaça (sugar cane liquor), lime, sugar and ice. However, the cocktail has become so popular around the world that there are variants with vodka, pisco, grenadine, fruit juices, and crushed fruit.

It is served with a straw since the idea is to drink the liquid from the bottom of the glass, where the lime juice and sugar are concentrated, giving each drink a more comprehensive taste.

The caipirinha was created in the 19th century by landowners from the Piracicaba area, in the state of São Paulo, a region strongly linked to sugar cane, to liven up their parties and celebrations.

The name dates back to the beginning of the 20th century and comes from caipira (a term related to the inhabitants of the forests) and “curupirinha”, a demon linked to drunkenness.

What is feijoada?

The 5 best-known Brazilian cultural expressions in the world are soccer, samba, Carnival, caipirinha and feijoada.

In the typical food of Brazil, feijoada is synonymous with tradition and family gathering. A dish of pork with black beans accompanied by white rice and oranges, which was created by slaves during colonial times to take advantage of leftovers from their employers’ feasts.

How to make Brazilian feijoada?

You can prepare the best-known food in Brazil with a combination of pork cuts (loin, rib, chorizo and pancetta), which are cut to the right size and fried over medium heat in a little oil.

The black beans are precooked and drained, and a vegetable and spice sauté is prepared with garlic, onion, tomato, pepper, bay leaf, salt and pepper.

Next, the meats are mixed with the beans and the sofrito is added, cooking until the beans are tender. It is accompanied with boiled white rice and oranges.

In the following video you will learn how to make the most famous dish in Brazil:

What can you eat in Rio de Janeiro?

The former capital of the Kingdom of Portugal, the Empire of Brazil and the Brazilian Republic, it is the main cultural and tourist reference of the Amazonian country and one of its strengths is its rich cuisine.

In Rio you have a wide variety of dining options that include the most iconic national dishes such as feijoada and gaucho-style picanha, as well as classics of Carioca cuisine such as Osvaldo Aranha steak, Leão Veloso soup, Gomes de Sá cod , the heart of palm cake, the carioca feijoada and the Chuchu stew.

Typical Brazilian desserts

The quindim, the goaibada, the canjica, the paçoca de amendoim and the vanilla bonbon with cupuassu are some of the best desserts in Brazil.

Other delicious Brazilian sweets are cocadas, brigadeiros, cuscuz branco, pe de moleque, bejinho and cartola.

Typical drinks of Brazil

Caipirinha is the best known drink in Brazil, but there are other delicious and refreshing Brazilian cocktails such as batida de coco (white rum with coconut milk, condensed milk and sugar), batida de maracuyá (white rum with passion fruit juice and sugar) and capoeira (white rum with cocoa liquor and condensed milk).

Among non-alcoholic beverages, juices with exotic Brazilian fruits (caju, acaí, acerola, cajá) are typical of the country and arouse growing worldwide interest.

Typical food from the northeast of Brazil

The northeast region of Brazil is made up of the states of Bahia, Pernambuco, Rio Grande do Norte, Alagoas, Ceará, Maranhão, Paraíba, Piauí and Sergipe.

This region has a diverse cuisine that includes rich dishes such as vatapá, acarayé, Bahian cala Polvo, Bahian moqueca, buchada de bode, Bahian bauçá rice, forte beach cocktail, green bean soup, shredded thigh with macaxeira, cod in coconut and casserole of rabbit.

Typical foods of Brazil: gastronomy, history and superstition

Brazil has a population of nearly 209 million people, including some 15 million Afro-Brazilians.

The black population preserves the African traditions of their ancestors and dishes such as feijoada, acarayé, vatapá, caruru and moqueca are linked to Afro-Brazilian rites and customs.

Brazil customs and typical foods that are mixed with superstitions: some Brazilian aboriginal peoples maintain the custom of their ancestors of not eating their totem animals and some African Americans avoid leaving food on the plate believing that it can be used by their enemies.

Did you know how varied and extraordinary Brazilian cuisine is? Share this article so that your friends also know the 49 typical foods of Brazil.