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Authentic Feijoada Recipe Brazil, South America
JUMP TO RECIPEWe strongly advise you to read the cooking tips before jumping to the recipe though
Introduction & history
Just like the Sunday roast in the Western world, feijoada is a staple weekend dish in Brazil prepared to feed large families and groups of friends in an economical, yet delicious manner. This black bean stew is brewed slowly with a mélange of salted and smoked beef and pork products, and it is seasoned with sautéed onions, garlic, and bay leaf. Traditionally, feijoada was made with the cheapest cuts of meat such as pork feet, tails, snouts, ears and beef tongue, while smoked beef, bacon, pork ribs, and sausages were introduced later, as the dish developed. As for the preparation, it is a lengthy process which starts a day ahead — the first step is to desalt the salted meat products by soaking them in water, changing it every few hours. If dried black beans are used, they need to be soaked overnight as well. The meat and beans are then cooked together slowly until they become tender, and the surrounding liquid becomes gelatinous and black. Sautéed onions and ... Read more
Pair with
Serve With
Cooking tips
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meat
Originally, feijoada is prepared with salted and/or smoked pork legs, tails, snouts, ears, and beef tongue, which are today typically replaced with bacon, pork ribs, dried beef and various sausages. The meat needs to be cleaned from excess fat and leftover hair before soaking and further preparation. -
desalting
Salted pieces of meat need to be desalted before cooking. To do that, soak them in plenty of cold water, preferably overnight, and make sure you change the water every couple of hours. -
sausages
Different kinds of sausages can be used for feijoada. The most common are paio and Portuguese sausage — paio is a cured sausage made from pork and beef, while Portuguese sausage is made exclusively from pork and has a strong garlic flavor. Spanish chorizo sausage and blood sausages make a delicious alternative. -
beans
Both canned and dried black beans can be used to prepare feijoada. If you use dried beans, soak them in water overnight, discard the liquid, and cook them with desalted meat until they all become tender. In the case of canned beans, they should be added at the end. To make feijoada denser, take out some of the cooked beans, purée them with a fork or by using a blender, and return to the pot. -
cooking
The key to a perfect feijoada lies in good timing. The cuts of meat which take longer to cook, such as pork ears, legs, and dried beef are cooked for a longer period of time compared to the more tender parts, such as pork loin, bacon, and sausages, which are added at the last half hour of cooking. Remove the excess fat from the surface using a slotted spoon or a mesh spoon. Also, it is advisable not ... Read more -
orange
Other than as a garnish, the oranges can also be added into feijoada, because their acids help in dissolving the excess fat hence making the meat softer. Halved oranges are cooked with meat and beans, and are thrown away before serving. -
farofa
A mainstay of every Brazilian table, farofa is a very common side dish made by toasting manioc flour in butter for about 10 minutes. Farofa is typically seasoned only with salt, but can also include additional ingredients like onion, garlic, and bacon, to name a few.
Traditional Brazilian Feijoada
PREP 24h
COOK 2h 5min
READY IN 1d 2h
The following recipe shows how to make a traditional Brazilian feijoada as they do it in Bolinha, one of the most popular feijoada restaurants in São Paulo. The trick is to add the meat gradually, starting with the pieces which take longer to cook, such as dried beef, pork feet, and ears.
Ingredients
Traditional Feijoada
200g (7 oz) dried beef
200g (7 oz) salted or smoked pork ribs
200g (7 oz) salted pork feet
100g (3.5 oz) salted pork tails
100g (3.5 oz) salted pork ears
150g (5.3 oz) smoked or salted pork loin
100g (3.5 oz) paio sausage
100g (3.5 oz) Portuguese sausage
100g (3.5 oz) smoked beef tongue
50g (1.75 oz) bacon
900g (2 lbs) black beans
2 cups (480 ml) oil
200g (7 oz) chopped onion
100g (3.5 oz) chopped garlic
6 bay leaves
2 oranges, cut in half
Preparation
1
Traditional Feijoada
Step 1/9
Clean the salted meat thoroughly by removing the excess fat and hairs. Soak in water for 24 hours. Change the water 3 to 4 times during this period.
Step 2/9
Boil the meat for 20 minutes over high heat. Throw away the water the meat has been cooked in.
Step 3/9
Place the beans, bay leaves, oranges, dried beef, pork feet, and pork ear in a large pot filled with water. Cook for 30 minutes.
Step 4/9
Then, add ox tongue, pork tail, and pork ribs and cook for another 30 minutes.
Step 5/9
Finally, add the pork loin, paio sausage, Portuguese sausage, and bacon and cook for 30 more minutes. During cooking, remove and discard any fat that floats on the surface and use a fork to check the degree of softness for each piece of meat. If you estimate a particular piece is already cooked, take it out of the pot and set aside.
Step 6/9
Meanwhile, heat the oil in a frying pan and sauté onion and garlic until lightly browned.
Step 7/9
Serve with white rice, sautéed cabbage seasoned with olive oil and garlic, and a manioc farofa.
Step 8/9
Remove the orange halves from the cooking pot, and stir in sautéed onion and garlic.
Step 9/9
Take the meat out of the pot, cut into smaller pieces if necessary, then put back into the pot and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes over low heat.
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