My Brazilian Feijoada Recipes

FEIJOADA (BRAZILIAN BLACK BEAN STEW)

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a large pot or Dutch oven. Add 3/4 cup of chopped onion, green onions, and garlic; cook and stir until softened, about 4 minutes. Pour in the soaked beans and fill with enough water to cover beans by 3 inches. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer uncovered for 2 hours, or until tender.
• While beans are cooking, place ham hocks in smaller pot with 1/4 cup of the chopped onion. Cover with water and simmer, until meat pulls off of the bone easily, about 1 hour. Drain and add to the beans.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Place ham, bacon, and remaining onion in a baking dish. Bake 15 minutes or until mixture is crispy.
• Drain the bacon and ham mixture, and add to the beans. Season with bay leaves, coriander, salt and pepper. Simmer uncovered 30 minutes more. Stir in chopped cilantro and parsley just before serving.

MY BRAZILIAN FEIJOADA

Steps:

• Rinse and sort beans; soak according to package directions. Meanwhile, place pork roast, short ribs and bacon in a 6-qt. slow cooker. Add onion, garlic, bay leaf and seasonings; pour chicken broth, water and beef broth over meat. Cook, covered, on high 2 hours. , Stir in beans and sausage. Cook, covered, on low 5-6 hours, until meat and beans are tender. Discard bay leaf. Remove short ribs. When cool enough to handle, remove meat from bones; discard bones. Shred meat with 2 forks; return to slow cooker. Top servings with orange sections. If desired, serve with hot cooked rice.

BRAZILIAN FEIJOADA

Steps:

• Starting a day ahead, place the dried beans in a large bowl and cover with cold water; soak the beans overnight in the refrigerator. In a separate bowl, soak the salt cured beef in cool water to cover to tenderize the meat, do this overnight also but change the water a couple of times. Drain the beans and carne seca; cut up the cured beef into chunks.
• Coat a large heavy pot with the oil and place over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the salt pork, onions, garlic, pepper, and bay leaves. Cook and stir for 5 minutes to render out the pork fat and soften the vegetables. Add the ham hocks, sausage, ribs, cubed beef, carne seca, and black beans. Cover with just enough cold water to cover (about 21/2 quarts). Bring the liquid to a boil and then reduce to medium-low heat, cover, and simmer for 2 hours, stirring now and again. Skim any foam that rises to the surface during cooking and add more water if necessary to keep the ingredients covered during cooking.
• Dig the ham hocks out of the pot, discard the rind and fat, shred the meat, and return the ham to the pot. The beans should be really tender, like they are almost bursting. Mash about 1 cup of the beans against the side of the pot to cream them out. Give the stew a good stir, taste and check for seasoning.
• To serve, ladle some of the bean broth into shot glasses or little cups, add a dash of hot pepper sauce and drink ¿ this is traditionally done to get the palate prepared for the feijoada. Serve feijoada in large wide bowls, garnished with orange segments and accompanied by collard greens and white rice.
• To prepare the greens: cut away the tough stalks and stems from the collards and discard any leaves that are bruised or yellow. Fill the sink with water and salt, the salt helps to remove any impurities. Wash the collards thoroughly to remove the grit, 2 or 3 times, until the water runs clear. Dry thoroughly. Stack up several leaves and roll up lengthwise in a bundle, cut them into 1-inch ribbons. Repeat until all the leaves are shredded.
• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil; blanch the collard greens for 3 minutes until tender but still bright green. Drain the greens well.
• Heat a large deep skillet over medium flame and coat with the oil. Add the garlic and saute for 2 minutes to soften. Add the blanched greens and toss well with the oil and garlic. Pour in the chicken broth and cook for 5 minutes until the greens are wilted and tender; take care not to overcook. Season with salt and pepper and serve with the feijoada.

FEIJOADA: TRADITIONAL BRASILIAN STEW

Steps:

• Soak the beans in cold water overnight, making sure they are completely covered. Also soak the salted ribs and bacon in cold water overnight.
• Drain the beans and put them into a large saucepan of cold water. Bring to the boil over medium heat, then simmer for 30 minutes until tender.
• Rinse the soaked salted ribs and bacon well, add to the beans and cook for 30 minutes over a medium heat. Heat a very large saucepan and pour in the olive oil so it covers the bottom. Add the onions and garlic and cook until softened. Add the sausages, smoked ribs and bacon, pepper and bay leaves. Pour in the cooked beans and meat and top up with water. Simmer for about 1 hour, until the meat falls off the bone.
• Serve the Feijoada with boiled white rice, slices of orange, and very finely sliced spring greens fried in olive oil with finely chopped onion and garlic.

CHEF JOHN'S BRAZILIAN FEIJOADA

Steps:

• Place black beans into a large bowl, cover with water, and soak overnight. Drain beans.
• Place drained beans in heavy pot with 2 quarts of water. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to low and simmer until beans are cooked but very firm, 1 1/2 to 2 hours.
• Stir chopped dried beef into pot with beans. Add bay leaf and pork chop bones, stir and simmer on low heat for another 2 hours.
• Cook bacon in large dry skillet over medium heat until not quite crisp. Add linguica and Italian sausage links; cook, stirring often, until meats are brown, about 10 minutes. Remove browned meat, reserving accumulated fat in skillet. Slice Italian sausage into chunks.
• Brown onion and garlic in reserved drippings in the skillet over medium heat until onion is translucent and soft, stirring to deglaze the pan, about 5 minutes. Season with cumin, coriander, cayenne pepper, salt, and black pepper; add 1 tablespoon chopped Italian parsley. Cook and stir until parsley has wilted, about 2 minutes.
• Stir onion-spice mixture into pot with beans. Add cooked bacon, linguica sausage, Italian sausage, and pork chop chunks. Pour in enough water so meats are just covered with liquid. Increase heat to medium-high and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook uncovered until beans are very soft and liquid begins to thicken, about 1 hour, stirring occasionally. If beans begin to look dry, add more water.
• Heat olive oil in a skillet. Add bread crumbs and cook and stir until crumbs are toasted. Stir in 2 tablespoons Italian parsley and grated orange zest.
• When beans are cooked, ladle stew into bowls and top with the toasted crumb mixture.

BRAZILIAN FEIJOADA (VEGETARIAN)

Steps:

• In a medium saucepan, place the beans in plenty of water and cook for about 1 hour, over medium heat, until tender.
• Drain and reserve 2 cups of the cooking liquid.
• In a large saucepan, heat the oil.
• Add the onion, bell peppers, tomato, garlic, and chipotle peppers and saute for 8 to 10 minutes.
• Add the beans, cooking liquid, sweet potatoes, and thyme and cook for 25 to 30 minutes over medium heat, stirring occasionally.
• Stir in the parsley and salt and cook for 5 to 10 minutes more.
• Spoon the rice into bowls and ladle the feijoada over the top.

FEIJOADA - THE REAL ONE

Steps:

• Soak the smoked and salted meats in a large pan overnight.
• The next morning, drain, rinse, and soak again until ready to cook.
• In a large heavy stock pot, heat the oil over medium-low heat.
• Add the onions and cook, until they are softened and translucent.
• Add the garlic and cook for 3 minutes more, until the aroma is released.
• Tie the bay leaves, and add it to the pan, along with the dried soaked meats, fresh meats, and the water.
• Bring slowly to a boil over medium heat, then reduce the heat and skim the fats and scum from the top.
• Cook for 1 hour, then add the beans, return to a simmer, and again skim any scum from the top.
• Simmer for another hour.
• As each piece of meat becomes forktender, remove it.
• Place the cooked meats on a platter, cover with aluminum foil, and keep warm in a low oven.
• Remove all the meat and skin from the pigs trotter and dice it.
• Discard the bone and add the meat to the beans.
• Cut the jerked beef into half a inch dice and also return it to the beans.
• Continue cooking the beans for 20 minutes more, or until tender.
• Remove any fat or gristle from the remaining cuts of meat, then cube or slice it into bitesized pieces.
• Arrange the sliced sausages, pork pieces and bacon on one side of a large heated platter and place the beans on the other side.
• Serve hot, accompanied by stewed kale, cooked white rice, fried pork lard and orange segments.