This is a #teambrazil post as part of @ermest #teamchallenge and it’s also Part II of the text about Brazilian food (the part I you can check here). As in the previous text, it doesn’t cover all the immense variety of Brazilian cuisine, but there are goods representations of all our diversity.
(Please check also our main post here)
These foods are common in bars, cafeterias, and restaurants, but can also represent a bit of what is street food in Brazil. Except for the cheese bread, all the other foods below were bought during my recent visit to my local Street Market.
Rapadura
I swore that this was a traditional Brazilian sweet, specifically “Nordestino” (from Northeast region), but when I was researching I found that its origin is Portuguese, more precisely from the Canary Islands and Azores. It is made in small brick formats, with taste and composition similar to brown sugar. I would say it is a sugar cane candy.
Minas Cheese with Guava
Minas cheese with guava is that perfect match. I like to buy homemade cheese and guava fruits in a street market in my city. Cheese Minas is the nomenclature for all cheese produced mainly in the state of Minas Gerais, can be usually half aged or fresh.
Brigadeiro
I believe this kind of candy only exists in Brazil. It is commonly sold on the street, also found at parties or even at home. It is made with condensed milk, chocolate powder, butter and granulated chocolate for the topping. Parties in Brazil without Brigadeiro are no parties, everyone loves it.
P****açoca (Peanut candy)
A traditional Brazilian sweet based on peanuts, cassava flour, and sugar. It’s one of my favorite sweets. The word “Paçoca” in indigenous origin also describes another dish, this salty one, which is made with meat and manioc flour.
Coxinha
Coxinha is the most popular street snack in Brazil and is very common at parties and receptions. It is a snack fried in hot oil, made with wheat flour dough and chicken stock. The most traditional stuffing is chicken, which can be with or without “catupiry” (like cream cheese), but there are many variations. Have you ever tasted Brazilian chicken Coxinha?
Pastel
There are snacks in various places around the world that have the same or similar name to “pastel” (what can literally be translated as “pastry”, but the Brazilian pastel is especially peculiar. It is made with very thin dough and fried in oil. There are several possible stuffing (the most common is meat, cheese, and chicken). A traditional accompaniment is sugarcane juice. The Local Guide @alexandradias recently posted a really cool text about the origin of pastel and its tradition in Brazil, especially in Sao Paulo (you can check here).
Pão de Queijo (cheese bread)
Pão de Queijo is a traditional Brazilian Snack. Pão de Queijo is a typical Brazilian snack from Minas Gerais state, although its origin is uncertain”. It can be literally translated as “cheese bread”, but don’t think that it’s just a simple “cheese bread”. It’s soft, warm, it can be in different sizes and sometimes stuffed with more cheese or other ingredients. Our colleague @sarahroth has written a post about “Pão de Queijo” and you can learn more about that (check here)
Have you eaten any of these dishes? Is there a similar dish in your country? Please, tell us below.
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