Today we're heading to Brazil — a country where African, Portuguese, and indigenous traditions have woven together into an incredible culinary symphony. We're making two iconic dishes that tell the story of this vibrant country's soul.
🍤 Vatapá
Creamy shrimp stew in a thick peanut-coconut sauce with ginger and pepper. The dish comes from Bahia state, where African roots are felt in every spoonful — the texture is velvety, the flavor rich and multi-layered.
Ingredients:
• Peeled shrimp — 500 g
• White bread (baguette) — 4 slices
• Coconut milk — 400 ml
• Peanut butter (natural, no additives) — 3 tablespoons
• Yellow onion — 1 large
• Garlic — 4 cloves
• Fresh ginger — 3 cm piece
• Tomatoes — 2 medium
• Sweet pepper — 1
• Fresh cilantro — large bunch
• Vegetable oil — 3 tablespoons
• Fresh chili pepper — 1 (or flakes to taste)
• Salt — to taste
• Lemon — 1
Preparation:
Soak the bread in 200 ml warm water for 10 minutes until completely softened. Squeeze out excess liquid, transfer the bread to a blender and turn into a smooth paste. This is the foundation of vatapá's texture — the mass should be smooth, without lumps.
Dice the onion into 3-4 mm cubes. Mince the garlic and ginger into a paste (you can grate on a fine grater). Cut the tomatoes into 1 cm cubes, removing seeds first. Clean the pepper of seeds and cut into 5 mm strips. Roughly chop the cilantro, separating stems from leaves.
In a deep skillet or saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat. Sauté the onion 5-7 minutes until translucent and lightly golden at the edges. Add garlic, ginger, cilantro stems, and finely chopped chili. Cook 2 minutes, stirring constantly, until a bright aroma appears — the mixture should sizzle but not burn.
Add tomatoes and pepper, stir. Simmer 7-10 minutes over medium heat until vegetables soften and liquid evaporates — the mass should become thick, oil will start separating at the skillet's edges.
Pour in coconut milk, add bread paste and peanut butter. Mix vigorously with a whisk or spoon, breaking up all lumps. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to minimum. Cook 15 minutes, stirring constantly, until thickened — consistency should resemble thick cream soup, the spoon leaves a clear trail.
Rinse the shrimp, pat dry with paper towel. Add to the sauce, stir. Cook 5-7 minutes until shrimp are fully cooked — they'll turn bright pink, springy but not rubbery. Salt to taste, add juice of half a lemon.
Remove from heat, add cilantro leaves, stir. Let rest covered for 5 minutes — flavors will unite, the sauce will become even more silky. Serve hot with white fluffy rice, garnished with a lemon wedge and cilantro sprig.
💡 Fact: Vatapá is the legacy of African slaves brought to Brazil in the 16th-17th centuries. Originally the dish was made from fish heads and scraps, but over time it became a festive delicacy and mandatory element of candomblé religious ceremonies in Bahia.
🍖 Barreado
Braised beef that's cooked in a sealed pot for 12-24 hours until the fibers completely fall apart. The dish is a symbol of Paraná state, where it's traditionally eaten at carnival — the texture resembles the most tender confit, the flavor deep and rich.
Ingredients:
• Beef brisket (or shank) — 1.5 kg
• Smoked bacon — 200 g
• Yellow onions — 3 large
• Garlic — 6 cloves
• Tomatoes — 3 large
• Sweet peppers — 2
• Cumin (cominho) — 2 teaspoons
• Bay leaves — 4
• Black peppercorns — 1 teaspoon
• Wheat flour — 3 tablespoons (for 'sealing')
• Water — 500 ml
• Salt — to taste
• Orange — 1
• Green onions — bunch
Preparation:
Cut the meat into large 5×5 cm pieces, keeping fat and membranes — they'll dissolve during long braising and create silky texture. Cut bacon into 1 cm wide strips. Cut onions into 5-7 mm thick half-rings, crush garlic with the flat side of a knife. Cut tomatoes and peppers into large wedges.
In a thick-walled cast iron pot or cauldron of at least 4 liters, fry the bacon over medium heat 5-7 minutes until golden and fat renders — it should become crispy at the edges. Remove bacon with a slotted spoon, leave the fat in the pot.
In the same fat, brown the beef pieces in batches over high heat 3-4 minutes per side until a deep brown crust forms — don't move the meat too often, let it 'seize'. The surface should caramelize but not char. Transfer meat to a plate.
In the same pot, sauté onions and garlic 7-10 minutes until soft and golden. Add tomatoes, peppers, cumin, bay leaves, and peppercorns. Cook 5 minutes, mashing tomatoes with a spoon into a rough purée — a thick vegetable sauce should form.
Return meat and bacon to the pot. Add orange juice and zest (grate on a fine grater). Pour in water — liquid should cover the meat 2/3 of the way up, not completely. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to the lowest possible. Salt to taste.
Traditional 'barreamento' (sealing) step: mix flour with 4-5 tablespoons water to a thick dough consistency. Roll into a rope and lay around the perimeter between lid and pot, pressing firmly — this creates a seal. Braise on minimum heat 6-8 hours (or in the oven at 120°C). Meat is ready when it completely falls apart into fibers with gentle fork pressure.
Break the flour 'seal', open the lid. The meat should literally melt — pull it apart with forks into fibers right in the sauce. Remove bay leaves. Serve in deep bowls with boiled rice, sprinkled with finely chopped green onions, with an orange wedge and manioc flour (farinha de mandioca) for sprinkling.
💡 Fact: The name 'barreado' comes from Portuguese 'barrar' — 'to seal'. The tradition of sealing the pot with dough was born among Paraná fishermen who cooked meat overnight to have hot food in the morning before heading out to sea. The dish is so important to the region that since 2005 it's been protected as Brazilian cultural heritage.