Feijoada
Feijoada might be the ultimate meat stew bestowed upon mankind. It is so popular that many Brazilians consider feijoada the national dish. This dish consists of black beans stewed with a variety of pork and beef cuts. There is always bacon or pork belly. Their rendered fat is used to brown the rest of the meats. Cubed pork shoulder is sautéed in the fat then added to a slow cooker. Then some cut of beef that is good for stewing is sautéed in the fat and added to the slow cooker. Beef shanks, beef ribs, even cubed chuck can be used. There is always some cut of smoked meat added such as a ham shank or smoked linguica sausage. Real authentic versions of feijoada will include chopped pigs ears and feet. They add a gelatinous component to the stew. Onions, garlic, chicken stock, and spices are added to the slow cooker. The entire process takes a good 10 hours to make.Feijoada is always served with steamed rice. Some people like their feijoada soupy, so more stock is added. The rice helps soak that up. The feijoada is garnished with green onions and cilantro. Orange wedges are always present on the side. Squeeze the juice over the feijoada. The acidity helps cut through the richness of the meats.
Servings: 8
Equipment
- slow cooker
Ingredients
- 12 oz bacon or pork belly cubed
- 1 1/2 lbs pork shoulder cubed
- 2 beef shanks or English cut short ribs
- 1 large smoked ham shank or 4 smoked linguica sausage
- 1 large white onion diced
- 1 head garlic peeled; cloves left whole
- 1 tbsp coriander seeds ground
- 8 bay leaves
- 2 cups chicken stock
- 1 tbsp vinegar
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1/2 lb dried black beans soaked overnight; or 2 cans of black beans
- 1/4 cup fresh oregano, thyme, and basil chopped
Garnish and Accompaniments
- oranges cut into wedges
- cilantro chopped
- green onions chopped
Instructions
- Heat up a large sauté pan over medium high heat. Sauté and render out the fat from the pork belly or bacon. Place in a slow cooker.
- Sauté the pork shoulder in the rendered pork fat. Season with salt and pepper. Place in the slow cooker.
- Sear the beef shanks or short ribs on all sides. Season with salt and pepper. Place in the slow cooker.
- Deglaze the sauté pan with the chicken stock. Scrape up the brown bits from the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon.
- Pour in the stock, along with the ham shank or smoked linguica, onions, garlic cloves, bay leaves, coriander, and vinegar. If using dried black beans, add them in now. If using canned, don’t add in yet. Place on the cover and set the slow cooker to low for 10 hours.
- At the 9th hour of cooking, take out any of the meat with bones and strip off the meat. Add back into the slow cooker. If using canned black beans, add them in. Place the cover back on and continue cooking for 1 more hour.
- Mix in the fresh herbs.
