About Brazilian Foods

Brazil is known for its great parties, and we know thatevery great party calls for great food. While Christmasand New Years’ festivities are centered with big meals,even the street food in Brazil is remarkably diverse.Decked are some common yet mouthwatering Brazilianfoods from the different regions of the country that willmake you want to visit and enjoy them!

• Acai

Açaí na tigela is a typical Brazilian dish made of frozen andmashed acai palm fruit.

It is served as a smoothie in a bowl or glass, and is commonly toppedwith granola and banana, and then mixed with other fruitsand guarana syrup.

Acai is popular all over Brazil, but mainly in Para, Rio deJaneiro, Florianopolis, Sao Paulo, Goias and along the northeasterncoast, where it is sold in kiosks lining the beach promenade andin juice bars throughout the cities.

• Coxinha Coxinha is a popular food in Brazil consisting of chopped or

shredded chicken meat, covered in dough, molded into a shaperesembling a chicken leg, battered and fried.

It is a popular street food in Brazil, but is also commonly on restaurantmenus.

The crispy fried exterior surrounds a layer of soft dough filled withshredded seasoned chicken, and sometimes cheese as well.

They are a safe bet for someone who is a little hesitant to typicalBrazilian meats.

• Acaraje

Acaraje is a dish made from black-eyed peas, deep-fried to a crispgolden brown color and then deep-fried in dende.

It is found in West African and Brazilian cuisines. The dish istraditionally encountered in Brazil's northeastern state of Bahia,especially in the city of Salvador.

Acarajé serves as both a religious offering to the gods inthe Candomblé religion and as street food.

They are then split in half and stuff with caruru and vatapá —thick,

spicy pastes made with okra, cassava, and cashews.

• Cachaça

Caipirinha is Brazil's national cocktail, made with cachaça, sugarand lime.

Cachaça, also known as pinga, caninha, or any one of a multitude oftraditional names, is Brazil's most common distilled alcoholicbeverage.

Both rum and cachaça are made from sugarcane-derived products, incachaça the alcohol results from the fermentation of fresh sugarcanejuice that is then distilled, while rum is usually made from refinery by-products such as molasses.

• Churrasco

churrasco is the term for a barbecue which originated in southernBrazil.

It uses a variety of meats, pork, sausage and chicken which may becooked on a purpose-built "churrasqueira", a barbecue grill, often withsupports for spits or skewers.

"churrasqueiras" are similar to those used to prepare the Argentine,Chilean, Paraguayan and Uruguayan asado, with a grill support, butmany Brazilian "churrasqueiras" do not have grills, only the skewersabove the embers.

The meat may alternatively be cooked on large metal or wood skewersresting on a support or stuck into the ground and roasted with theembers of charcoal.

• Pastels

Pastels are world famous dish, bring enjoyed differently all over theworld.

In Brazil, Pastels are flaky pastry fried envelopes, stuffed with differentfillings including cheese, meats, vegetables, or can also be filled withsweet jams and relished as a desert.

It is traditionally sold on the streets or in fast-food shops knownas pastel arias.

It is popularly said to have originated when Japanese immigrantsadapted Chinese fried wontons to sell as snacks at weekly streetmarkets.

• Prawn Skewer

Fresh prawns on a skewer is the number one food to bespotted on the beaches in Brazil, where the vendorswander up and down sell giant grilled prawns impaledon giant wooden skewers.

• Quindim

Quindim is a popular Brazilian baked dessert, madechiefly from sugar, egg yolks, and ground coconut.

It is a custard and usually presented as an upturned cupwith a glistening surface and intensely yellow color.

The mixture can also be made in a large ring mold in whichcase it is called a "quindão" and served in slices.