Stacy Silva-Boutwell - Easy Portuguese Cookbook: Recipes to Bring Home the Flavors of Portugal

To my mother and father for giving me the strength and abilities I have today, my husband for lovingly being by my side, and my children, Lucas and Alaina, for whom I do everything.

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Interior and Designer: Mando Daniel

Art Producer: Karen Williams

Editor: Justin Hartung

Production Manager: Martin Worthington

Production Editor: Melissa Edeburn

courtesy of Alexandria Mauck Photography.

Photography 2020 Iain Bagwell. Food styling by Katelyn Hardwick.

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ISBN: Print 978-1-64611-644-7 | eBook 978-1-64611-645-4

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Contents

Bom dia!

There is an egg on my steak, my non-Portuguese (soon-to-be) husband said on our first date at a restaurant in Fall River, Massachusetts. Of course, I calmly replied. Later, he recounted this story at our wedding, and the guests chuckled. I grew up in a Portuguese neighborhood, so I sometimes forget this kind of food isnt the norm for everybody, but it is for me and most of the people who live around me. So Miguel, where my parents were born, is the largest of the nine Azorean islands off the coast of Portugal.

Just as my grandmother showed her, my mother taught me how to get the egg on that steak to look and taste just right. I learned to spoon hot oil over the egg instead of frying it on both sides. And I learned to marinate the steak before frying it in beer, garlic, and pepper.

In my lifetime, I have seen So Miguel transform, as most of Portugal has. When I was 11 years old, my grandmother, Vav Olinda, took me on a trip to her village, Povoao. At that time, moving about the island required us to drive treacherous mountain roads with no guardrails. There were only two telephones for the whole village, and my great-aunt, Titia Belmira, had a bathroom built into an outdoor structure, much like an outhouse.

Today, the infrastructure has been vastly improved, with a modern highway stretching across the island. Plumbing and communication have been modernized. The mineral-rich hot springs that were used to cook cozidoa traditional boiled dinner heated by the steam from those springsare now just as famous for their use as medicinal spa baths. The black-sand beaches where I would find lapas (limpets) are now dotted with tourists who are drawn to the photogenic volcanic ash. And the beautifully landscaped countryside covered in blue hydrangeas where I have enjoyed many picnics over the years now lures hikers and adventure enthusiasts from countries near and far. Portugal has been discovered.

On my blog, The Portuguese American Mom (thePAMom.com), I share my decades-long experience with Portuguese food with the goal of helping readers re-create my familys favorite recipes and discover dishes from some of the countrys culinary hot spots. This book collects some of those recipes and also offers plenty of new mouthwatering and updated options, all of which youll be able to make with ingredients you can find at your local market.

Back to Bife Portuguesa, that egg-topped steak dish that freaked out my husband. When I make it, I use the pimenta moida that my father grinds from fresh chile peppers each harvest and preserves in jars. You see, Portuguese food is a family affairin preparation, cooking, and dining.

Portuguese cuisine is a celebration of simplicity. It doesnt involve a lot of complicated techniques. If you work with fresh, high-quality, organic, and unprocessed ingredients, half the work is done for you. This chapter describes some of the fundamentals. With a few basic marinades and sauces, you can transform almost any protein into a main dish. Pair that protein with rice and potatoes, and youve created a meal found in almost any family-style Portuguese restaurant. For example, .

A True Melting Pot

Long before the United States became the worlds largest melting pot, Portuguese exploration and expansion resulted in a kingdom that epitomized the term. The Azorean Islands, lovingly referred to as As Ilhas, were an important stopping point for traders and sailors traveling to and from Lisbon, aptly nicknamed Immigrant City. Portugal has been absorbing new people, ideas, and foods from around the globe for centuries. Just recently, the prime minister, Antonio Costa, called for an increase of 75,000 new immigrants annually in an effort to stabilize the economy. This spirit goes both ways, as Portuguese migrants are found on every inhabited continent. But no matter where the Portuguese go, generations upon generations still consider Portugal home, and when they come back, they bring with them culinary influences that contribute to the ever-evolving flavors of Portugal.