Brazil

When we think about the foods that we experienced during our time in Brazil, drinks top the list as much as foods do.

The caipirinha is the ubiquitous drink of Brazil, made with cachaça, an alcohol distilled from sugar cane juice, with an alcohol content up to 96 proof. Although there is actually a Brazilian law from 2003 that describes the technical details of how to make the drink, we found that it varies widely depending on the bartender and the strength of the cachaça used. There are three main ingredients: lime, sugar, and cachaça, making it reminiscent of something between a truly traditional margarita and a mojito.

The law states that you cut a lime into 8 pieces, put it into a special wooden container with 2 tsp of refined caster sugar, crush with a wooden pestle (but not enough to cause the lime to be bitter). You then pour the mixture into a glass and fill it with crushed ice, then add 50mL of cachaça. There are variations that we never tried, made with rum, vodka, or even sake instead of cachaça. Jen tried a passionfruit one but we both agreed that the brightness and acidity of the traditional lime made the drink. Pretty much every meal that we ate out while in Brazil, we enjoyed with a refreshing caipirinha in hand.

Other drinks that made us take notice?

1. Agua de coco – fresh coconuts with a straw drilled in, to drink the water out directly – available in restaurants, on beaches (naturally), but even stands on the side of the road and in the mall!
   

   
2. Sucos – freshly-pressed juices of every imaginable fruit, since fruits are so plentiful here. Suco de laranja (orange), abacaxi (pineapple), manga (mango), maracujá (passionfruit), goïaba (guava), acerola (Barbados cherry), umbu (plum) … the list seemed to be never-ending.
3. Guaraná – Although other sodas are available here, this is the Brazilian equivalent of Coke in its popularity. Made with guarana, used in a lot of energy drinks, it has more stimulant effect than coffee.

As for foods, in addition to Italian influence with lots of pasta and pizza, a few dishes stood out for us.

Feijoada is a national food and experience – various slow cooked meats, served with black beans and rice, as well as with farofa (fried manioc flour). The slow-simmered meats fall apart and are deeply rich in flavor. Black beans and rice are actually served with a lot of different meals apart from the traditional feijoada as well.

Moquecas – de peixe (fish), de camarãoes (shrimp) – served with farofa as well. These are something between a braise and a stew, with their origin supposedly from African roots. The ones that we had were made with coconut milk and warm spices like cumin – absolutely delicious.

The two snacks that we saw everywhere were coxinhas de galhina (or frango) and pão de queijo. The coxinhas de frango are a fritter of dough stuffed with chicken and spices. The girls and Jen actually had this their very first day in Brazil; they had no idea what it was at the time, but it looked interesting enough to try!

The pão de queijo is a small roll made from cassava (tapioca) flour and cheese. The combination of those two ingredients makes the roll slightly tangy, with a unique texture – somewhat like a really eggy, elastic popover. Most of us weren’t too taken with them at first but grew to really like these. They are sometimes served with breakfasts, sometimes lunches, and available from bakeries.