Cuisine of Portugal
Portuguese cuisine is one of the most famous and recognizable in the world. Its specialties include fresh seafood, a variety of meat dishes, olive oil, cheeses, pastries and sweets. Portuguese cuisine is rich in flavors and variety of regional dishes.
The main ingredients that are used in Portuguese cuisine include:
1. Seafood: Due to its coastline and location, Portugal is known for its fresh and varied seafood. Crabs, shrimp, lobsters, octopus and fish are often included in Portuguese dishes such as caldeirada (fish soup), grilled fish and grilled seafood.
2. Meat: Portuguese cuisine is known for meat dishes such as cabido (beef stewed in red wine and spices), francesinha (pork with olives and sausages) and piri-piri (spicy chicken meat). Also popular are sausages and hams such as chorizu (pork sausage), morcella (dried and cured pork) and paiu (air-dried ham).
3. Rice and pasta: Rice plays an important role in Portuguese cuisine, especially in dishes such as arroz de marishko (sea rice), arroz de pato (rice with duck) and arroz de tomate (tomato rice). Pasta is also popular, and includes dishes such as masada (thin seafood pasta) and seafood spaghetti.
4. Cheeses: Portugal is known for its variety of cheeses, including cervelado (soft cheese with white mold), acheira (goat milk cheese), and self-cut (sheep rind cheese).
5. Olive Oil: Olive oil is an integral part of Portuguese cuisine. It is used as a base cooking oil and seasoning in many dishes. Portugal produces high quality olive oil and it is an important ingredient in local recipes.
6. Pastries and sweets: In Portuguese cuisine, great attention is paid to pastries and sweets. A famous Portuguese dessert is pastel de nata, a pastry filled with vanilla cream. Also popular are pudim de ovo (egg pudding), arroz de leche (rice pudding), arroz de milk (milk rice), and pudim molot (poppy seed pudding). In addition, Portugal has a variety of traditional cookies and pies such as bolo de aroz (rice cake), bolo rey (royal pie) and massapao (macaroons).
7. Wine: Portugal is famous for its wines. It is one of the oldest wine regions in the world. Vineyards are located throughout the country and Portuguese wine is known for its variety and quality. Notable Portuguese wines include porto (port wine), Madeira (Madeira), Vino Verde (green wine) and Enca Suero (red wine).
8. Coffee: Coffee has a special place in Portuguese culture. The Portuguese enjoy their coffee drinks, including espresso.