Brazilian food

[Richard Kilgore]

I may be in Brazil later this year. Any ideas about books on Brazilian food and culture. I am particularly interested in those focused on the Amazon.

Thanks,

Richard

Edit - to thank the mod for the fix.

Edited July 9, 2003 by Richard Kilgore (log)

[torakris]

Not specifically Brazilian, but the Art of South American Cooking by Felipe Rojas-Lombardi is a wonderful book.

[Richard Kilgore]

Thanks, Kristin. I'll check it out. This is in English?

[Richard Kilgore]

I should mention that I am particularly interested in freshwater and saltwater fish cooking in the area of the mouth and first couple hundred miles of the Amazon River.

[Suzanne F]

Jessica Harris's Tasting Brazil is a lovely book, very well-written. But most of her seafood recipes are for shrimp, lobster, crab; not too many fish.

And yes, the Rojas-Lombardi is in English. It might be a little hard to find, though, since it came out about 20 years ago.

[Richard Kilgore]

Thanks Suzanne. I will be interested in what she says about the crustaceans, too.

[torakris]

I should mention that I am particularly interested in freshwater and saltwater fish cooking in the area of the mouth and first couple hundred miles of the Amazon River.

Though it has quite a few fish recipes, there don't seem to be any particular to that region.

It is an older book (mine is 1991) and I picked it up at a 1/2 price book store for $7.98 about 6 months ago.

[skchai]

In my opinion the best English-language Brazilian Cookbook is Margarette De Andrade's Brazilian Cookery: Traditional and Modern (Charles Tuttle, 1965), now long since out of print. Harris's book is also very good and, as usual for her, well-researched.

If you're looking for pictoral / travelogue books, you could try Cafe Brazil by Michael Batemen (food editor for Independent on Sunday) or the coffee-table sized Brazil: A Cook's Tour by Christopher Idone (author of the equally coffee table-sized Glorious American Food).

Alternatively, you could go with classic South / Latin American cookbooks such as The Book of Latin American Cooking by Elisabeth Lambert Ortiz and (as mentioned by Kristin) The Art of South American Cooking by the late Felipe Rojas-Lombardi. Both contain a substantial number of Brazilian recipes.

[Richard Kilgore]

Thanks Torakris and skchai. This is all very helpful information for my background research. I will try to track down the Margarette De Andrade and Jessica Harris books, as well as the Ortiz book (which has been on my list for a few months), for a start in order to get oriented. If the two travel/food books are recent, I may be able to take a look at one of the chain stores here.

I am going to Brazil to write a specific article, but may be able to generate a few others in the process. If anyone has any broader reading suggestions regarding the history, culture or politcs of Brazil, I would be interested.

[larrymorman]

Be sure and try pirana cooked with azaite de dende(palm oil) and fresh coconut milk with onions peppers and garlic, gingerly prepared in an iron cast skillet. Also there are many wonderful fruits and vegtables grown organicaly of course. Enjoy!!!!

[Elissa]

Tucunare, pirarucu, tambaqui, and mero (which weigh up to 200 pounds): Lo, but these are odd fish indeed, all on view as I recall at Belem's Ver-o-Peso market. I'd bet that Dona Ana Maria of La em Casa in Belem would share with you the lo-down on how she prepares Brasil's fresh and saltwater fish.

In the rivers we spied the odd pink dolphin. Sailing north from Recife to Venezuela, we were far out at sea when we passed where the Amazon's green waters emptied into the Atlantic's blue: but a mile from shore the sea was still river Green. Had the boat been glass-bottomed, surely we'd have experienced sealife as if from another planet. I remember wishing for one of those lush padded spherical James Bond submarines.

Edited July 31, 2003 by lissome (log)

[Richard Kilgore]

Thanks Larry, everyone needs a great pirana recipe.

Lissome, thanks for the info on Dona Ana Maria. I plan on spending a day in Belem. Any other places or people I should see while there, other than the museum? The fish you mentioned are a few of the dozen or two species I will be interested in. The piraruca looks like something out of a bad dream doesn't it?

[Elissa]

Last I was in Belem (1998) Dona Ana Maria had just opened the air conditioned El Otro, Av. Governador Jose Malcher 247, 091 223 1212. Hard to tell if she was more famous for her pato no tucupi, duck in a yellow sauce with manioc root juice and kale, or casquinha de caranqueijo: stuffed crab with coconut. Dont miss the manicoba either: bean and pork stew cooked for four days.

Might find interesting things at Miako, Belem's haut rooftop sushi place, if it's still there: Rua 1 de Marco 76. Circulo Militar, where you can sit outside, has the breeziest view of the river and made a fine filhote salgado: some strange river fish in a spicy coco sauce, Praca Frei Catan Brandao. O Teatro also made all the wild river monsters with regional herbs and sauces: Av. Presidente Vargas 882.

Amazon Star Tours 091 224 6244 was helpful to me booking travel in and around Belem. I'd imagine if you ask them about local river fish people and preps they'd have ideas. Could recommend a trip to Marajo and a stay at Fazenda Carmo Camara, 091 241 2202. Jurandir do Conceicau, who ran Pousada Bosque dos Aruas on Marajo, was an excellent cook. 91 223 0628 in Belem.

In Manaus, the Canto da Peixada, a casual outside place, was rightfully famous for its tambaqui, Rua Emilio Moreira 1677, Centro. Rubber Opera House and Natural History Museum aside, the rest of Manaus I'd skip

Edited July 30, 2003 by lissome (log)

[Richard Kilgore]

Thanks, Elissa, for the wonderfully detailed post. Apologies for the late response. For some reason I forgot to track this thread.

[IamAFoodie]

Richard,

You may be able to find a copy of the guidebook called "Eat Smart in Brazil" in your library. It's all about Brazilian food--history, regional dishes, recipes, etc. and also has an extensive menu reader.

[carioca]

Many of my family have never looked at a cookbook - All is based on word-to-mouth.

As a young and growing person, I never knew what we would have till the daily shopping was done. Some day meat, some day fish always fresh.

[Richard Kilgore]

IAmAFoodie -- thanks for the suggestion. I'll check it out.

carioca -- welcome to eGullet. Can you tell us more about the foods you ate growing up and how you prepare them?

Apologies to both of you for the very late response. All the threads I was subscribed to lost their subscriptions during a software upgrade last year.

[anil]

I may be in Brazil later this year.

How was your trip ? Where did you go ? What did you eat ?

[Richard Kilgore]

Anil - I didn't make the trip, so no tales to tell. Perhaps another time.