Food, glorious food

So, I’ve been here for nearly a month now and only three posts. Some people, including my mum, have already told me off! But I’ve been busy... Sunbathing, resting, watching films, playing music, going to restaurants. OK, OK, I’ll stop teasing you. I’ve been gaining weight as well, if that’s going to make you feel any better. One of the reasons is that the food in Brazil is veeeery good. It’s not just the variety of dishes from all over the world (rumour has it that they make better pizzas here than in Italy, but I’ve yet to confirm that), it’s the quality. I don’t have to tell you how fresh and sweet the fruits are here as you would have guessed. Bananas ripen in front of your eyes, mangoes lure you with their sweet’n’sour smell, pomegranates flash their deep-red insides as you stroll in your (or your boyfriend’s grandmother’s) garden. The other day I tried a fresh guava (goiaba), for the first time in my life, and was surprised to discover how creamy it is. Sensational.

Fruits aside, the real deal is the meat. And I don’t mean your everyday chicken, as they don’t even include it in the meat category here, I mean beef. Brazilian and Argentinian beef is known worldwide for its quality which it owes to the way the cows are bred. First of all, milking cows and beef-giving cows are treated as two different species, unlike in some European countries, and the ones used for meet are raised free-range. I’m not sure if they are happy cows, but since they graze on the country’s flat pastures, they do not develop strong muscles they would otherwise if they grazed on the hills. This was the explanation I got for the meat’s delicate texture and special flavour. They should send the English cattle breeders here to teach them a lesson. And let the Poles copy.

Anyway, one of the traditional beef dishes served in restaurants is milanesa (bife à milanesa), which is basically meat fried in breadcrumbs, accompanied by (also fried) bacon, pineapple, banana, some green veggies (in the version below it’s broccoli), as well as chips and rice. Looks heavy, but it’s absolutely delicious.

Now just so that you don’t get the wrong impression – this was a serving for two...

The meal - courtesy of my boyfriend ;) @ Sujinho, Rua Consolação, São Paulo.