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Afro-Brazilian Cuisine: A Search for the Roots of Soul Food

In a recent blog post, Afroculinarian Michael Twitty describes how the book, The Masters and the Slaves (titled Casa-Grande & Senzala in Portuguese), by Gilberto Freyre, introduced him to the historical beginnings and sociological influences that produced a significant part of the food culture in Brazil through traditional Afro-Brazilian cuisine. Twitty also credits the book as what inspired him in his own search for the “roots of soul food” from his own ancestral past.

How a Brazilian Scholar Inspired My Search for the Roots of Soul Food

 

 

(The photo above is a Bahian dish called Vatapa. Photo from Afroculinaria)

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Day of the Baiana

Although any female from Bahia is Baiana (Bahian), the character of the Baiana has become a historical and cultural symbol of Bahia, Afro-Brazil, and the Black Woman. Typically, Baianas are women that dress in the traditional white blouse, skirt, head wrap, and colorful beads that represent the orixás of Candomblé. On the streets of Salvador, Baianas cook and sell their quitutes (tasty Afro-Bahian treats) such as acarajé, a fritter made of black-eye peas deep fried in dendê oil.

On November 25, the symbolic character of the Baiana is celebrated as part of the Mês da Consciência Negra (Black Consciousness Month). Celebrations take place with a mass at the church Nossa Senhora do Rosário dos Pretos (Our Lady of the Rosary of the Blacks), in Pelourinho, followed by a dance of samba de roda, and typical Bahian food.

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Moqueca de Peixe (Fish Stew)

Generally there are two kinds of moquecas: moqueca baiana from the state of Bahia in the northeast of Brazil, and moqueca capixaba from the state of Espírito Santo in the southeast of Brazil. The baiana version is made with dendê (palm) oil while the capixaba version uses olive oil instead. Both are cooked in a clay pot with the ingredients and stewed down in coconut milk to perfection.

This recipe is for a Bahian version. Try it this week when you’re feeling for something yummy, scrumptious, and satisfying. For a completely vegetarian version, try substituting the fish for bananas or cook with plantains instead.

2 lb (1 kg) snook, grouper, or other firm, non-flaking white fish, cut into steaks or large chunks
juice of 1 lime
salt and black pepper to taste
1 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
4 medium tomatoes
1 medium green bell pepper
1 medium red bell pepper
1/4 cup firmly-packed chopped cilantro
3 Tbsp dendê oil*
2 cups coconut milk
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Season the fish with the lime juice, olive oil and salt and pepper to taste. Marinade for 30 minutes. In a blender or food processor, blend the tomatoes, the onion, peppers and the cilantro until you have a homogeneous but still slightly chunky liquid. In a large frying pan, add the dendê oil, then add the mixture from the blender and cook for about 5 minutes, or until the sauce is hot and bubbling. Add the fish, covering the pieces with the tomato mixture and cook for one or two minutes. Stir in the coconut milk, bring to a simmer and cook for about 25 minutes, or until the fish is completely cooked and the sauce has thickened. Serve in a decorative earthenware bowl.  Garnish with cilantro leaves, a few rings of onions, and bell peppers if desired. Serve with white rice and a good, preferably home-style, hot sauce.
*(Red palm oil from a West African market can be substituted if it’s more accessible)
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A Cozinha Baiana (Bahian Cuisine)

Bahian cuisine has been strongly influenced by its rich African history. The cuisine that developed in the region is also popularly known as “oil food” based on the heavy use of dendê (palm) oil, which is extracted from the pulp of the fruit of the palm tree. Different types of hot peppers are another frequent ingredient in Bahia cookery, especially the Capsicum pepper and sauces made with red peppers. Some of the Bahian cuisine of African origin include delicacies such as bobó de camarão (shrimp), calf’s foot, carurus (made with okra, fish, shrimp, chicken, peanuts, cashew nuts, and seasoned with oil and peppers), vatapá (shrimp, fish or chicken with a flour base, seasoned with coconut milk and palm oil), moqueca (a seafood stew made with coconut milk, shown above), mingaus (porridge), pamonha (cake made of green corn, cinnamon, etc., rolled and cooked in cornhusks), canjica (corn mush), acaçá (corn meal and rice flour mush cooked in a banana leaf), acarajé (dish made with black-eye peas seasoned with salt and onion and fried in palm oil, then served with pepper sauce, dried shrimp, vatapá, tomatoes, and green pepper), ubobó (dish made from beans, bananas, manioc, and seasoned with palm oil), coconut rice, coconut beans, angu (mush made of corn meal), and aloá which is a lemonade drink mixed with honey and other ingredients.

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