Beans from Ipanema

I nearly never end up at home for New Year. I'm not sure why, but whether I'm visiting family or abroad, in the dead zone between Christmas and New Year I face enduring those the planning conversations, feeling utterly irrelevant. Sometimes, when I'm sipping a snowball upcountry, watching Jools Holland's Hootenanny I wish I was out in the streets of Weymouth. This year, though, there was no envy, because this year, I was in Rio de Janeiro!
This year was fireworks and dance music, and thousands of white clad people grooving in the waves. My first new experience for the year was the Capriana, a much loved Brazilian cocktail. You've got to watch them though, they sneak up on you. This zingy mix of sugar, ice, lime juice and a lot of cachaca (local firewater, made from sugar cane), doesn't taste as strong as it really is. Here's a suggestion of a recipe:
1 part sugar
3 parts cachaca
1 part lime juice
Ice cubes
A couple of eighths of lime (if you want to impress)

Anyway this is a food blog, so I want to focus on a my gastronomic experiences of this beautiful city. In amongst the sunny, green streets there are some real gems of restaurants, where a hot westerner can escape the relentless sun.

Brazil, for me, differs in three crucial areas. Beer, beans and beef. The first is simple to explain. I love variety in beer, and accord similar respect to lagers, bitters, ales and porters. Brazilians too capture the whole range of possibility; they have nutty, nutmegy, spiced beer, or they have the chopp, lager-like draught, beer that is sold ice cold on the beach.

Next are the beans (I believe these are typically black turtle beans and I have found them easily in supermarkets). These beans are hailed as the saviour staple for centuries of poor Brazilians and make an appearance in many dishes. They are served simply boiled with a little seasoning, as a side. They are the foundation of thick meaty broths, heavy with garlic, bay and flavoursome stocks. These beans are rightly adored and cherished. They are an intriguing deep purple, almost black, and have a thick, mouth-filling texture, that coats your tongue. Comparisons could be made to proper mushy peas, broad beans or even baked beans. The definitive moment in my gastronomic experience of Rio was when I was served these beans, pureed into a smooth paste, with kale, pork steaks and eggs baked into them. It all arrived in a vast frying pan, designed for two or three to share, each ingredient occupying its own space. It reminded me of those nutrition charts you were shown in lower school biology. These your protein, theres your fats, theres your starch, oo and look, just peeking out from underneath that pork steak, a vitamin! The dish was everything a hard working farm worker could need cooked in the same pan and the beans gave it a thick wholesomeness for filling and comfort.

For this final section vegetarians might want to look away. Now I have come to Brazilian beef. South America is famous for its vast cattle ranches, in in Brazil this has led to a new breed of buffet. I talk of the mighty Churrasco. Here you are seated and waiters hustle around with five foot long kebabs of beef of all different cuts, and a few other animals as well. At a request the waiters will carve you a portion of meat, straight onto your plate. If the restaurant is good, the beef will be tender, incredibly juicy, and beautifully pink. Off to one side, there will also be a salad bar. Eating here is a real talent, because there is a colossal amount of meat to choose from, and some waiters get upset if you refuse their cut. What is sure is that it is a fantastic experience, very communal and you will not leave hungry. Perhaps this is why these restaurants are beginning to sweep the states, ever growing in popularity.

In retrospect, I think Brazil has a lot to teach Europe. In civilization where the media agonizes over the decline of the family evening meal, around the table, Brazil stands as a reminder of how communal meals could be. There dishes are mostly designed to be shared, and restaurants cater for huge parties. Because of this the food is simplified. The standard and taste remains superb, but fiddling over individual dishes is abandoned, achieving the best of both worlds. For wholesome, meaty, filling food, to enjoy in good company, minutes from spectacular beaches and forests, I recommend that you give Rio a visit.