Lightened Up Feijoada Food

FEIJOADA

Steps:

• The day before you plan on cooking the feijoada, trim the excess fat of all the meats (except the bacon) and place them in a large bowl. Cover with cold water and refrigerate for 24 hours, changing the water 3-4 times, to get rid of the excess salt.
• Place the black beans in a separate bowl and cover with cold water. Let them soak overnight in the fridge.
• Drain the meat and beans. Place the soaked meat in a large Dutch oven or heavy bottomed pot and cover with enough water so they're all submerged. Cook, over medium-high heat, until boiling. Let them boil for 20 minutes, adding more water as needed. Drain and reserve.
• Combine the boiled carne seca, beans, bay leaves and orange in that same pot. Pour 2.5 quarts cold water and cook, over medium-high heat, until boiling. Lower the heat to a gentle simmer, cover and cook for 30 minutes.
• After 30 minutes, add the sausages. Cover and continue simmering, occasionally skimming the fat that rises to the top, until the meat is tender, about 1.5 to 2 hours.
• Remove the orange and bay leaves. Discard. Remove the meat and sausage and slice into smaller pieces. Reserve.
• Heat the oil in a sauté pan, over medium heat. Add the bacon and cook until no longer raw but not yet golden brown, about 3-5 minutes. Add the onion and garlic and sauté until softened and fragrant, about 2-3 minutes. Add a ladleful of the cooked beans, without liquid, and stir to combine. Using a fork, mash the beans, to release their starch.
• Pour that mixture into the feijoada pot and cook over medium heat, uncovered, for 10-15 minutes or until thickened. If too thick, add more water as needed. Taste and season with salt and pepper.
• Return the meats back to the pot.
• Serve with white rice, collard greens, fried bananas, farofa, vinaigrette salsa and orange slices!

LIGHTENED-UP SUPER NACHOS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Arrange the tortilla chips on a rimmed baking sheet. Top with the black beans, tomato and scallions. Bake until warmed through, 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile, make the cheese sauce and prepare the jackfruit.
• For the low-fat cheese sauce: Combine the flour, salt, onion powder and pepper in a medium saucepan over medium heat and cook, stirring constantly, until the flour toasts, about 2 minutes. Slowly whisk in the milk. Add the cream cheese and whisk vigorously until the mixture is smooth and even. Bring the mixture to a low boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer, stirring constantly, until it is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, about 4 minutes. Remove the saucepan from the heat and stir in the cheese until it melts.
• For the jackfruit: Put the olive oil and jackfruit in a medium skillet over medium heat. Stir in the chili powder and garlic salt and cook for 2 minutes. Stir in the salsa and cook until warmed through, 2 to 3 minutes.
• To serve: Stir the salsa into the cheese sauce. Top the nachos with the jackfruit. Pour the salsa-and-cheese-sauce mixture over the nachos. Top the nachos with the lettuce and guacamole. Dollop on the sour cream or put it in a squeeze bottle and squeeze it in a zig-zag pattern all over the nachos.

FEIJOADA (BRAZILIAN BLACK BEAN STEW)

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a large pot or Dutch oven. Add 3/4 cup of chopped onion, green onions, and garlic; cook and stir until softened, about 4 minutes. Pour in the soaked beans and fill with enough water to cover beans by 3 inches. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer uncovered for 2 hours, or until tender.
• While beans are cooking, place ham hocks in smaller pot with 1/4 cup of the chopped onion. Cover with water and simmer, until meat pulls off of the bone easily, about 1 hour. Drain and add to the beans.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Place ham, bacon, and remaining onion in a baking dish. Bake 15 minutes or until mixture is crispy.
• Drain the bacon and ham mixture, and add to the beans. Season with bay leaves, coriander, salt and pepper. Simmer uncovered 30 minutes more. Stir in chopped cilantro and parsley just before serving.

FEIJOADA COMPLETA

Steps:

• Soak the smoked and salted meats in a large pan overnight. The next morning, drain, rinse, and soak again until ready to cook. In a large heavy stock pot, heat the oil over medium low heat. Add the onions and cook, stirring occasionally, for 8 to 10 minutes, or until they are softened and translucent. Add the garlic and cook for 3 minutes more, until the aroma is released. Tie the bay leaves, parsley, and thyme together to make a bouquet garni, and add it to the pan, along with the dried soaked meats, fresh meats, and the water. Bring slowly to a boil over medium heat, then reduce the heat and skim the fats and scum from the top. Cook for 1 hour, then add the beans, return to a simmer, and again skim any scum from the top. Simmer for another hour. As each piece of meat becomes fork tender, remove it, starting with the beef chuck and finishing with the salted meats. Place the cooked meats on a platter, cover with aluminum foil, and keep warm in a low oven. Remove all the meat and skin from the pigs trotter and dice it. Discard the bone and add the meat to the beans. Cut the carne seca into 1/2 inch dice and also return it to the beans. Continue cooking the beans for 20 minutes more, or until tender. Remove any fat or gristle from the remaining cuts of meat, then cube or slice it into bitesized pieces. Arrange the sliced chorizo, pork shoulder, bacon, fresh pork, and beef on one side of a large heated platter and place the beans on the other side (if using the smoked tongue, traditionally it should be placed in the center of the platter). Serve hot, accompanied by Green Mineira Style, cooked white rice and orange segments.

LIGHTENED-UP FEIJOADA

Steps:

• Soak the beans in cold water 8 hours or up to overnight.Drain the beans, rinse and set aside. Heat a large soup pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the chorizo and bacon and cook until browned, 5 to 7 minutes. Add the bay leaves, garlic and onions and cook until the onions are tender, an additional 10 minutes. Add the beans and 5 cups of water; bring to a simmer and cook, partially covered, until the beans are tender and most of the water is absorbed, 2 1/2 hours. Add 1/2 teaspoon salt and taste for additional seasoning. Serve with rice and orange slices.Source: foodnetwork.comRecipe formatted with the Cook'n Recipe Software from DVO Enterprises.

CHEF JOHN'S BRAZILIAN FEIJOADA

Steps:

• Place black beans into a large bowl, cover with water, and soak overnight. Drain beans.
• Place drained beans in heavy pot with 2 quarts of water. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to low and simmer until beans are cooked but very firm, 1 1/2 to 2 hours.
• Stir chopped dried beef into pot with beans. Add bay leaf and pork chop bones, stir and simmer on low heat for another 2 hours.
• Cook bacon in large dry skillet over medium heat until not quite crisp. Add linguica and Italian sausage links; cook, stirring often, until meats are brown, about 10 minutes. Remove browned meat, reserving accumulated fat in skillet. Slice Italian sausage into chunks.
• Brown onion and garlic in reserved drippings in the skillet over medium heat until onion is translucent and soft, stirring to deglaze the pan, about 5 minutes. Season with cumin, coriander, cayenne pepper, salt, and black pepper; add 1 tablespoon chopped Italian parsley. Cook and stir until parsley has wilted, about 2 minutes.
• Stir onion-spice mixture into pot with beans. Add cooked bacon, linguica sausage, Italian sausage, and pork chop chunks. Pour in enough water so meats are just covered with liquid. Increase heat to medium-high and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook uncovered until beans are very soft and liquid begins to thicken, about 1 hour, stirring occasionally. If beans begin to look dry, add more water.
• Heat olive oil in a skillet. Add bread crumbs and cook and stir until crumbs are toasted. Stir in 2 tablespoons Italian parsley and grated orange zest.
• When beans are cooked, ladle stew into bowls and top with the toasted crumb mixture.