Brazilian Food And Drink

Brazilians have some of the loveliest foods and drinks fueling their happy country.

They often start with a breakfast of what might be the best cheese bread in the world, the iconic pãos de queijos, often gluten-free due to the use of cassava or tapioca flours, providing a light, substantial texture resembling the French gougères, though most agree these are even better.

Pasteis are Brazil’s take on empanadas and are a popular street food offered throughout the country. Pasteis are generally lighter than a typical empanada and the rectangular shape plays host to ground beef, a myriad of cheeses or hearts of palm for those looking for something vegetarian.

The country also loves its stews, such as the slow-cooked moqueca bahiana, a fish stew with tomatoes, palm oil and coconut milk lovingly prepared in terra cotta. Brazil’s national dish is feijoada, a bean stew cooked with tons of meat and served over rice with shredded kale and orange slices.

While I could go on about more dishes, locals wouldn’t be happy without a little drink, whether it’s Brazilian coffee, a sugary acai shake or a Guaraná soda with twice the caffeine content of coffee, offered most famously by the brands Antarctica and Kuat.

For alcoholic offerings, try a Chopp, a draft beer offering that uses an alternative tap method, producing a Guinness-like head on a simple lager. And then, of course, there’s the caipirinha, Brazil’s national cocktail, made with cachaça, sugar and lime.