{"id":17255,"date":"2020-08-25T08:44:15","date_gmt":"2020-08-25T08:44:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/devourlisbonfoodtours.com\/?p=3277"},"modified":"2022-02-28T15:08:35","modified_gmt":"2022-02-28T15:08:35","slug":"portuguese-sausage","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/dev.devourtours.com\/blog\/portuguese-sausage\/","title":{"rendered":"A Guide to Portuguese Sausages: 7 Varieties You Should Try & How to Eat Them"},"content":{"rendered":"\r\n
This blog post was originally posted on September 13, 2019 and was updated on August 25, 2020. <\/em><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n It\u2019s hard to find a meat dish in Portugal without at least one kind of enchido<\/em>, or traditional Portuguese sausage. You can find it in cozido<\/em><\/a>, feijoada<\/em> (bean stew) or even mixed in soups like caldo verde<\/a><\/em>.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Whether you like them raw, grilled, baked or fried, there are endless ways of eating Portuguese sausages. If you need a little introduction, this guide explains all the varieties you might find and the best way to eat them.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n One way to sample them all at once is to order a sausage board (t\u00e1bua de enchidos<\/em>). While you’re at it, why not try some Portuguese cheese<\/a>, too? It\u2019s a perfect match!<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n Chouri\u00e7o<\/em> is the most versatile Portuguese sausage and a staple petisco<\/em><\/a> in the local tascas<\/em><\/a>. Made with pork meat, it’s similar to Spanish chorizo, but has less paprika than its neighbor to the east, and tastes a bit smokier. Here in Portugal, chouri\u00e7o<\/em> goes hand in hand with dishes like caldo verde<\/em> soup and arroz de pato<\/em> (duck rice). <\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n You can have it cold, but the best way to eat it is in the form of flame-grilled chouri\u00e7o assado<\/em>. More than a mere dish, this is a full culinary experience! <\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n When you order chouri\u00e7o assado<\/em> at a restaurant, your server will bring the sausage to your table on a clay dish. Then, they\u2019ll light it up right in front of you. <\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Once it\u2019s on the table, you can cook the chouri\u00e7o<\/em> for as long as you like. For a perfect chouri\u00e7o assado<\/em>, the outside of the sausage should be slightly burned and crispy. <\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n While you\u2019re out and about, be sure to also try p\u00e3o com chouri\u00e7o<\/em> (chorizo bread), a popular Lisbon street food<\/a> that\u2019s as simple\u2014and as delicious\u2014as it gets.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Lingui\u00e7a<\/em> is a thinner version of chouri\u00e7o<\/em> with some heavier notes of paprika, chilies, and garlic. It has a similar flavor profile to chouri\u00e7o<\/em> thanks to the paprika, but is noticeably heavier on the garlic. <\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Usually fried, this Portuguese sausage is an essential ingredient in the francesinha<\/a><\/em>, Porto\u2019s signature meat sandwich.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Morcela<\/em> is a blood sausage, typically served in rural regions of Portugal like Guarda and Portalegre. <\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Besides pork meat, morcela<\/em> also has the animal’s blood, which gives it a different consistency (soft and crumbly) and a darker color compared to chouri\u00e7o<\/em> and lingui\u00e7a<\/em>. Seasonings include several spices such as cloves and cumin, which add to its strong flavor. <\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n And don\u2019t worry if you\u2019re a little squeamish\u2014you can still try this typical Portuguese sausage. In the region of Leiria, there’s a version of morcela<\/em> with rice\u2014morcela de arroz<\/em>\u2014which is made both with and without blood.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Insider’s Tip:<\/strong> You can eat morcela<\/em> as part of a dish like cozido<\/em> or feijoada<\/em>, but we like to eat it by itself straight from the oven and spread on a piece of bread.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n The name farinheira<\/em> comes from the word farinha<\/em>, meaning \u201cflour\u201d in Portuguese. As you might have guessed, flour is one of the main ingredients of this smoked sausage, along with pork fat, garlic, white wine, and massa de piment\u00e3o<\/em> (bell pepper paste). <\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Like morcela<\/em>, you can eat it with bread, but it’s also common to mix it with scrambled eggs (look for ovos mexidos com farinheira<\/em>). It has an orange-ish color and tastes sweeter than chouri\u00e7o<\/em>. <\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Once cooked, farinheira<\/em> turns into a delicious soft paste, perfect to spread on bread.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Most Portuguese sausages have always contained pork, but alheira<\/em> is an exception. <\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n In the 15th century, Portuguese Jews created<\/a> this sausage as a way to deceive the Inquisition. Since they couldn’t eat pork, they made sausages with other kinds of meat like poultry and game, adding bread for texture. Garlic (alho<\/em> in Portuguese) was also a common ingredient, hence the name alheira<\/em>. <\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n These days, you can find alheira <\/em>with or without pork. The most famous variety comes from the region of Mirandela in the north of Portugal. There, locals like to eat it grilled and accompanied with boiled potatoes. <\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n In the south, however, it’s more common to see fried alheira<\/em> served with french fries and a fried egg.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n If you order a Portuguese sausage board, it will probably include a bit of salpic\u00e3o<\/em>. <\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nWhether as an afternoon snack or an accompaniment to a full meal, sausages are an integral part of Portuguese cuisine.<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
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7 Essential Varieties of Portuguese Sausage to Try<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
1. Chouri\u00e7o<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
2. Lingui\u00e7a<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
3. Morcela<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
4. Farinheira<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
5. Alheira<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
6. Salpic\u00e3o<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n