African cuisine and customs mark Brazilian cuisine; know how to order in SP

When preparing a recipe, there may be influences from the past, hints of ancestry and references brought from other corners of the world. And the African culture is present when ingredients are mixed, heated, cooked, fried and sautéed to prepare a shrimp bobo, for example.

This Saturday, the 20th, Black Consciousness Day is celebrated in honor of quilombola leader Zumbi dos Palmares — a date that is conducive to investigating and valuing Afro-Brazilian culture.

Although the references used in Brazilian cuisine have different origins, it is possible to find traces of Africanity in dishes served in most parts of the country. Whether abundantly or more shyly, African ingredients are part of the Brazilian culinary tradition.

And it wasn’t just in the food that those from various parts of Africa left their mark. For Vilson Caetano, postdoctoral fellow in Anthropology and professor of gastronomy at the School of Nutrition at the Federal University of Bahia (UFBA), our eating habits, the way we set the table, the utensils we use and even the ritual of sharing food they come from the African peoples.

Despite the gastronomic contribution, this process did not occur harmoniously, says Max Jaques, chef and researcher at Instituto Brasil a Gosto. Much of this influence can come from the time when Brazil was a colony and enslaved Africans fulfilled the role of cooks in the houses of white families. “We appropriated African knowledge through a process of slavery,” says Jaques.

There are still those who needed cooking to understand themselves as a black person. Tanea Romão, who considers himself a “researcher of traditional ingredients, knowledge and flavors”, is also a chef. She says that it was only when she created the Kitanda restaurant, in 2009, that she understood herself as a black woman and began to investigate her own past. Romão, who was 42 years old at the time, wanted to understand his own ancestry.

After participating in a reality show, Romão had his restaurant renovated, now called Casa da Tanea, but the pandemic came and, since then, the chef has delivered lunchboxes and delicacies. The restaurant just reopened on October 30th.

Romão has been researching and deepening their knowledge of African cuisine since the restaurant opened. Today she is proud of her position. “Where do we usually see black in the kitchen? Washing dishes”, he says.

The Black Awareness Day exists to, above all, cause reflection, remember the past and exalt the struggles of the black people who live in Brazil. To set the date, see some dishes of Afro-Brazilian culture and find out where to eat them in São Paulo.

acarajé

Acarajé is an African dish rooted in Brazilian culture. The acarajé women from Bahia, women who sell the delicacy on trays, are considered Brazil’s cultural heritage. Acarajé is a black-eyed bean dumpling, fried in palm oil, an ingredient present in the main dishes of Afro-Brazilian cuisine.

On the African continent, the dish is known as akara and, specifically in northern Nigeria, it is called kosai. The term comes from the Yoruba, one of the largest ethnic groups on the continent, and means to eat fireballs—”akará” means fireballs and “jé” means “to eat”. The meaning is related to the story of Xangô and Iansã, orixás of Candomblé.

The delicacy can be served with or without pepper and is stuffed with caruru, vatapá and dried shrimp. At the time when Brazil was a colony, the acarajé was part of the merchandise of the female slaves, who went to the streets to sell things and take the money to their masters..

In downtown São Paulo, the Rota do Acarajé house is one of those that serve the delicacy. For R$29.80, you can taste the cowpea dumpling served on the plate, accompanied by vatapá, dry shrimp, caruru and salad.
Acarajé Route – r. Martim Francisco 529/530, Santa Cecília, central region. Instagram @rotadoacaraje. Delivery to tel. (11) 3666-8200, (11) 3668-6222 or (11) 2528-7304

Bobó

Bobó is of African origin and is also popular in Bahia. When it arrived in Brazil, the recipe was made with yams, until, influenced by the indigenous culture, it started to take cassava – that’s how it became the bobó. Also present in religious rituals, the dish is called ipeté in Candomblé and is the food of the orixá Oxum.

It can be made with tubers in general and even corn, as well as chicken, shrimp and jerky. But the most characteristic ingredient of bobó is palm oil. To accompany, coconut rice and farofa.

The Badejo restaurant, in the south of São Paulo, serves a shrimp bobó for R$172, in a portion that serves two people and has 400 grams of shrimp.
Whiting – av. Moema, 265, Moema, southern region, tel. (11) 5055-0238. Delivery to tel. (11) 5055-0238 or (11) 5052-6890

Caruru

​Another traditional dish in the Recôncavo Baiano is caruru, which came from Africa and is prepared with okra cut into small pieces — and which also uses palm oil. In September, the caruru is made in honor of the Ibejis, twin deities who protect children in Candomblé and who were syncretized to the saints Cosme and Damião.

For the cook Hanna Jasmineiro, from Projeto Tereza, the dish represents the festivity of the commemorations held in September. The Tereza Project’s weevil, as well as the festival’s, is accompanied by items such as vatapá, farofa and rice. The Ponto do Acarajé SP restaurant prepares an acarajé caruru, weighing 250 grams, for R$20.

Ponto do Acarajé SP – av. Sapopemba, 4.830, Vila Diva, eastern region. Delivery via iFood, Uber Eats or WhatsApp (11) 95373-8083

Tereza Project – Delivery only. Requests must be made through Instagram @projetotereza or through WhatsApp (11) 96156-5877. The menu of options and values ​​for pigweed will be available on Instagram from Saturday, the 20th. The dishes will be delivered, via delivery, on Saturday (27th) or Sunday (28th), but the reservation must be made by the night of Thursday, the 25th. Orders can be picked up in the Bela Vista neighborhood or delivered to the client’s home, subject to a fee

stew

The traditional dish can include palm oil, coconut milk, coriander and tomato. There are versions with beef, fish and even shrimp. The recipe also includes tubers, such as cassava or yam, and vegetables. Seasonings can change in each region of the country – in Espírito Santo, for example, annatto oil is used, which marks an indigenous tradition.

The dish is commonly served in Angola and, with variations, also in São Paulo. A tip is to go to Casa da Tanea, which on Fridays serves a fish moqueca made with coconut milk — the preparation includes a menu consisting of starter, main course, dessert and coffee, which costs R$63 per person. At the Consulado Baiano restaurant, you can find a shrimp moqueca (R$189.90), which is served with rice, fish mush and palm farofa —be careful, as the price can vary during delivery.
Tanea’s House – r. Catão, 893, Vila Romana, west region. Delivery to WhatsApp, at (11) 94288-8007
Bahia Consulate – av. Pedroso de Morais, 853, Pinheiros, tel. (11) 2611-0202. Delivery to iFood or Rappi

Mungunzá

Mungunzá is an Afro-Brazilian dish whose preparation is influenced by African cuisine. It can be served sweet or savory and, in this last version, it resembles the Cape Verdean chupada, prepared with corn and salt.

The word mungunzá comes from the quimbundo mu’kunza, which means boiled corn, but there are also those who say its origin came from the Quicongo—both are dialects spoken in parts of Angola.

The recipe is also known as hominy in southern and southeastern Brazil. For those who want to try a mungunzá in São Paulo, Casa da Tanea has two options: to eat in the place, the 200 gram jar costs R$ 15; the portion for the trip, in turn, is R$19. The mungunzá prepared there takes coconut milk and has versions with or without peanuts.
Tanea’s House – r. Catão, 893, Vila Romana, west region. Delivery by WhatsApp (11) 94288-8007

Vatapa

Vatapá, which was the target of controversy over the weekend when it appeared in a lunchbox tasted by Wagner Moura, is typical of Afro-Brazilian cuisine. The most common vatapá is made with chicken and also contains vinegar, garlic, onion and salt. Then comes coconut milk mixed with rice flour, shrimp, chili pepper, a delicacy brought from the African continent, and palm oil, another typical ingredient of the continent.

The recipe arrived in Brazil through the Iorubá, an ethnic-linguistic group from West Africa. It is not only in Bahia that the dish is traditional, but also in the northern states of the country, such as Amapá, Pará, Rondônia and Amazonas. What changes from one region to another are some ingredients, such as ginger, peanuts, cloves, cashew nuts, skim milk, olive oil. Vatapá protein can also change and there are variations with shrimp, fish, cod or chicken.

The Baiano de Dois restaurant, in Pinheiros, offers a version with shrimp, served with rice and yellow farofa for R$199.90. The value may vary on delivery.

Baiano de Dois – av. Pedroso de Morais, 853, Pinheiros, western region, tel. (11) 2611-0202. Delivery to iFood or Rappi