On the Road - Maranhão (MASTER POST WITH LINKS)

Flavors of Brazil still has a large amount of material to publish on its recent voyage to São Luís - markets, restaurants, street food, etc. etc. etc. However, in an effort to avoid overkill on the topic, from here on we'll be presenting this material  mixed in with the usual Flavors of Brazil mix of recipes, ingredients and cultural tidbits.


For our readers who want to join Flavors of Brazil in exploring the food culture of the state of Maranhão in depth, we'll keep this posting updated with convenient links to all Maranhão articles, and we'll keep it at the top of the blog until the end of December. That way, everyone will have a quick reference guide to all Maranhão postings, each of which is only one click away.
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Part  1 - Introduction
Part  2 - Links to previous Flavors of Brazil articles on Maranhão
Part  3 - The Restaurants known as "bases"
Part  4 - The culture of reggae in Maranhão
Part  5 - Tarioba
Part  6 - Bacuri
Part  7 - Photos
Part  8 - São Luís, The New Orleans of Brazil
Part  9 - Fresh cupuaçu juice
Part 10 - Caldeirada Maranhense
Part 11 - RECIPE-Caldeirada Maranhense
Part 12 - Santo Antonio do Lopes Cachaça
Part 13 - Eating Sawfish (Peixe-Serra)
Part 14 - Last Thoughts

On the Road - Maranhão (Pt. 14) -Last Thoughts

This will be the last post on Flavor of Brazil's first series of "On the Road" posts. It's been a lot of fun in many ways, and so we hope, and expect that it won't be the last. The actual travelling, of course, is the real joy of this type of voyage of gastronomic discovery. But that's not to say that the pre-trip research and the post-trip preparation of articles for the blog aren't fun as well. Knowing that there will be articles to write for the blog sharpens all of one's senses while travelling, and focuses one's energy upon returning.

We hope that the readers of this blog have enjoyed learning a bit about the fascinating culture and cuisine of São Luís, Maranhão. It would appear that was the case, as the series' articles have received a larger than usual number of visits from our readers. Thank you.

We'll soon begin thinking of our next On the Road adventure, which is scheduled for New Years' week when we'll be visiting Rio de Janeiro to ring in 2011 and to search out interesting places, products and people for Flavors of Brazil.

On the Road - Maranhão (Pt. 13) - Eating Sawfish (Peixe Serra)

When in São Luís recently I had a meal at the central market, the Mercado da Praia Grande. In addition to stands selling fruits and vegetables, arts and crafts and local food products, the circular market boasts a number of small restaurants in its central core. The atrium of the market has a bandstand with live music, a number of plastic tables and chairs, and one can order a meal from any of the restaurant stalls. We visited about 2 pm on a very busy and lively Saturday afternoon, and the market was humming with activity. There was a local band playing forró, a traditional northeastern dance style of music, there was plenty of icy beer being served, and there was lots of food. Some people were there to drink beer and chat, some were there to dance, and some to eat a meal.

Among the many choices of restaurant, we picked one named Deco's at random, basically. On their menu they listed peixe serra, which in English means sawfish. I had never seen this fish on a menu before, and vaguely remembered the fish from picture books I had as a kid. Large, like a swordfish but with a serrated saw for a snout instead of a sword. I do like swordfish and so decided to try it. It came to the table in the form of steaks, fried, accompanied by rice, beans, spaghetti and a salad. It was delicious - the meat was flavorful and moist, and meaty. It reminded me very much of shark or swordfish. I thought it was a great meal, and the market a great experience.

It was only when I returned home to Fortaleza and did some research in preparation for this article that I realized, to my horror, that I'd committed an ecological crime by choosing saw fish for my lunch. I learned that the saw fish is, in fact, a type of ray, and that it is critically endangered. According to the IUCN (International Union for the Conservation of Nature) the species is in danger of imminent extinction, and the only legal international trade in this fish involves live specimens being sent to aquaria for conservation purposes. There is no legal fishery in any country, including Brazil. Yikes! Suddenly that delicious fish steak in São Luís' market gained a much more sinister flavor, and what I learned tainted my memory of the meal. Certainly, the first saw fish meal I'd ever eaten would also be my last.

There's a moral to this tale, I think. Each of us is responsible for the choices we make when we look at a menu. Overfishing is a world-wide problem, and by eating fish from non-sustainable fisheries, we all become a part of that problem. I certainly couldn't choke down another piece of saw fish, ever. Although readers of this blog may never encounter sawfish on a menu, they've all now been advised. Don't eat it. And learn which fish are ecologically sound to eat. A good place to start is here.

(UPDATE 22DEC: It appears that this fish I ate in São Luís wasn't, in fact, the endangered sawfish. Click on the comments to this posting to read more about this. However, what I wrote above about the consumer's responsibility in choosing what species of fish to eat is still valid.)

On the Road - Maranhão (Pt. 12) - Santo Antonio do Lopes Cachaça

When Flavors of Brazil was in São Luís, Maranhão on its recent gastronomic road trip, one of the obligatory stops was the local central food market - in Sao Luis it's called Mercado do Praia Grande. It's a typical Brazilian market with some stalls selling fruits and vegetables, others selling meat or fish, still others selling prepared foods or arts and crafts. In addition there are a number of small stands selling cooked foods and meals. Almost anywhere else in the world, a local market, I think, is the fastest way into the culture of a new city or region, and the Mercado do Praia Grande market was one of our first stops on this visit.

I'm frankly not much of a shopper for arts and crafts or other souvenirs when travelling, but I can't resist poking around food shops in the search of an ingredient, a sauce, or a beverage that I can cart home as a gustatory memory of my travels. In the Mercado do Praia Grande, I ran across a stall that was full of local and artisanally produced foodstuffs. And there I did my souvenir shopping. Besides jellies and preserves of obscure local fruits, I purchased two bottles to bring home with me. One survived the trip and the other didn't. My treasured bottle of hot chili pepper sauce made with coconut milk was confiscated by security at São Luís' airport. The Brazilian air system doesn't have the "no-liquid" rule that is the norm in North America and Europe, but there is a regulation I'd never heard of that bottles that don't have labels on them cannot be carried on board. My hot sauce had no label, so there it went, into the trash. My other bottle fortunately had a label so it made it all the way home.

The label on this bottle was a piece of white paper, printed on a computer and glued to the bottle that simply said the following:

Superior aguardente de cana (Superior sugar-cane liquor)

Santo Antonio do Lopes

Facricada e Engarrafada em: (Manufactured and bottled in:)

Santo Antonio do Lopes, Maranhão

What I had was a bottle of artisanally produced cachaça from a small village in the interior of the state of Maranhão. The bottle itself was a recycled beer bottle, and it was stopped with a cork. There was no information on the label as to the quantity or alcoholic strength of the liquid, nor the persons responsible for the cachaça. However, I knew that these small-batch distilled cachaças, made in the traditional way, are often good and sometimes excellent, so I bought one to bring home - at R$5 (USD $3) a bottle, it was not not a big financial risk.

Last night, I decided that it was time to give Santo Antonio do Lopes' cachaça a try. But before actually drinking it, I spent a bit of time on the internet to find out a bit more about the village of Santo Antonio, about which I knew precisely nothing. Using the usual online search tools, I discovered that it's a small community of about 15,000 souls in the central interior of Maranhão, that its altitude is 129 meters (425 feet) and that its annual per capita income is R$1247 (USD $736). That's right - average income is $736 per year.

The photos of Santo Antonio do Lopes I was able to find on the internet were few, and most showed the center of the city, which was surprisingly new, neat and tidy. Two photos, however, showed another side of life in the small villages of northern Brazil. The first showed a few locals holding up a snake they'd captured in Santo Antonio - it was a 5 meter (16 foot) sucuri (known in English as an anaconda). They seemd remarkably non-plussed in the photo, but I can't imagine it's an everyday occurence.

The other photo was from a newpaper and accompanied an article which described the capture of a local gang of bank robbers, who'd been robbing banks in the region for the past few years. The photo showed them after capture, along with their arsenal, which was extremely impressive. These were some serious, not to mention well-dressed bank-robbers and I, for one, am quite pleased they're no longer going about their business in Santo Antonio, or anywhere else for that matter.

As for the cachaça , it was delicious. There's something that the village of Santo Antonio does completely right, and that's distill cachaça. Obviously meant for drinking straight up, the cachaça had clearly been aged in wood for some time. Its color and woody notes gave that away. It was moderately smoky, smooth on the palate, and surprisingly light in feel. It was completely distilled, with no residual sweetness. Just the way moonshine should be.

This'll be a bottle to savor slowly, one sip at a time. It had better last, because if I want to replenish my supply, I'm sure I'll have to go back to Maranhão. When the time comes, maybe that will be the excuse I need to revisit São Luís.

On the Road - Maranhão (Pt. 11) - RECIPE Caldeirada Maranhense

One of Brazil's legion of seafood stews or chowders, caldeirada maranhense (Maranhão Chowder) is an iconic dish of traditional cuisine in the state of Maranhão. Click here to read about caldeirada as it's served in Restaurante Antigamente in São Luís.

This recipe, although it is not from Antigamente, is a typical version of the dish. Like recipes for many old-time, traditional dishes it should serve as a general guideline to the essential elements of the dish and need not be followed slavishly. The dish existed long before cooks bothered with precise measurements of ingredients and every cook has his or her own way of making it. So feel free to alter at will - Flavors of Brazil can guarantee it will be delicious. That is, unless you decide to add chocolate, or strawberries! Of course, then it would no longer be caldeirada maranhense.
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RECIPE Caldeirada Maranhense
Serves 2 (generously)

1/2 lb (250 gr) medium or large shrimps, peeled and deveined
1/2 lb (250 gr) firm white fish (halibut, sirigado or similar), cut into 1 inch (2 cm) cubes
juice of one large lime
salt to taste
3 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1 large ripe tomato, chopped
1 small onion, finely diced
1 small green or red bell pepper, seeded and diced
1 chili pepper (japaleno, serrano or other) seeded and finely diced
1/2 cup (125 ml) tomato sauce
1 cup (250 ml) water
2 medium potatoes, peeled, pre-boiled
2 hard-cooked eggs, peeled
1/2 cup (125 ml) thick coconut milk
1/4 cup Italian parsley, finely chopped
1/4 cup green onion, green part only, finely chopped
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Rinse the shrimp and fish in cold fresh water, then season with salt and lime juice. Reserve.

In a large saucepan, or clay cooking bowl, heat the olive oil then add the chopped tomato, onion, bell pepper and chili pepper. Cook for 5 minutes or until the vegetables are softened and the onions are transparent. Add the reserved shrimp and fish, the tomato sauce, water, potatoes and eggs and finally coconut milk. Mix thoroughly, bring quickly to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove from heat, mix in the parsley and green onion, then serve immediately accompanied with white rice.

Translated and adapted from Cozinha Regional Brasileira by Abril Editora

On the Road - Maranhão (Pt. 10) - Caldeirada Maranhense

In almost every coastal region of Brazil (and with over 4650 miles, or 7500 kilometers, or coastline there are a lot of coastal regions in this country) there is a traditional dish consisting of a variety of fish and/or seafood served in a spicy, soupy sauce. In the state of Bahia this dish is usually called moqueca and is highlighted by the presence of dendê palm oil in the sauce. The neighboring state of Espírito Santo is also famous for moquecas, but theirs don't include dendê. In Flavor of Brazil's home state of Ceará it's known as peixada, and in Maranhão the locals call their variation caldeirada, which has the same linguistic roots as our English word chowder.

Antigamente

During our recent visit to São Luís, Maranhão, we sampled a caldeirada Maranhense during a dinner in a charming restaurant called Antigamente, located on one of the principal squares of the historical district. Housed in a centuries-old two-story building that was once a home, the restaurant is located at street level, and at night literally spills out into the square with tables and chair covering the sidewalk in front of the restaurant and out onto the cobblestoned street in this pedestrian-only zone.  Owned by self-taught local chef Ana Lula, who started her career with a hot-dog cart on the same square where Antigamente sits, this restaurant has been open for more than 20 years and is one of the established stars of the São Luís food scene.

Antigamente's caldeirada is a rich, heady mixture of fish and shellfish and generously feeds two people. The sauce is tomato-based and is enriched with coconut milk. In addition to the seafood, the caldeirada included whole hard-boiled eggs (peeled) and chunks of potatoes. The stew is cooked, in traditional style, in a large unglazed-ceramic bowl, and brought to the table in the same bowl. It is served with plain white rice and pirão, which is an extra portion of the sauce thickened with manioc flour.

The dish was absolutely delicious and brimming full of seafood. When we ordered the dish our waitress had confirmed that one serving would be enough for two, but she was wrong - it would have easily sufficed for three or perhaps four persons. As wonderful as it was we were unable to finish it and had to leave a disconcerting amount of caldeirada in the bowl, even though we'd eaten sparingly of the rice and pirão.

Our next post here will feature a typical recipe for caldeirada maranhense. It's not Antigamente's recipe which is a proprietary secret of Ana Lula's, but I would guess that it's very similar.

On the Road - Maranhão (Pt. 9) - Fresh Cupuaçu Juice Taste Test

Back in July, Flavors of Brazil discussed a fruit from the northern reaches of the Brazil called cupuaçu. You can read those posts by clicking here and here and here. Although I was familiar with this cousin-of-chocolate through a variety of processed foods made from cupuaçu, like ice cream and frozen fruit pulp, I had never had the opportunity to taste the fresh fruit itself. Until the blog's recent trip to São Luis, Maranhão, that is.

Brazilian cities and towns are full of fresh fruit-juice bars serving freshly blended fruit juice along with a variety of sandwiches and snacks. The selection of available fruits is always large, and sometimes overwhelmingly enormous. Some of the fruits are universally available throughout the country and all year round - for example, mango or papaya or pineapple. Others are restricted by availability either by season or region. Many of the Amazonian fruits are available in southern Brazil, if available at all, only in the form of frozen fruit pulp blended with water.

So it was a pleasure to find that almost all the fruit-juice bars in São Luis listed many Amazonian fruits on their juice menus, and a quick question to the bar-boys confirmed that fresh fruit was used rather than frozen pulp. During a mid-afternoon walk along the main pedestrian street in downtown São Luis, in the 90F (32C) sun, it seemed like a prudent and pleasant thing to sample a glass of fruit juice. Having eaten cupuaçu ice cream in Fortaleza, and having really liked it, I decided to have a glass to compare the flavor of frozen juice and the fresh-made variety. The cost for a 300 ml glass was R$2.50, about USD $1.40.

When the bar-boy poured the juice from the blender into a glass, the thick, creamy texture of the juice was evident. It looked and poured like a milk-shake. The color was almost white, just tinged with light green. The aroma was sweet, and there was a very faint hint of acetone (nail-polish remover). Drunk through a straw, the drink first offered up a rich and almost buttery mouth-feel. It was immediately clear that this juice had a significant amount of vegetable fat. The initial taste was clearly tutti-frutti, the taste we associate with bubble gum, but that was followed with the taste of white chocolate. Given the close botanical relationship between cupuaçu and cacau that made perfect sense.

The drink was delicious and refreshing. I enjoyed it immensely. However, because of the high fat content of cupuaçu, you really couldn't call the juice thirst-quenching. The sensation was similar to that of eating ice cream - it cools you off but it doesn't deal with your thirst. I asked for, and received, a glass of ice water which topped of my taste-test perfectly.

It's unfortunate that fresh cupuaçu is extremely perishable and thus one needs to travel to northen Brazil to sample it. Or, rather, considering its high caloric value, it's probably fortunate for me that it's not available here in Fortaleza. I'd definitely be going back for more if it were!

On the Road - Maranhão (Pt. 8) - São Luís, The New Orleans of Brazil

As regular readers of Flavors of Brazil already know, this blog paid a recent visit to the northeastern Brazilian city of São Luís, capital of the state of Maranhão. The main purpose of the trip was gastronomic of course, as the name of this blog would indicate, but it was also to observe and experience all of the elements that create that city's unique atmosphere.

One of the things that struck me over and over again during my time in São Luís was how often I was reminded of the American city New Orleans. I can't say I know New Orleans intimately, and have only visited it as a tourist, but it's certainly clear to even the most unobservant visitor that New Orleans feels different that any other large American city. There's only one Big Easy and there's nothing else like it. São Luís has that same feel - it's Brazilian but it's not like other Brazilian cities. As there appears to be room for only one New Orleans in the USA, the cultural ambiance of São Luís isn't duplicated elsewhere in Brazil.

New Orleans

The resemblance between New Orleans and São Luís can be said to go back to the day of their respective foundings. Uniquely among all the cities in what was eventually to become Brazil, São Luís was founded not by Portuguese colonists, but by the French. Daniel de la Touche and 500 of his countrymen landed at the site of São Luís in 1612 to found the colony of France équinoxiale. They built a fort to established their new colony and named it after French king Louis IX (St. Louis). New Orleans was also founded by the French, just over a century later, in 1718. Although neither New Orleans nor São Luís would remain under French suzerainty in the long term, they both retain an affinity for French cultural which adds to their differentiation from other cities in their countries.

São Luís

New Orleans and São Luís share not only their European foundation, they are both intensely creole cities. The word creole can refer to many elements of society and culture, from race and ethnicity to language, music, art and cuisine. Here I'm taking it to mean a mixture of European and African roots synthesized to create something that is neither purely European nor African but a homogenous mixture of both. Both cities have a large black population, reminders of their past as centers of the African slave trade. The slave ships of the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries not only brought slaves from the coasts of Africa they brought the cultural belongings of these people - religion, typical food plants, language, rhythms. The Afro-American religions known as voudon or voodoo in New Orleans have their counterpart in São Luís' candomblé. African food plants, such as okra (quiabo in Portuguese), yams (inhame) play a prominent part in the gastronomy of these sister-cities, as does the liberal use of chili peppers to spice up dishes of shellfish and seafood. The creole cultural stew shared by New Orleans and São Luís also produced jazz in the USA and Brazilian reggae in São Luís - mixes of European musical styles with African rhythms and soul.

One other similarity that came to mind many times during Flavors of Brazil's visit to Maranhão was that both São Luís and New Orleans share an air of decadence and genteel decay. Part of this might be due to the climatic similarities of both cities, which are low-lying coastal towns, intensely hot and humid. There's a hint of must in the air at all times and a over-ripe lushness in the vegetation. Neither city is rich, and buildings of historical value range in state of preservation from recently-renovated to crumbling into nothingness. All things, including time, seem to move slower in these two towns. It's just too hot to rush.

In future posts here about São Luís, Flavors of Brazil will highlight more of what makes New Orleans and São Luís such intimate soul-sisters.

On the Road - Maranhão (Pt. 7) - photos

Some photographic impressions of São Luís, taken on this past weekends visit to that city. In the days to come Flavors of Brazil will be featuring the city of Sao Luis with more photos, videos, restaurant reviews and recipes. It is a fascinating and utterly unique city. Although only one hour from Fortaleza by air (400 air miles) it is worlds away historically, culturally and economically.

(Click on photos for larger image)

RECIPE - Coquina in Wine (Tarioba ao Vinho)

This recipe from the state of Maranhão features a mollusk known as tarioba in Portuguese and as giant false coquina in English. (Click here for more information on tarioba). It comes from Ana Lula, the chef and proprietor of a well-known restaurant/bar called Antigamente in the historic center of São Luís. Self-taught as a chef, Ana Lula has been in charge at Antigamente for more than 20 years, and this is one of her most popular dishes.

Although the recipe specifies tarioba, I'm sure that it could be made successfully with whatever species of fresh clam is available in your local market - whatever species, that is, with the exception of goeduck!
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RECIPE - Coquina in Wine (Tarioba ao Vinho)
Serves 4

2 dozen medium-sized tarioba or other clams, cleaned and washed, but unshelled
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 large tomato, peeled, seeded and chopped
1 medium onion, finely minced
1 clove garlic, finely minced
1 serrano or jalapeno chile, seeded and chopped, to taste
1/4 cup cilantro, finely chopped
1/4 cup green onion, green parts only, finely chopped
1 cup dry white wine
salt to taste
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In a large saucepan, heat half of the olive oil. Add the chopped tomato, onion and garlic. Cook for 1 or 2 minutes, stirring. Add the clams and cook for 5 more minutes, stirring from time to time. Add the chile, the cilanto and green onion. Stir. Add the wine. Bring quickly to a boil, reduce heat slightly, and let cook for 5 minutes. Taste for salt and season if required.

Remove from heat, add the remaining olive oil, stir quickly to mix, and serve.

Recipe translated and adapted from Cozinha Regional Brasileira by Abril Editora.

On the Road - Maranhão (Pt. 5) Tarioba

The coastline of Brazil's northeastern state of Maranhão sometimes resembles the sandy beaches of my state, Ceará, but more often is backed with muddy mangrove swamps and lagoons. That's bad news for tourists and beachlovers, but very good news indeed for lovers of shellfish, as these lagoons and swamps are havens for enormous numbers of crustaceans and mollusks of all types. On its upcoming visit to the capital of Maranhão, São Luís, Flavors of Brazil intends to sample as many of the local varieties of seafood as possible.

The cuisine of São Luís reflects its geographical position on an island which the open ocean on one side, and swamps and lagoons on the other. Traditional local cuisine is depends heavily by what is available in the waters that surround the city, and the city is renowned for shellfish preparations.

One of the most popular local shellfish is a clam-like creature called the tarioba. Known rather ungainlily in English as the giant false coquina, this mollusk has the beautiful scientific name of Iphigenia brasiliensis. I'm not clear as to why it's called a giant, as the average size is only 2.5 inches (6.5 cm). It can be found in Atlantic waters from the southern half of Florida to Brazil. However, it appears that as a food source, the tarioba is much more valued in Brazil than it is in the USA under the name giant coquina. A recipe search on the internet turned up only one recipe for coquina chowder, on the website of the Postal Workers of Southwest Florida. A similar search for tarioba recipes turned up dozens.

Flavors of Brazil loves clams and mussels, so when we're in São Luís, we'll be trying to track down the tarioba. On our return, we hope to fill you in on the gastronomic merits of this little "giant" bivalve.

On the Road - Maranhão (Pt.4) Reggae

Although Flavors of Brazil's upcoming trip to São Luís, Maranhão, will not-unexpectedly be focused on the gastronomy and food culture of that city, if you asked most Brazilians what's the thing they associate most with São Luís it wouldn't be food at all. Most of them would reply, "Reggae."

The association of São Luís with this style of music is so close and intense that the city is often called the Brazilian Jamaica. Reggae took root in Maranhão very early after its development in Jamaica, in the early 1970s, and hasn't loosened its grip on the city's musical culture in the three succeeding decades. At night the historic center of São Luís throbs with the off-beat accents of reggae coming from numerous small bars, and major Brazilian reggae groups either make their homes here, or begin and end their countrywide tours in Maranhão. The major Jamaican reggae bands also visit frequently, and their shows are received wildly.

When it comes to ingestible substances, however, reggae in São Luís, as elsewhere, is associated more with something that is smoked rather than something that is eaten or imbibed - marijuana, or maconha as it's known in Portuguese. But for those familiar with the effects of this intoxicant (Flavors of Brazil, of course, isn't) one of the most common side-effects of smoking marijuana is what Brazilians call lariquinha. Or as it's known in English - the munchies. So perhaps there is a Flavors of Brazil connection after all between the gastronomy of São Luís and reggae. It's that late-night snack that one craves after a night in a smoke-filled reggae bar.

Here's a YouTube video of Brazilian singer Alcione, a native of Maranhão and one of Brazil's most well-known singers singing a reggae number called Jamaica a São Luís. The accompanying visuals are a slideshow of views of this island city.



Alcione - Jamaica a São Luís

On the Road - Maranhão (Pt. 3) Bases

São Luís, founded in 1621, is one of Brazil's oldest and most historic cities. In many ways, it's also one of the country's most traditional and culturally conservative cities. All of these factors make it a particularly interesting destination for a food-crazed blog like Flavors of Brazil. All of the cultural influences which combine to create Brazilian cuisine are present in Maranhense cooking - African, European and indigenous.

In order to learn as much as possible about food traditions in Maranhão in a very short time, and to sample as many traditional dishes as possible in a short time, Flavors of Brazil will be "basing" itself in the traditional restaurants of São Luís' historic center during the blog's upcoming visit. "Basing" is the appropriate word, indeed, as "base" is the local word used to designate a small homestyle restaurant, headed by a female chef/owner, serving traditional local cuisine. Normally the restaurant is named after the chef - e.g. A Base de Lenoca, meaning "Lenoca's Base" and one of the most well-known of the city's bases.

Bases in São Luís began a long time ago when manual laborers were accustomed take their daily lunch in the kitchen of a local woman - over time, they began to say they were "based" in such-and-such's restaurant for lunch. "I'm based at Dona Maria's" or "He's based at Lenoca's". Eventually, the most successful of these in-home restaurants outgrew their space and the cook/proprietors began to open small restaurants in commercial districts - but continued to use the name their customers used when they cooked out of their own home. Some of these restaurants are still owned by the owners, but now, some have past on to daughters, nieces, or even grand-daughters.

Vintage Photo - Base Rabelo, São Luís

Dining at a base is an essential part of the São Luís gastronomic experience, and Flavors of Brazil will resport back next week on it's experiences in the bases of São Luís.

On the Road - Maranhão (Pt. 2) Links

In preparation for Flavor of Brazil's upcoming trip to São Luís, Maranhão (click here to read about it), I have been reviewing previous posts on this blog about the cuisine and culture of the state of Maranhão.

Here is a brief list of earlier posts on Flavors of Brazil which concern Maranhão, all of which are clickable links to the post listed:

Taste-test - Guaraná Jesus 
Red Rice (Arroz Vermelho)
RECIPE - Rice with Kale (Arroz de Couve)
RECIPE - Rice with Cuxá
RECIPE - Cuxá
INGREDIENTS - Vinagreira, a Versatile Hibiscus
Guaraná Jesus - Brazil's "Holy" Soft Drink

 

On the Road - Maranhão (Pt. 1)

When I began Flavors of Brazil a year or so ago, one of the things I hoped to do with this blog involved traveling to cities and regions of culinary interest in this vast country, and passing on what I saw, heard, smelled, touched and tasted while traveling to the readers of the blog. A more local, less extravagantly exuberant, perhaps less talented definitely less famous, Anthony Bourdain was how I pictured it. (Dream big, I always say)

Soon those plans will come to fruition, if all goes according to plans. A few weeks ago, I happened to note on the internet that the upstart Brazilian airlines Azul (owned by the Brazilian-American owner of JetBlue) was opening new routes from Fortaleza in December with tremendous promotional prices during the first couple of weeks of operation. One of the routes was from Fortaleza to São Luís, the capital of nearby Maranhão state. Only an hour's flight away, tickets were R$80 (USD $50) each way. At that price, there was no excuse for Flavors of Brazil not to experience the city and the unique cuisine of Maranhão. So, at the end of next week, Flavors of Brazil will zoom off to São Luís, then return a few days later loaded with photos, videos, stories and taste-memories to share here on the blog.

Maranhão is culturally unique among the states of Brazil in lots of ways, including traditional gastronomy. Early European exploration and colonization was not by the Portuguese but rather by the French, and São Luís was founded in 1621 by the French who named it after their saintly king St. Louis. Later the Portuguese expelled the French and then were expelled themselves by the Dutch. Finally, Portuguese forces conquered the state one last time from the Dutch and were able to retain possession. Because of transportation and communication difficulties with other Portuguese possessions in South America, Maranhão was an independent Portuguese colony until the late 18th century, and was not a part of newly-independent Brazil at the time of its formation in 1822. It joined Brazil two years later.

São Luís, Centro histórico

São Luís is one of the oldest cities in Brazil, and its historical center has been designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Narrow cobblestone streets, buildings faced with blue and white tiles, baroque palaces - all give São Luís a distinct architectural personality, making it look very European, and more specifically Portuguese.

Maranhão's demographics differ from neighboring states, with significant black and native Indian populations - though the large majority of the population is of mixed heritage. The state has its own distinct way of speaking, and the Portuguese of Maranhão is considered the closest of European Portuguese of any state of Brazil.

The state is among the poorest in Brazil, with the second-lowest per capita GDP in Brazil. In 2007, the latest year available statistically, Maranhão's GDP was only R$5,165. That's approximately USD $3000 per year.

In upcoming posts on Flavors of Brazil, we'll discuss the cuisine of this intriguing state in preparation for the visit. And when I'm back, readers of this blog will be the first to hear all about it.