Cupim Goes Upmarket - Alex Atala's Cupim with Pequi-flavored Potato Puree

The last couple of posts here at Flavors of Brazil have dealt with a cut of beef known as cupim in Portuguese - the cut which, in fact, comes from the hump of the humped Brazilian cattle known as zebu. Long considered one of the least desirable cuts of beef, due primarily to its high concentration of fat, cupim has been rediscovered by some of the most talented, and more adventurous, chefs of the Brazilian culinary world and is now sometimes to be found listed not only on the blackboard of neighborhood lunch spots, but in the multi-page menus of some of the most chic restaurants in the country.

Probably the brightest star today in contemporary Brazilian cuisine is Alex Atala, chef-owner of D.O.M.  Restaurant in São Paulo. The restaurant itself was named the 18th best restaurant in the world in this year's World Restaurant Awards. One of his signature dishes is an unusual and controversial treatment of cupim, which he serves with a potato puree flavored with oil of pequi, a Brazilian fruit with a strong love-it-or-hate-it flavor. (Click here to read more about the pequi.) He transforms cupim by his unusual cooking technique in this dish. The meat is cut into small perfect cubes, then cooked in a pressure cooker over very low heat for a long period of time. The end result are caramelized cubes of meat that are lean and so tender that the dish is served without a knife. All that is needed to cut the meat is a spoon. The cubes are served in just a bit of the broth which results from the cooking process with the pequi-enhanced potato puree alongside.

Recently the food section of the Estado de S. Paulo newspaper asked a number of food critics and other assorted foodies to taste and rate this unusual dish. This is what some of them had to say (my translation from the original Portuguese):


Anna Angotti and Damien Takahashi (journalists): We were apprehensive. This would be the third time we had eaten the cupim dish that was already a classic of Alex Atala's. We feared apathy, the palate already accustomed to to the dish, unable to be surprised. After all, we were veterans, we knew all the details, all the tricks of the dish. First would come the aroma of pequi, invading our olfactory senses without asking permission. Only later would it be tamed by the cupim broth, poured onto the plate at the last minute. We could repeat, along with the maitre d', the reason for the absence of a knife (the meat is so tender it can be eaten with a spoon). We were already expecting the contrast between the fresh, lightly acidic puree and the unctuous and intense cupim. The clear, light broth. We knew all that. What we didn't know is that we'd again be enraptured, just like the first time.

Braulio Pasmanik (businessman and gourmet): I hate pequi! I put that phrase in the Google search window and found that along with me, 3200 other people share that opinion.Taking into consideration that pequi isn't fundamental to gastronomy, that's an impressive number! The closest taste that pequi, brings to mind, for me, is bubble gum. And if cupim is already a greasy and tasteless meat, imagine it served with bubble gum!

You can see that this dish is one people tend not to be neutral about. But I guess that's what makes it such an exciting dish - it evokes all kinds of strong reactions, positive and negative. I've not tried it, but if and when I do, Flavors of Brazil will get the first review, I promise.

(after the jump there is a sampling of more critiques of Atala's dish that appeared in the Estado de S.Paulo article)

Luiz Horta (Assistant Editor, Paladar): A contemporary classic. A re-invention of foie gras without the foie. A magnificent texture, delicate intervention of pequi (a very dangerous flavor, one I normally detest). To reach a balance in all this is complicated. To succeed, and - on top of all - enchant, is something notable.

Neide Rigo (Nutritionist and author of the blog Come-Se): D.O.M. Restaurant's cupim cooked at low temperature resulted in an incredible texture for such a fibrous cut of meat. The fibers were tender, to the point that they could be cut with a spoon. The reduction that caramelized the exterior of the cubes has a strong meaty flavor, overly toasted, that fights with the pequi puree, also very strong-flavored. I adore pequi but both it and the cupim have a lot of fat and a strong presence. It was an ugly fight, and it wasn't my fault.

Luiz Americo Camargo, Supplements Editor, Estado de S. Paulo): Cupim is, for me, the Kobe beef of Brazil, the best cut from zebu cattle, even though doctors and nutritionists demonize it. Here is has a modern presentation, cutable with a spoon and with a exceptional reduction - potent without being indelicate. The accompaniment was not so felicitous. The pequi overpowered to such a degree that the equilibrium with the potato puree was lost. Could it be that the chef wasn't in the house?

RECIPE - Rice with Pequi (Arroz com Pequi)

In a previous post, I discussed the intriguing and dangerous fruit called pequi. In that post, I mentioned that because of it's "off-flavors" which are often described as "cheesy", "sweaty" or "barnyard" pequi is commonly served as part of a savory dish, rather than as a traditional sweeter fruit.

Although it's unlikely that anyone outside Brazil will find a supply of pequi in their local supermarket, I thought it would be interesting to include here on Flavors of Brazil one of the most well-known and well-loved recipes for pequi - Rice with Pequi. It comes from the Brazilian state of Goiás, where it is considered the one dish that most typifies the cuisine of that state.

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 RECIPE - Rice with Pequi (Arroz com Pequi)
 Serves 6

1 cup neutral vegetable oil (canola, soya, peanut)
2 cups pequi
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
3 cup long-grain rice
2 cups chicken broth (vegetable broth can be substituted)
4 cups water
salt and pepper to taste
2 Tbsp. green onion, chopped
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Combine water and broth in medium pan, bring to simmer. In another large, heavy pan heat the oil over medium heat and lightly fry the pequi. Add the onion and garlic and continue to fry, stirring to avoid sticking, until everything is lightly browned. Add the rice and fry for a few minutes, until all the rice is coated with oil and is slightly transparent. Cover with the simmer water-broth blend. Add salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, cover, and reduce heat to low. Cook, covered, until liquid is absorbed and the rice is tender (about 20 minutes). Remove from heat, stir in the green onion, and serve.
(Adapted and translated from Cozinha Regional Brasileira by Abril Editora)

A Dangerous Fruit - Pequi

Brazil is home to a thousand varieties of fruits, many of which are familiar to North Americans, and others from non-Brazilian cultures. There are many other fruits which are practically unknown outside the boundaries of this enormous country. One particularly fascinating example of this is the pequi (the word is the same in English and Portuguese, and is pronounced "pay-KEY"). It is adored by many, and detested by probably an equal number who object to its strong flavor. It is quite "modest" in appearance, being neither large or small, and not particularly beautiful. And it can be extremely dangerous to eat - not because it is poisonous or toxic, but because it can seriously damage the unwary eater's tongue, gums and upper palate. It's one scary fruit!

The pequi is native to the central part of Brazil, and in particular is identified with the Brazilian region called The Central-West, with the state of  Goiás, and with a particular ecoregion called the cerrado. The Brazilian cerrado is a vast tropical savanna covering much of central Brazil south of the Amazon rainforest, and it has been recognized by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) as the biologically richest savanna in the world. The identification of the pequi with the cerrado is so strong that a common nickname throughout Brazil for an inhabitant of the cerrado is "pequi." The pequi is a tree-fruit, and the pequi tree grows up to 30 feet high (10 meters). The fruit matures and is harvested during the dry season, usually July to September.

The pequi is used extensively in the cuisine of  Goiás, and of other states in the same region. It is always cooked, never raw, and interestingly is added primarily to savory dishes rather than to sweet ones. Two of the most popular dishes with pequi are Chicken with Pequi (frango com pequi in Portuguese) and Pequi Rice (arroz com pequi.) This is probably due to the unique flavor profile of the pequi which is a complex and strong-tasting mixture of sweet, fruity, and cheesy flavors. Those who do not like the flavor of pequi often complain of these cheesy flavors, describing them as "sweaty" or "barnyard-like." Those who love pequi often focus on the same flavors. It's definitely an "off" flavor, and like most such flavors is usually an aquired taste.

Whether the pequi is eaten as part of a dish like Chicken with Pequi, or simply on it's own, one must be very careful in approaching this "dangerous" fruit, as it can cause serious harm to the unwary or foolhardy. The fruit has an edible skin, with soft flesh inside surrounding a large, stony pit. The pit is surrounded by a number of sharp spines which, if eaten, lodge themselves in the soft flesh of the mouth - the tongue, the gums and the palate. Once lodged they are very difficult to remove, and are very painful. It's as if one ate a botanical variety of porcupine and got a mouthful of quills. The only safe way to eat a pequi is to take it whole in one's hands (never use a knife and fork), and using only the top front teeth, carefully scrape the outer layers of soft flesh into the mouth. Any other technique can result in serious damage. The photo below shows exactly how the spines are lodged in the flesh of a pequi.

For the adventuresome eater, the pequi is an unforgettable experience. Like any other food that has potential to cause harm, or any other that has a strong, possibly-objectionable taste, it should be sampled very carefully and lightly. You may find you've discovered a new gastronomic delight (it certainly won't be like anything else you've ever eaten), or you might find that you've only discovered a loathsome fruit, in a deadly package.