Sururu - Brazil's Homegrown Aphrodiasiac

What foods do you consider aphrodisiacs? The way you answer this question probably depends on your native culture. We all belong to one (or more) cultures, the most common of which are regional and/or ethnic but which can be national, religious or political too. The dictionary defines culture as "the arts and other manifestations of human intellectual achievement regarded collectively" and food and cooking are one of the most important components of any culture.

Almost every culture assigns aphrodisiac quality to certain foods; that is, cultures ascribe the power to increase sexual desire or potency to some foods. Human nature being what it is, foods that are considered to be aphrodisiac are eagerly sought out by those who wish to increase their sexual drive and power (or those of their sexual object.) Such varied foods as arugula, avocado, chocolate, deer penis or antlers, doce de leite, ginseng, oysters, saffron and watermelon are considered to be aphrodisiacs by one or more cultures.

Although Western medical science ascribes no proven aphrodisiac powers to any food, the notion that, say, oysters or ginseng increase one's sexual desire is strong and even the most sceptical diners may choose to eat these foods in the hopes of feeling their aphrodisiac effect.

Sururu

The folk traditions of northeast Brazil all along the Atlantic coast that stretches thousands of miles from southern Bahia state almost to the mouth of the Amazon, share a belief in the aphrodisiac powers of a small member of the mussel family that bears the scientific name Mytella charruana. This miniature mollusk is called sururu in Brazil, and in northeastern Brazilian culture it is believed to pack a powerful aphrodisiac punch. The small bivalve is native to the lagoons and mangrove swamps of the northeastern coast of Brazil and all along the coast, it's cooked into soups, added to coconut-milk based stews called moquecas, even fried up in omelettes. If the aphrodisiac powers ascribed to the sururu are even a tiny bit true, the people of Brazil's northeast are sure to be among the world's horniest inhabitants as collectively they eat a whole lot of the little mussel.

Another mollusk often considered to be an aphrodisiac, the oyster, does contain high levels of zinc, a chemical which aids in the production of the male hormone testosterone. Our research department here at Flavors of Brazil has been unable to determine if sururu also contains zinc, but if it does, that might be a clue as to why it's considered an aphrodisiac in Brazil.

One note of caution - eaten in large quantities, sururu have been shown to have a powerful laxative effect. So if you're looking to increase sexual desire by eating sururu exercise caution, as the effect of an "overdose" might just minimize your sexual desirability at the same time that it increases your desire.You have been warned!

Coming up, we'll publish some traditional northeastern Brazilian recipes for sururu.

RECIPE - Leão Veloso Soup (Sopa Leão Veloso)

Rio de Janeiro's venerable downtown restaurant Rio Minho is home to one of Brazil's most famous "homage" recipes, Seafood Stew Antônio Houaiss, named in honor of of Brazil's most important lexicographer. (The recipe can be found here). But that dish isn't the only one served at Rio Minho which honors a famous Brazilian of the past. Rio Minho is also home to a Brazilian take on the French classic bouillabaisse, created by and named in honor of Leão Veloso.

Pedro Leão Veloso was a Brazilian politician and diplomat who served his country as Minister of Exterior Relations during the period 1944-1946. (Interestingly, his predecessor in that post, Osvaldo Aranha also has given his name to a famous Brazilian dish - details can be found here). In addition to having the soup bear his name, Sr. Veloso was also the creator of the dish. He had developed a passion for bouillabaisse when visiting its birthplace Marseille, France, and decided to create a Brazilian version of it upon his return to Brazil. His soup contained locally-available fish and seafood and substitutes annatto paste or oil (urucum) for bouillabaisse's traditional saffron. According to Rio Minho's chef Ramon Isaac Tielas Domingues, who has been in the restaurant's kitchen for thirty years, over time the restaurant has chosen to add sweet paprika to color and flavor the soup rather than annatto, but other than that, the recipe served to today is entirely Sr. Veloso's.

The recipe calls for a large quantity of a variety of fish and shellfish (just like bouillabaisse). It does make enough soup for a large crowd however, 10 persons, and is filling enough to serve as a main-course dish. Serve with plenty of crusty French bread and a leafy green salad.

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RECIPE - Leão Veloso Soup (Sopa Leão Veloso)
Serves 10

1 lb (500 gr) medium shrimp, unpeeled
2 lbs (1 kb) clams or mussels
1 large white fish, whole, including head (grouper, snapper) - about 3 lbs (1.g kg)
4 large tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped
3 cloves garlic, smashed
1 Tbsp cilantro, finely chopped
1 Tbsp sweet paprika
salt to taste
2 medium onion, chopped
1/2 cup Italian parsley, finely chopped
1 whole chili pepper (malagueta, jalapeno, serrano)
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 lb (500 gr) crab meat, picked over
1 lb (500 gr) lobster meat, coarsely chopped
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Wash the shrimp and scrub the clams well to remove all sand. If using mussels, debeard them. Separate the fish head from the body - cut the body into steaks and chop the head into several large pieces. Reserve.

Place the pieces of fish head in a large stockpot, then add 2 quarts (2 liters) cold water. Bring to a boil over medium heat, skimming off foam and scum. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook for one hour. Strain the liquid through a cheesecloth-lined sieve, pressing hard on the fish to increase the flavor of the stock.

Return the stock to a clean stockpot, bring to a slow boil, then add the shrimp. Cook for 5 minutes or until the shrimp takes on a pink color. Remove the shrimp with a slotted spoon, let cool, then peel and reserve them. Reserve the stock in the pot.

Next add the clams or mussels to the stockpot and cook for a few minutes, or until they open. Remove the shellfish with a slotted spoon, discarding any unopened ones. Remove the meat from the shells and reserve.

In a large heavy-duty frying pan, heat a few tablespoons of olive oil then fry the fish steaks, in batches if necessary. Cook until the fish just begins to flake. Drain the fish on paper towels, allow to cool slightly then flake the meat, discarding bones and skin. Reserve.

In the same frying pan, combine the chopped tomatoes, the garlic, the cilantro, the onion and the parsley and cook for about 10 minutes over medium heat, or until the onion and garlic have softened and the tomato becomes a pulp. Add salt to taste and the paprika and cook for one more minute.

Heat the stock in the pot, then add the tomato/garlic mixture. Cook over very low heat, at a slow simmer for 40 minutes. Add the reserved shrimps, shellfish and flaked fish, then the crab meat and lobster. Cook for 10 minutes then serve immediately in deep soup plates.

On the Road - Rio de Janeiro (Pt.5) - Lunching at the São Pedro Fish Market

In an eminently practical and gastronomically inventive move, the São Pedro Fish Market in Niterói, Brazil, just across the bay from Rio de Janeiro, built a mezzanine above the double row of stalls that house the fish market itself. This mezzanine, which looks down onto the hustle and bustle of the market is home to about 10 or 12 independent restaurant operations. Each has a space along one of the walls for a kitchen, and a few have separate air-conditioned dining rooms. Most, however, place their wooden tables and foldaway chairs out in the central space of the mezanine to make one great common dining room.

These restaurants specialize, of course, in seafood, and they do have menus from which one can order. The overwhelming majority of their customers, however, shop at the fish market before climbing the stairs to the mezzanine. At the market they choose the seafood they want to have for lunch (the market closes long before dinnertime) then carry it with them upstairs. It might be a pound of shrimp, or perhaps a cavaquinha. Then again, it might be a fillet or steak from a large fish like salmon or dourado, or a mess of whole sardines. Or even a whole fish, like snapper or mackerel, for grilling. Or if you're with a group, some of all of the above to share, family-style.

With their main course in hand, diners ascend the flight of stairs at either end of the market to the mezzanine. Any of the restaurants will cook one's purchase to order, and for the price of about R$10 (USD $6) will cook, garnish and plate whatever you bring them from downstairs. In addition, they can provide side dishes - fries, salads, beans, etc. - and lots of ice-cold beer, the drink of choice at São Pedro.

When we were at the market during Flavors of Brazil's recent visit to Rio de Janeiro, we purchased 1 lb (500 gr) of ocean-caught grew shrimps, whole and unpeeled, for R$17 (USD $10) and the same amount of dourado (dolphin-fish, mahi-mahi) for R$10 (USD $6). After checking out several of the restaurants on the mezzanine, we chose to hand our purchases over to one of the smaller restaurants called Parada Bonde ("The Tram Stop" in English). Our hard-working waitress, Graça, handled a huge number of tables and larger number of diners with efficiency and charm - she treated all of her customers with a Brazilian version of the truck-stop-waitress "tough love" that kept all of them in line and in love with her.

Our shrimps arrived first, fried just until crisp yet still juicy. We pulled off the heads, though many diners at adjacent tables ate the entire animal from head to tail. Tails were discarded too, but in the Brazilian fashion, we ate the body of the shrimp unpeeled and with legs attached, with a squeeze of lime. Accompanied by a 600 ml (20 oz) bottle of Antartica Original beer, the shrimp were salty from the sea, crunchy on the outside, and tender and flavorful on the inside. Absolutely delicious.

Just as we were finishing the shrimp, the dourado arrived, breaded and fried. It was served with more wedges of lime, plus raw onion rings. The firm, white flesh of the fish was cooked just right, and was very juicy. To my taste, the breading was too thick, but it was easily flaked away, and its thickness had prevented any oiliness from reaching the boneless fillet of fish. The fish, of course, required another bottle of Original to wash it down.

It all made a filling, protein- and iodine-rich seafood lunch. Nothing fancy, nothing expensive, just the freshest possible seafood purchased right off the crushed ice in the fish market, simply fried and served piping hot, with a super-cooled beer or two. And to top it off, the warmth and charm of Graça. Couldn't be better than that.

On the Road - Rio de Janeiro (Pt. 4) - São Pedro Fish Market, Niterói

If Rio de Janeiro is Brazil's San Francisco, a comparison that's been made many times, then the city of Niterói on the other side of the Bay of Guanabara is its Oakland. Connected to Rio by a trans-bay bridge, Niterói is less cosmopolitan, less glamourous and less wealthy than Rio. If Gertrude Stein had been from Niterói she might have written "Não tem ai ai" about that city instead of "There's no there there" about Oakland.

Apart from a spectacular museum of contemporary art designed by the famed Brazilian architect Oscar Neimeyer, Niterói doesn't have much to draw the tourists away from the beaches, bars, shops and restaurants of Rio de Janeiro. Except for tourists like Flavors of Brazil, for whom Niterói possesses a location of great interest - its fish market, named after St. Peter (São Pedro). For reasons of geography and access to fishing grounds up and down the coast of Brazil, it makes sense to have the area's regional fish market in Niterói, not in Rio de Janeiro itself.

Housed in a non-prepossessing industrial style building near the waterfront, the Mercado São Pedro is one of the world's great fish markets. The variety and quality of fish and seafood available in amazing - and with the exception of farmed salmon which comes from the cold waters off of Chile, it's all local. You won't find cold water fish here, only the bounty of the tropical oceans and freshwater lagoons of Brazil.

The first floor of the market is divided into retail stalls for direct sales to customers. One floor above is a collection of bar/restaurants. Fish market customers often choose their fish or seafood downstairs, carry it upstairs to one of the restaurants, and have it cooked and served to them right then and there. The next post here on Flavors of Brazil will discuss these restaurants.

The best way to show the range of products available at Mercado São Pedro, their freshness and presentation, is through photos. The following were all taken on day in late December 2010 at the market, and give some indication of what's available for sale at any given time.

The market is easy to reach from Rio de Janeiro by bus/bridge, or by ferry and a short walk from the pier. For anyone who is a tourist in Rio and wants a gastronomic day-away from the beaches of Copacabana and Ipanema, you can't do better than an excursion to Niterói's fish market - plan to be there at lunch time so you can choose your own fish or shellfish for lunch upstairs, and if possible, go during the week, when it tends to be somewhat less busy.

(click on photos to enlarge)

tuna

fish stall

shrimp

shrimp vendor

dourado (dolphin fish, mahi-mahi)

fish cut into steaks

unidentified tropical fish

octopus

dourado fillets

cavaquinha

sardines

roe

pargo

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.

RECIPE - Shrimp with Tomato Sauce (Camarão ao Molho de Tomate)

What's for dinner tonight? At my place, at least, it'll be shrimp with tomato sauce. I've got some guests coming over this evening for a Sunday supper and to watch the Brazilian presidential election results on TV. Being an election day, today is a "dry day" in Brazil, so I'll have to serve clandestine drinks to my friends. The common consensus is that current president Lula's anointed successor, a woman named Dilma Rousseff, will be elected in this second-round vote. She's shown to have an advantage in the neighborhood of 10-12% in most opinion polls. However, the polls also indicated she would win in the first round, which was a month ago, and that turned out not to be the case.

Even if Dilma's not a sure-bet to be elected, this simple and straightforward dish of shrimps cooked in a thick tomato sauce is statistically 100% likely to be served at tonight's dining table at my home. It's a favorite standby dish for an easy supper with guests. It doesn't take hours to prepare, it doesn't require exotic ingredients, yet it arrives at the table looking quite fancy and special.

This recipe comes from the small, historic northeastern city of João Pessoa, capital of the state of Paraíba. The short coastline of Paraíba is a stretch of sandy beaches, often backed by fresh or saltwater lagoons. The cuisine of this state relies heavily on crustaceans from both the open sea and the lagoons - shrimps, lobsters and crabs.

If you're making this dish, look for medium to medium-large shrimp. At that size, they will need to be deveined, but that extra step is worth the time and effort, and makes a much more appealing final dish.
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RECIPE - Shrimp with Tomato Sauce (Camarão ao Molho de Tomate)
Serves 4

For the tomato sauce:
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 large onion, diced
8 cloves garlic, crushed
4 Tbsp. butter
6 large ripe tomatoes, diced
2 large onions, thinly sliced
3 bay leaves
3 cups canned tomato sauce
salt to taste
2.5 cups water
1 cup all-purpose flour

For the shrimp:
1.5 lbs (600 gr) medium shrimp, cleaned and peeled
4 Tbsp. butter
1 small onion, grated
salte to taste
2 Tbsp. finely chopped cilantro
2 Tbsp. finely chopped green onion
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Make the tomato sauce: Combine the flour and 1.5 cups of the water (at room temperature). Stir or shake to mix until you have a consistent paste, without lumps. Reserve.

In a large heavy saucepan, heat the olive oil and butter together until the butter is melted and the mixture is hot and bubbling. Add the diced onion and the garlic and sauté until the onions and garlic are softened and transparent, but not browned. Add in the chopped tomato, the sliced onion and the bay leaves, stirring to mix thoroughly. Then add the tomato sauce, 1 cup of the water, stir, then correct the seasoning with salt. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, then slowly add the flour and water paste, stirring constantly to avoid lumps. Continue to cook and stir until the sauce thickens and loses its taste of flour. Reserve, keeping warm.

Make the shrimp: In a large pan, melt the butter, then add the shrimp, the onion, the cilantro and the green onion. Cook over medium-high heat for about 2 minutes. Then add the reserved tomato sauce, reduce heat, and cook with the pan partially covered for 5 more minutes.

Pour into a serving platter and serve immediately.

Recipe translated and adapted from Cozinha Regional Brazileira by Abril Editora

One Man's Meat, etc.... The Story of Sururu

One of the things I enjoy most about putting Flavors of Brazil together is the process of discovering exactly what it is that I am discussing. One of my earliest posts in this blog was about the fruit called caja, for instance. I wanted to find out exactly what the fruit was from a botanical point of view, whether it was known in other parts of the world besides Brazil, and whether it had a name in English. (Click here to find out the answers.) Because sometimes one thing has more than one name even here in Brazil, and numerous regional variations, the only way to really be sure is to use the Latin taxonomic name to track it down around the world. The whole process can lead one to some unexpected and unusual places. For someone like me who loves weird and wonderful facts, the process can be serendipitous.

One of the iconic traditional dishes of Brazil's Northeastern cultural region (Nordeste in Portuguese) is a seafood soup or stew called "caldo de sururu." It's a simple dish, a peasant dish, and it's normally served in waterfront bars, or by vendors on Brazilian beaches. It's delicious and filling, and locally it is reputed to have therapeutic effects in regards to hangovers, and enhancing effects for male potency.  I've eaten the soup myself, but cannot vouch for either of these effects!

It's clear, when eating caldo de sururu, that sururu is some sort of shellfish, although the sururu have already been shelled in the preparation of the caldo, so there is not much in the way of hints to help one identify the animal itself. It's as if one tried to picture what a clam looked like from eating clam chowder. I was curious exactly what a sururu was, and no one here could exactly tell me. So I began to do some research using trusty (?) tools like Wikipedia and Google.

The sururu, it turns out, is a bivalve mollusk like clams, oysters and mussels. I had previously thought that was probably the case, as one nickname for sururu locally here in Fortaleza is "the poor man's oyster (a ostra dos pobres). Google images gave me this photo of a sururu, and it certainly looked like some sort of mussel to me:

I also found a photo of sururu once it had been shelled, and it continued to look like a mussel:

After some searching, I discovered the taxonomic name for the sururu - Mytella charruana. From there, I knew I could track it down outside Brazil, and outside the gastronomic universe. When I checked for Mytella charruna in Google Images, I found this intriguing photo:

Why was there a red circle around the sururu and a red band through it? What was/is the problem? Time for some more internet research. I soon discovered why. If you'd like to know what the problem is, click on "read more" below.