Madeira is one of those places that you visit and fall in love. Impossible not to leave already planning to return. It’s no wonder … the Island has paradisiacal landscapes, mild climate all year round, safety, tranquility, color and lots of flavor.
I will tell you today about these flavors, presenting the Madeira gastronomy.
Let’s start with the appetizers:
Bolo do Caco – A loaf of garlic butter and parsley, which can also be served with chorizo or bacon. You find it not only in restaurants, but close to churches, at city festivities … there is always some caco cake.
Another appetizer very appreciated by the Madeiran people are the limpets, seasoned with garlic, grilled in a frying pan and served with fresh lemon.
For meat lovers, there is great diversity:
Madeiran “Espetada” meat on a stick – Prepared with cubes of beef tenderloin and seasoned with salt and garlic, roasted on a lawn skewer in a wood oven.
“Carne de Vinha d’Alhos”, generally prepared with small pieces of pork marinated for a day in garlic sauce, wine vinegar and laurel and fried in this same sauce after.
“Picado” – Made with cubes of veal fried in garlic and sometimes with peppers. Serve with a sauce and potato chips on the same serving platter, in different sizes according to the number of people it has to feed.
For those who like fish Madeira is also a full plate. Fish is very present in the cuisine of Madeira, because we live on an Island and fishing is an ancestral tradition here. Then prepare to eat the best tuna of your life.
Tuna is usually prepared with olive oil, garlic, salt and oregano before being fried. It is very common to come with fried corn (one of the most typical accompaniments of Madeira).
Black Swordfish is another super traditional fish from Madeira. It is fished in depth that varies between 200 and 1700 meters (amazing !!!). It is usually served fried, with onion and accompanied with banana. But we have a lot of recipes with black swordfish … find out which one is your favorite and have fun.
Cod could not be missing from Madeira’s traditional fish list. You will find not only the traditional Bacalhau Gomes de Sá, but also Cod with Natas (I love it !!), Bacalhau à Braz or simply grilled cod. Difficult an occasion where the cod is not present.
For Madeira you will still find wonderful cafes with a great offer of cakes and pastries. Do not forget to try the Honey Cake, which is one of the oldest and most emblematic candies in Madeira.
Still in the sweets, we have the Honey Bread and Queijadas, which are pastels of white cheese, eggs and sugar.
To end the post today I will talk about the traditional drinks of the Island …
Madeira Wine is known internationally and is served as an appetizer and accompanies well toasted almonds, olives, canapes of caviar or smoked salmon.
Poncha is the most common drink on the Island and you need to try it … made from brandy with cane honey and lemon juice. This is the traditional one, but there are several other mixtures that look pretty good too.
Nikita is another traditional drink on the Island, especially in Câmara de Lobos. Made of beer, juice and pineapple chunks and vanilla ice cream.
I hope everyone discovers their favorite Madeira flavor 🙂
