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Feijoada is Brazil's grand Saturday feast: a dark, smoky pot of black beans slow-cooked with salted beef, ribs, sausage and bacon. This keto version uses black soybeans, which look and taste remarkably like black beans but carry only a fraction of the carbs. Serve it with sautéed collard greens and a few thin orange slices, and you have the full Brazilian experience.
Per serving: 616 calories · 4.6 g net carbs · 42 g protein · 46 g fat (calculated from the ingredients)
What You’ll Need
Ingredients
- 12 ounces carne seca (dried salted beef) cut into chunks and soaked overnight
- 1 1/2 pounds pork spareribs cut into single ribs (about 1 pound meat)
- 12 ounces smoked linguiça or Polish kielbasa sliced into thick rounds
- 6 ounces slab bacon diced
- 3 cans (15 ounces each) black soybeans drained and rinsed
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 large onion chopped
- 6 cloves garlic minced
- 3 bay leaves
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 6 cups water or unsalted bone broth
- 1/4 cup chopped parsley and scallion for serving
Instructions
- The night before, soak the carne seca in cold water in the refrigerator, changing the water 3 or 4 times to remove excess salt.
- Drain the carne seca and place it in a large heavy pot with the ribs and water or broth. Bring to a boil, skim off the foam, then cover and simmer for 1 hour, until the meats are starting to get tender.
- Meanwhile, cook the bacon in a skillet over medium heat until crisp. Add the sausage and brown for 5 minutes. Add the olive oil, onion and garlic and cook for 5 minutes until soft.
- Scrape the bacon mixture into the pot along with the black soybeans, bay leaves and pepper. Simmer uncovered for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally, until the meats are falling apart and the broth is thick and dark.
- Scoop out 1 cup of the beans with a little liquid, mash them with a fork and stir them back in to thicken the stew. Remove the bay leaves and taste for salt; you may not need any.
- Serve in deep bowls, sprinkled with parsley and scallion.
Notes
Nutrition
About This Dish
Feijoada is often called Brazil's national dish, and many restaurants in Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo serve it on Wednesdays and Saturdays. A popular story says enslaved Africans created it from pork scraps thrown away by their masters, but many food historians doubt this, pointing out that cuts like ears, feet and tails were valued meat at the time. They connect feijoada to the slow-cooked bean and meat stews of Portugal and other parts of Europe, adapted with Brazil's black beans. The traditional feijoada completa comes with rice, sautéed collard greens, farofa, fried pork rinds and orange slices. Orange is said to help balance the richness of the meal.
Pairs Well With
- Brazilian Vagem Refogada, Sautéed Green Beans with Garlic and Tomato
- Brazilian Jiló Refogado, Sautéed Bitter Garden Eggplant
This recipe is from The Ultimate Brazilian Keto Cookbook by Gisele Costello, Chapter 6: Pork (Historic Paraty). See all Brazilian recipes