Taste This!

Dinner in Brazil

When speaking about food, there are always new things to discover and endless possibilities. Just when you think you pretty much know it all, nothing no longer surprises you and you even think that you've tried just about everything considered edible in your understanding of the term, new tastes and new ways of cooking appear. Sometimes simply combining raw materials in an unusual way is enough to make your taste palate go wild. As for myself, I recently experienced a very lovely surprise. I went on a scrumptious culinary trip to the Brazilian world of tastes.  Unfortunately, my private jet was out of order so I didn't get to travel across the Atlantic Ocean, but in my mind my taste buds and I had a very pleasant holiday indeed.

Two days ago I arrived to Strasbourg to visit my former flatmates Tif and Sophie. If you read my post on cheese in January you might remember them. Any way, all three of us love eating, love food and love cooking. All three of us also got graduated this week! Needless to say, we needed to do some serious celebrating. As I stuck the corkscrew into the first bottle of Bordeaux the girls had reserved for the occasion, there were some serious decisions to be made. A glass of wine is always good before making any major decisions by the way. And boy did we have a major decision to make. Where to eat and what to eat for on this very special day. "I don't fee like cooking today" Tif said whisking a cake dough with one hand and holding a wine glass in the other. We just can't help the cooking urge, it's probably genetic.

The cake was all I was willing to let her do though. The evening would be kitchen free. Tif had a suggestion and told us about this little Brazilian restaurant. The only problem was that she had eaten there already a couple of times this week. Still, the more she talked about it the more I seriously wanted to try it. She sold her idea to us without an effort and the decision was unanimous. Brazil here we come!

We arrived to the restaurant and got the warmest welcome. A gorgeous Brazilian man with a beautiful smile showed us to our table. I was fond of Brazil immediately. I couldn't wait to get my hands on...the menu. As I opened the menu a second later a whole new culinary world of opened up in front my eyes. The menu was full of new and exciting dishes I had never heard of before: caruru, feijoada, moqueca capixaba, salgadinho just to name a few. What on earth was I about to experience!? What became clear was that dried shrimp, toasted nuts, palm oil, bean pastes, cassava/manioc flour, fresh cilantro and mildly spiced sauces were essential. The ingredients all rang a bell, but the way they were combined to form a dish was unknown and new to me. I was thrilled! A detail that particularly enchanted me was the grilled plantains. My love for bananas of any kind is somewhat exaggerated, I do admit...

We wanted to try everything and choosing seemed impossible. In the end we managed to make up our minds. Xinxim de carne with a side of grilled plantain for me please. This creamy beef stew with ginger, peanuts, coconut milk and spices was served with beautiful rice spiced with cumin. On the side, my beloved plantain and a little spicy sauce made of cilantro, onions, green peppers and tomatos. I think I forgot to breathe for a while. Only the smell of the dish got me high. I decided to wait and observe my friends' faces when they had the first bite. Man was I happy to have my camera! I had to film it. The power good and delicious food has will never cease to amaze me. My goodness! It was a perfect moment. Just perfect. A warm summer night, amazing friends, good vibes and explosions of deliciouness Brazilian style.

Restaurant Acerola - 8, rue du Renard Préchant - 67000 Strasbourg - France.