In the middle of the 1500s, when Portuguese sailors discovered they could venture on long sea voyages by taking salted cod along with them for food, the area known as Brazil was discovered and colonised and it is now the largest Portuguese-speaking country in the world.
Portuguese settlers, along with African slaves settled in Bahia in the north-east, a province still renowned for its cuisine, brought a range of influences and ingredients, including the Portuguese salted cod, onions and garlic, as well as a love of baking and desserts, especially egg custards; while the Africans brought dende (palm oil), coconut, plaintains and okra.
The national dish, feijoada, is believed to have been created by African slaves using dried beans, kale and cassava, along with what were considered off-cuts of pork and air-dried beef.
The southern part of Brazil was settled later with coffee plantations, which brought western European and Arab immigrants with the skills for cheese making and preserving meat. They contributed to a diverse cuisine centred around the Minas Gerais region.
The Brazilian barbecue churrasco originated in the south of Brazil with the gauchos, or cowboys, who prized a cut of meat from the top of the beef rump called picanha. It's rolled in rock salt and sometimes garlic, and cooked rotisserie-style over charcoal on long skewers.
Brazilians love their savoury snacks (salgadinhos), which they eat along with strong, black coffee or the caipirinha cocktails that are considered Brazil’s national drink (made with cachaça sugar cane rum, sugar and lime juice). On most street corners you can also find pao de queijo, bite-sized cheese breads.
While tropical fruits are eaten across Brazil at the end of a meal, sweets are very popular and very sweet. Some are flavoured with fruits like coconut and pineapple, and include quindim – a custard made with many eggs and coconut.
