Azores Chefs - The Art of Tasting Portugal

Cláudio Pontes

artoftasting — Wed, 09 Feb 2022 12:00:28 +0000

Cláudio Pontes

Born and raised in São Miguel, Cláudio Pontes dreamed of becoming a sailor, but he fell in love with the cuisine. The passion for local products made him return home after several years on the mainland, where he worked in emblematic restaurants in Lisbon and Porto.

Chef Dishes

Bigeye tuna on cold roasted pineapple “rump”

This dish pays tribute to products and recipes from three of the nine islands of the archipelago, namely: alcatra is a traditional meat dish from Terceira, being the protein in this version is the “sea steak,” bigeye tuna; the pineapple from the Azores is roasted and transformed into a fresh and aromatic sauce; and the São Jorge cheese brings the dish a salty and spicy touch.

Pineapple

Azorean Pineapple is a Protected Designation of Origin product with over a century and a half of history. Ananás dos Açores (Azorean Pineapple) is a Protected Designation of Origin product with over a century and a half of history and one of the great gastronomic ambassadors of the archipelago. It is an exclusive culture of the island of São Miguel, where it is produced in glass greenhouses following traditional precepts and respecting the biological method.

Azores

Made up of lagoons, volcanoes, hydrangeas and fajãs, pastures, ferns, craters and basalt, this island, of a thousand and one charms, is known for its cheese, a strong Cheddar, as well as for its beauty and its people. Its fajãs, coastal plains that lie between 400 and 700 meters high, were considered UNESCO Biosphere Heritage.

O conteúdo Cláudio Pontes aparece primeiro em The Art of Tasting Portugal.

Pedro Oliveira

artoftasting — Tue, 09 Mar 2021 00:25:37 +0000

Pedro Oliveira

A proud “corisco“, meaning born and raised in S. Miguel, Pedro Oliveira is the smiling face and the commanding voice of Anfiteatro‘s kitchen, the restaurant located at the Portas do Mar in Ponta Delgada. An incubator of young talents, the restaurant is the Tourism and Hospitality School’s Practical Unit and offers a journey through the Azores’ contemporary gastronomy of its star products.

Chef Dishes

Croque-madame Queijo São Jorge DOP

If the croque-madame had been invented in the Azores, it would be like this. This reinvention of the French classic features two highly appreciated products from the archipelago: the São Miguel “bolo lêvedo“ (a slightly sweet bread) and the São Jorge PDO Cheese. For this recipe, chef Pedro Oliveira uses a cheese aged for seven months.

São Jorge PDO cheese

Dating back almost as far as the island‘s discovery, São Jorge PDO cheese is one of the most appreciated and recognised products of this island and the entire Azores archipelago. Dating back almost as far as the island‘s discovery, São Jorge PDO cheese is one of the most appreciated and recognised products of this island and the entire Azores archipelago. Its story starts in the 15th century with the arrival of the Flemish community, that was accustomed to the production of milk and its derived products and encouraged the production of this cheese. Five centuries later it has achieved the POD status (Protected Denomination of Origin). This cured cheese, made with raw cow‘s milk, has a hard or semi-hard paste and a yellowish colour with a strong aroma and a slightly spicy aftertaste. Its particularity, as with other cheeses, essentially results from the edaphic and climatic characteristics of the island, which provide different pastures that contribute to the milk‘s quality, and the fact that the production method has remained almost unaltered for 500 years.

Azores

O conteúdo Pedro Oliveira aparece primeiro em The Art of Tasting Portugal.

Vitor Sobral

admin — Thu, 26 Nov 2020 11:29:04 +0000

Vitor Sobral

Vitor Sobral’s journey merges with the last 30 years history of Portuguese gastronomy. He is a staunch defender of national products, which he highlights in his daily work in his various spaces, with modernity, technique and, above all, a lot of flavor.

Chef dishes

Codfish in Olive Oil and Garlic

In the book “My Codfish Recipes”, chef Vítor Sobral presents 500 ways to cook cod. This Codfish Confitado in Olive Oil and Garlic is one of them and one that will shine on any occasion.

Octopus and apricots

Octopus and apricots? Yes, they match perfectly! See Chef Vitor Sobral’s recipe in the video below, and enjoy!

Sardines with tomato and cherry rice

A recipe made with 100% national and seasonal ingredients, with chef Vitor Sobral’s signature, to taste at Tasca da Esquina or make at home! The Art of Tasting Portugal, all together around this great table that is Portugal.

Vítor Sobral cooking tuna

From the imposing Ponta dos Rosais to the mystical Fajã de Santo Cristo, the Poça de Simão Dias and the pictoresque village of Velas, we wandered around São Jorge in chef Vitor Sobral’s company. On his way around the island, the chef took some time to visit Santa Catarina Indústria Conserveira SA to work his magic on a tuna. And then? And then we had the pleasure of watching the chef turn this and other wonders of the Azorean sea into dishes that we won’t forget. And if these dishes remain in our tastebuds’ memory, the moment we shared at the table will also stay in our mind. It is not every day that moments like these are savoured in a place as unique as the cosy Quinta da Magnólia, with the island of Pico lurking on the horizon. To toast to all of this, a Verdelho from the neighbouring island of Pico. Here’s to you, São Jorge!

Codfish

He is the king and lord of Portuguese recipes, and so you must keep the following tips with great care and remember them when choosing codfish.

Good cod is from the Atlantic (Gadus morhua), with thick fillets that splinter perfectly after cooking, unlike Pacific cod (Gadus macrocephalus). Opt for a very dry and uniformly coloured piece, buy it whole and ask the various parts to be cut – loins, fillets, flaps and tail. To determine whether the cod was salted in the high seas, check if the part where the head was is flat. To soak your cod, use chef Vítor Sobral’s tips, an expert in the technique: “The process of soaking cod is what makes it regain the level of water it lost during drying; you must follow certain precautions. First of all, rinse the cod under running water to remove excess salt. Then, place the cod in a container with cold water with the skin facing up (so that the skin does not prevent the salt from coming out) covered with water. This should always be done with cold water and in the refrigerator. The water should be changed twice a day. Soaking time depends on the type of cut: the loins will take longer than the finer cuts; it is best to soak them separately. The loins, the cut that we will use in this week’s recipe, can take up to 4 to 5 days to be properly soaked. Be careful not to oversoak it; cod should always be slightly salty, with the flavour the Portuguese love so much!”

Sardines

Here they are, the delicious sardines!

June would not be a month without them. Saint Peter, Saint John, and Saint Anthony would not know what to do without the “beautiful sardine” on a slice of bread, full of Omega 3, served with roasted pepper salad and baked potatoes. On the grill, in a stew, fried with tomato rice or marinated, the sardine is one of the “girlfriends of Portugal”, as far as popularity is concerned. Originally from Sardinia, in the Mediterranean, these little fishes swam thousands of kilometres and spread worldwide. But no one takes the Portuguese’s title of Europe’s biggest sardine consumers. Watch the video and find out how to choose it.

Fundão Cherries

The month of May is when we see many good things back on the market stalls: radishes, strawberries, … and if the first thing that came to your mind were the Fundão cherries, you’re one of us!

At The Art of Tasting Portugal, we know the best products by heart. They say that cherries are like conversations. As a rule, they come in pairs – which proves the veracity of this proverb. Red and fleshy, they are an explosion of flavour that we cannot dissociate from the arrival of warm weather or from the beautiful fields of blossoming cherry trees that motivate so many walks at this time of the year. Rich in anti-oxidants and anti-inflammatory, they are excellent from the nutritional point of view, perfect for sweet and savoury flavours.

Tuna

Skipjack is the smallest. Bluefin is the biggest.

Skipjack is the smallest. Bluefin is the biggest. Other than these, you can also find the yellowfin, bigeye, and albacore in the tepid Azorean waters. Tuna fishing in the Azores is quite an example. The “pole and Line” artisanal method is sustainable and doesn’t jeopardize the species. Tuna fishing requires patience, time, and technique, pretty much like chess. You can also call it art.

Octopus

One of the oceans‘ most fascinating creatures is also one of the most versatile ingredients in Portuguese gastronomy!

Cooked since the Bronze Age, it is also a fascinating ingredient from a cultural and nutritional point of view. According to the Portuguese Programme for Healthy Eating Habits, octopus is low in calories but rich in protein, iron, and fatty acids.

Center

The centre of Portugal is proof that virtue (or, in this case, the virtues) is in the middle. From the highest mountain in mainland Portugal to the world’s biggest waves, there is a little bit of everything, without forgetting priceless monumental and human heritage. Schist villages, castles that look like they have emerged from fairy tales, one of the oldest universities in Europe, and even a Portuguese-style Venice.

Azores

Algarve

The Algarve tastes of the sea, but it is much more than the beaches with warm and crystal-clear waters that make the cover of a travel magazine. It is also the mountains with a view of the sea, the rivers where migratory birds come to drink in the summer, the hidden fishing villages that appear to have stopped in time.

O conteúdo Vitor Sobral aparece primeiro em The Art of Tasting Portugal.

Azores Chefs - The Art of Tasting Portugal

Cláudio Pontes

Cláudio Pontes

Chef Dishes

Bigeye tuna on cold roasted pineapple “rump”

Products used

Pineapple

Regions

Azores

Pedro Oliveira

Pedro Oliveira

Chef Dishes

Croque-madame Queijo São Jorge DOP

Products used

São Jorge PDO cheese

Regions

Azores

Vitor Sobral

Vitor Sobral

Chef dishes

Codfish in Olive Oil and Garlic

Octopus and apricots

Sardines with tomato and cherry rice

Vítor Sobral cooking tuna

Products used

Codfish

Sardines

Fundão Cherries

Tuna

Octopus

Regions

Center

Azores

Algarve