Easter is usually one of my favourite holidays as it is one of the longest holidays of the year as well as the time to spend with our loved ones.

 

Here in Portugal, there is always a typical dish made during the Easter holiday, starting from Good Friday to Easter Sunday.

As Portugal is a religious country dominated mainly by Catholics, most traditional Portuguese observe strict abstinence from meat and eat only fish or seafood on Good Fridays.

 

These range from grilled fish, sauteed garlic lemon prawns with cilantro or salsa, or rice made with fish of any sort.

 

Being a country on the coast of the Atlantic, Portugal is a country richly blessed with good weather, nice people, and better still, great food.

Yes, you heard right! Portuguese food is amazing and very affordable too. You are guaranteed good food whether you are eating in a cheap street restaurant or a fancy one.

Having traveled to a few countries, especially here in Europe, my heart always yearns to go back home. 

Food in Portugal

The food in Portugal is amazing, and you can’t wrap your head around the varieties you see in street food, roadside café, or chic restaurants.

I remember not liking olives before moving to Portugal as I was only aware of the green olives but fell in love with them after I ate Portuguese olives dressed in fresh garlic and olive oil.

On the grocery aisles, you will find assorted kinds of olives, also known as azeitonas in Portuguese, from green olives to black olives, or green olives filled with red bell peppers, and lots more! Some bland and others tangy.

Typically in Portuguese restaurants, you will always be served bread, olives, cheese, and fish patés as starters before the main meal and this Mediterranean cuisine really endeared me to this small beautiful country with such a rich fusion of food to get even the most hungry person smiling 🙂

You can bet to enjoy a different meal with each holiday in Portugal. The choices are endless as you move south to north. National or regional holidays have great significance from the street decoration to the typical food of the region. I remember my first time eating sardine rice in Coimbra. This is also called Arroz de Sardinha, and there was nothing like it. My mother-in-law made this awesome dish and also roasted some bell peppers to make bell pepper salad. We enjoyed lunch with Portuguese vinho verde. 

So, going back to my Easter table, my mother-in-law and I decided to make several plates to celebrate the holiday. We incorporated several dishes of chicken with potatoes in the oven, grilled beef steak from the shank also called picanha, rice and beans, lettuce, tomatoes, and onion salad. On the side, we bought some bread and cornbread, also known as broa de milho in Portuguese.