Sausage and chips
24 March 2013 | Povoa de Varzim
We went out last night for a meal and ended up in a nice little local restaurant/bar near the casino. I had forgotten to take my Portuguese dictionary so we winged it and ordered what we thought was some kind of grilled or roasted meat. We were a little surprised when it turned out to be smoked sausage with a fried egg, chips and pickled cauliflower. It was quite nice and when I got home found it had an interesting history.
Alheira de Caça is a bread sausage created by Portuguese Jews during the Inquisition to avoid persecution. As Jewish tradition forbids the eating of pork the sausage is made with any other type of meat mixed with bread. Spices like smoked paprika are added then the sausage is cold smoked.