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Silver Coast Cuisine
- seafood and country cooking
Given its close proximity to the Atlantic Ocean, it is not surprising that seafood ranks highly in the cuisine of the Silver Coast. But it is not all about fish - the countryside has its own rich tradition of hearty cooking and fine delicacies.
Peniche is the centre of the fishing industry on the Silver Coast. Fresh fish, notably sea bream and sea bass, are off-loaded from the boats daily and available for sale within hours at restaurants and shops throughout the region. Just to the north is the stunning Óbidos lagoon at Foz do Arelho which has a wealth of eels, cockles, small sea bass, grey mullets, crabs, cuttle-fish and mussels. And on the other side of Peniche, near Lourinhã, is Porto de Barcas, site of the biggest shellfish farm in the country and a great place to enjoy this delicacy at its freshest with a glass of Silver Coast wine and the Atlantic Ocean as a backdrop.
Fresh from the ocean
Caldeirada De Peixe (fish stew) is found on many local menus and is highly sought after for the freshness of its ingredients by the thousands of tourists who visit the Silver Coast every year. Another important delicacy on the Silver Coast is Suada Lagosta (sweating lobster), which is lobster cooked gently with tomatoes and wine in a sealed pot.
Fish and shell-fish are served in every way imaginable in Silver Coast restaurants. Typical dishes include Sardinhas Grelhadas (grilled sardines), Bacalhau (salt cod), Bife de Atum (tuna steaks), Creme de Camarão (thick prawn soup) and Bacalhau á Bràs (scrambled eggs with salt cod, potatoes and onions). Crab and squid are often served stuffed, with Lulas Recheadas à Lisbonense (stuffed squid Lisbon-style) being a great example of Portuguese seafood.
Country dishes
From the Silver Coast countryside come dishes such as rich pork casseroles, oven baked kid, stewed rabbit with rice, grilled skewers of beef with garlic and Leitão (suckling pig). Pork is also cooked with mussels in a Cataplana, a wok-like dish that seals in the flavours.
Particular specialities worth trying include the bean pies from Torres Vedras, Cozido à Portuguesa (boiled meats and sausages with vegetables), Frango Assado (roast chicken), Favada à Portuguesa (a dish of butter beans and cuts of pork which is slow cooked for hours) and Carne de Porco à Alentejana (pork cubes served with clams - not strictly a Silver Coast dish but one the locals have made their own).
Those with a sweet tooth will love the pastelarias of the Silver Coast. The choice of cakes and pastries is vast and as sweet as you can stand. Many of the region's specialities came originally from local convents and monasteries and have become entrenched in the Silver Coast's cuisine over the centuries.
Trouxas de Ovos and Lampreias de Ovos are sweet dishes made with eggs while from Caldas da Rainha come Cavacas (light crisp cakes). Further inland in the villages around Rio Maior the speciality is a sponge cakes called Pães de Lo. As well as being sweet, all carry a hint of the taste of the apples and pears that the Silver Coast region is so well known for producing.
Trouxas de Ovos and Lampreias de Ovos are sweet dishes made with eggs while from Caldas da Rainha come Cavacas (light crisp cakes). Further inland in the villages around Rio Maior the speciality is a sponge cakes called Pães de Lo. As well as being sweet, all carry a hint of the taste of the apples and pears that the Silver Coast region is so well known for producing.
Sweet Nothings
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