HIGHWAY TO POA

Nina Raynaud

Porto Alegre, July 1st, 2014. 

 

 

The Rio Grande Do Sul culture is enriched by its diversity, possessing astonishing mix of European and native influences. This alternative combination gave birth to a very particular cuisine. One of the most characteritic dishes of the gaucho culture would be the arroz de carreteiro and its meaning lies in the history of Southern Brazilian.

 

The arroz de carreteiro is cooked using a specific kind of meat called charque. Beef meat is salted and dried in the sun. Its unique taste gives a particular flavour to the rice it is cooked with.

 

Charque was imported at the end of the XIX° century by José Pinto Martins, a Portuguese man who immigrated to the South of Brazil to benefit from the best meteorologial conditions. Indeed, from November to April the Rio Grande Do Sul region undergoes a dry and hot season which makes the preparation of the meat easier. This particular meat was the key ingredient that enabled the invention of the dish which is still very popular nowadays with simplicity being the key of its success. The arroz de arreteiro is a course made with rice perfumed by onions, garlic and oil. The whole thing is, of course, enlivened by the much vaunted charque. The Rio Grande Do Sul inhabitants taste it (or devour it) with minced parsley scattered over it  and a few drops of olive oil.

 

 

Over time, this dish has evolved and today it is not always charque-based. The tradition is that every Sunday the whole family meets and enjoy a churrasco. The next day, they use the leftovers to make the arroz de accereteiro.

A taste of the gaucho culture in one dish.