Light Feijoada

📝 Ingredients

• 400 g pork fillet
• 150 g turkey lardons
• 2 tins black beans (480 g drained)
• 1 brown onion
• 3 garlic cloves
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 chicken stock cube
• 240 g long-grain rice
• 2 oranges
• Salt, black pepper

🍴 Utensils

• Flameproof casserole dish with lid
• Saucepan
• Colander
• Wooden spoon
• Chopping board
• Knife

📖 Steps

1. Remove the thin white membrane from the pork fillet with the tip of a knife, then cut it into 2 cm dice. Slice the onion and chop the garlic. Drain the black beans and rinse them under cold water to remove the thick liquid from the tin.
2. Heat the oil in a casserole dish over a high heat. Brown the pork and lardons for 5 minutes, stirring, in two batches if the pot is small: the meat should colour, not stew in its own juices.
3. Turn the heat down to medium, add the onion and cook for 4 minutes until soft. Add the garlic and smoked paprika and stir for 30 seconds, no longer: they burn very quickly and then turn bitter.
4. Add the beans, bay leaf, crumbled stock cube and 400 ml water. Bring to the boil, then cover and simmer for 30 minutes over a low heat, stirring now and then so nothing sticks to the bottom.
5. Meanwhile, rinse the rice until the water runs almost clear, then cook it for 10 to 12 minutes in a large pan of salted boiling water until tender. Drain and keep covered.
6. Take the lid off the pot and mash a ladleful of beans against the side with the wooden spoon: this purée thickens the sauce. Let it reduce uncovered for 5 to 10 minutes, until it has the consistency of a thick, saucy stew.
7. Remove the bay leaf, taste and adjust the salt and pepper, going easy on the salt as the lardons are already salty. Cut the oranges into wedges, removing the peel if you'd rather eat them with a fork.
8. Serve the feijoada over the rice, with the orange wedges on the side: their tangy freshness balances the smoky richness of the stew, just as they do in Brazil.