Favas guisadas com chouriço is a Portuguese dish of fava beans braised with smoked sausage, onion, garlic, white wine and fresh cilantro. Fava beans (favas) are a long-standing part of Portuguese cooking, and braising them with cured pork is a classic way to serve them, either as a petisco (small plate) or as a hearty side dish.
The sausage supplies smoky fat and paprika, which flavor the beans as they simmer. Fresh cilantro, added at the end, is a hallmark of southern Portuguese cooking and keeps the dish from feeling heavy. Fresh fava beans are a spring crop, but frozen shelled favas make the dish practical year-round.
Other Portuguese dishes built on chouriço include Chouriço Assado (recipe on the site) and Migas Alentejanas (recipe on the site). The braise is traditionally served with crusty bread to soak up the juices.
Favas Guisadas com Chouriço Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 pound shelled fava beans, frozen (thawed) or fresh
- 6 ounces Portuguese chouriço, sliced ¼ inch thick
- 2 ounces thick-cut bacon or pancetta, diced
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
- ½ cup dry white wine
- ¾ cup low-sodium chicken broth or water
- ½ cup chopped fresh cilantro, plus extra for serving
- Kosher salt and black pepper, to taste
- 4 eggs (optional, for poaching on top)
- Crusty bread, for serving
Instructions
- If the fava beans still have their pale outer skins, blanch them in boiling water for 1 minute, drain, and slip the beans out of their skins. Frozen shelled favas usually need peeling too. The skins are tough and bitter.
- Heat the olive oil in a wide, heavy pot over medium heat. Add the bacon and chouriço and cook for 5 minutes, until the fat renders and the sausage begins to brown.
- Add the onion and a pinch of salt and cook for 5 minutes, until soft. Stir in the garlic, bay leaves and paprika and cook for 30 seconds.
- Pour in the wine and scrape up any browned bits. Simmer for 2 minutes, then add the beans and broth.
- Cover and simmer over medium-low heat for 15 to 20 minutes, until the beans are tender and the liquid is reduced to a light, glossy sauce.
- For poached eggs, make four small wells in the beans, crack an egg into each, cover and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, until the whites are set.
- Remove the bay leaves, stir in the cilantro, and season with salt and pepper. Serve hot with crusty bread.
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