37 Petiscos Varieties
Ranked From the Best To the Worst

The filling for this traditional smoked delicacy is made by combining small pieces of meat and bread. This sausage is traditionally smoked using olive or oak wood, which gives it a unique flavor, aroma, and color while enhancing the flavor of the spices. Mirandela sausage contains beef and pork meat along with fat, poultry meat, wheat bread, olive oil, and lard, and it's flavored and seasoned with salt, garlic, and sweet or hot paprika. This sausage is an irreplaceable ingredient in traditional Portuguese dishes such as açorda, cannelones, and pies, but it can also be served as a main dish with a side of potatoes or vegetables.Expand

Named after the 19th-century poet Raimundo António de Bulhão Pato, this simple Portuguese dish combines clams and a flavorful sauce that is based on olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, and fresh cilantro. However, the sauce can also have white wine as one of its ingredients. Bulhão Pato clams are typically enjoyed as an appetizer and are usually served with bread on the side.Expand

This version of rojões is made with chunks of pork that were previously marinated in garlic and white wine. However, traditional Minho recipes often include roasted chestnuts, blood and flour cakes called belouras or bolachos, tripe, pork’s liver, and boiled blood. Rojões Minho-style is typically enjoyed with potatoes, though it is not uncommon to serve it with a side of arroz de sarrabulho - rice with pork blood and bits of meat.Expand

Chouriço assado is a Portuguese technique of grilling chouriço, a traditional pork sausage, over boat-shaped terracotta bowls (assador). The bottom of the vessel is filled with aguardente—a strong local spirit—which is set on fire before the sausage is placed on top and is then allowed to cook over flames until it is crisp and slightly charred. This preparation technique is common in Portuguese restaurants, and it is often prepared tableside. Apart from the chouriço, the technique can be used for grilling other types of sausages such as linguiça, farinheira, and alheira.Expand

Prego is a ubiquitous Portuguese sandwich prepared with thin slices of beef that are seasoned with garlic, fried, sautéed alongside onions and wine, then placed inside a bread roll. The name prego translates to a nail, and though it is not certain, it is believed it refers to the act of pounding or nailing garlic slices onto the steaks. Though it is sometimes served without any condiments, prego is typically accompanied by mustard and hot sauce, and is occasionally topped with a fried egg. If served on a plate, when it is usually paired with fries, rice, and a fried egg, it usually goes under the name prego no prato.Expand

Bacalhau à bras is a simple Portuguese dish consisting of cooked and shredded salt cod, fried potato strips, onions, eggs, and olives. A delicious combination of flavors and textures results in an incredibly satisfying dish that is popular throughout the country. It is usually garnished with parsley and served hot, while the potatoes are still crispy. Believed to have originated in the Lisbon quarter Bairro Alto, today bacalhau à bras is one of the most famous Portuguese salt cod dishes.Expand

Choco frito is a traditional dish originating from Setúbal, where it's the most famous local specialty. Although one might think that the dish contains chocolate, it actually consists of fried cuttlefish that's typically served with potato chips or fries, salad, and lemon wedges for squeezing the juice onto the choco frito. The cuttlefish is most commonly boiled with garlic and bay leaves, marinated in lemon juice and wine, then coated in seasoned cornflour before it's fried to crispy perfection. Once prepared, choco frito should be chunky, succulent, and crunchy on the outside. You can often find it as a part of petiscos, the Portuguese-style bar snacks similar to tapas.Expand

Bifana is a classic Portuguese sandwich that employs few ingredients but makes for an exquisite dish. It consists of a seasoned, lightly pounded, sliced or whole pork steaks that are simmered in garlicky sauce, and then placed inside a bread roll. The variations on this classic can slightly differ depending on the region. In the north, the steaks are simmered in a spicy broth that is usually drizzled on the bread roll. Bifana is traditionally consumed without additional condiments, but it is occasionally accompanied by sautéed onions. In Lisbon, the meat is sometimes marinated and grilled, while mustard is a common accompaniment in Lisbon and in the south of Portugal. Regardless of the slight differences, all varieties produce moist and juicy steaks that perfectly pair with crusty bread rolls. Not much is known about the origin of bifana, and even though it is enjoyed throughout the country, it is often suggested that it first appeared in the municipality of Vendas Novas. The popularity of bifana in Portugal is reflected in the fact that even McDonalds has included it in their menu under the name McBifana.Expand

This rustic Portuguese pork stew is typically associated with northern parts of the country. The dish comes in numerous versions that usually consist of fattier cuts of boneless pork which are marinated in white wine, garlic, bay leaves, and cumin. The cuts are then slowly simmered in that same marinade. Rojões has modest origins, but over time, it became a Portuguese classic, equally beloved in all parts of the country. The dish is traditionally paired with rice, potatoes, or country-style bread. The most popular variety of the dish is Minho-style rojões, a version that often includes roasted chestnuts, blood, flour cakes called belouras or bolachos, tripe, pork’s liver, and boiled blood.Expand

The municipality of Vinhais is the fumeiro (smokehouse) capital of the Trás-os-Montes region, and it produces some of the best cured meat products in the world. Vinhais sausage is a smoked sausage made with cooked meat of locally raised bísaro pigs, which is only lightly flavored and seasoned with salt, garlic, and paprika. After the meat has been cooked, bread is added to the mixture before it's stuffed into sausage casings. Vinhais sausage has a yellowish-brown color and a very pleasant, uniqe aroma and flavor. Alheira de Vinhais can be eaten fried, oven-roasted, or grilled, and it is typically served with a side of boiled or fried potatoes and cooked vegetables.Expand