Foodstuffs

Portugal has found us experiencing some seriously good, and unusual, eats.

During our stay at Auberge da Bojardim, we accepted our host's recommendation to eat at one of her favourite restaurants in the nearby village of Serta.

We were warmly greeted by our waiter and immediately offered bread as well as various appetizers (for which you are charged if you accept).  The appetizers included mixed sausages, eggs scrambled with flour, a cod medley, and mussels (sans shell).

With the aid of Google on the restaurant's computer terminal, our waiter gamely proceeded to interpret the menu into English for us. After determining which dishes aptly represented the region, I bravely chose Maranho (stuffed pig's stomach) and bucho recheado(cod, pork, and rice encased in intestine).

Now, I know what you're thinking (and perhaps you're right): I really should have gone for the stuffed goat's snout - but, sometimes you just aren't in the mood for haute cuisine.

Kristine went out on a culinary limb and ordered...the salmon. Ooookay then.

When dinner came, it came large. Our meals arrived on heavily laden platters from which our waiter filled our plates, leaving sufficient food for us to immediately realize that we should have just shared one entree.

Kristine's salmon steak appeared to have possibly originated from a species of giant salmon not familiar to North Americans. It filled her dinner plate, competing for space with mounds of frites and wilted Swiss chard (or it may have been cabbage - it was good whatever it was).

My dinner was definitely unique. The pig stomach was stuffed with chicken, similar to southern pulled pork. It was quite tasty and tender, having cooked itself to a mouth-melting consistency in the pig stomach. The stuffed intestine (cod and pork), was drier, but very flavourful and my favourite of the two.

Desert was shared and undertaken with great care, given our extremely full stomachs. Kristine preferred the tigelada beira, a custard pudding baked in an earthenware casserole dish, whereas I enjoyed Portuguese creme caramel.

This was a marvelous meal that, with wine, came in for under 30 euros. Good value and superb quality.

We went back two nights later...!