It has taken a half Finnish, half Cypriot food writer to do Portuguese cuisine some justice
IF IT WASN'T for the chillies, Tessa Kiros's new book, Piri Piri Starfish, could almost have been set in Ireland rather than Portugal. This handsome new volume from the writer of some of the most inspiring cookbooks features recipes for hearty soups and stews; and casseroled, grilled and roasted meats. Pork may be used instead of ham, but cabbages and potatoes are there in abundance. And there is a pineapple cake that is a near cousin of the syrupy, upside-down pineapple cake of many an Irish Sunday lunch table - minus the glacé cherries.
But, together with the familiar, there is an exotic twist to this collection of recipes. Piri piri, the Portugese hot chilli condiment, in oil or powder form, is added to almost everything. Pickles and vinegar are used as "sour" notes. There are some unusual flavour combinations such as coffee with steak, and an ever-present love affair with the bounty of the sea, octopus and sardines in particular.
Kiros, who was born in London to a Finnish mother and a Greek-Cypriot father, was brought up in South Africa, and has called London, Sydney and Mexico her home at various stages. She is now living la dolce vita in Tuscany with her husband Giovanni and their two young daughters. Her previous books are highly personal memoirs, in which she draws heavily on her diverse culinary heritage. And for Piri Piri Starfish, Kiros heads to Portugal, en famille, to soak up the sounds, smells and tastes of a cuisine that while not altogether new to her - "my appreciation of Portuguese food started in South Africa, where it seeped through from Mozambique" - impressed and charmed her.
"We all went to Portugal for the summer, including my Mom, who came along too, to help. We were there for about two and a half months," she says. The roadtrip covered all of mainland Portugal and the island of São Miguel in the Azores. "All of Portugal was so different. I loved the north, the Atlantic, also Porto, Lisbon, Alentejo, Tavira in the Algarve - I was surprised how much I loved the sea in the Algarve."
Along the way, Kiros talked her way into domestic and professional kitchens, and learned, as she always has, by watching good cooks at work. The Portuguese opened their homes and their hearts to her.
"They were incredibly welcoming, and thrilled to really show me what was going on, even though it was difficult to communicate. Most times, even in the hotel in Lisbon, I would ask how something was done, and the next day I would get it, written down, from them."
From many memorable meals eaten along the way, Kiros singles out "the wonderful mixed fish grills in the Algarve, which sum up the Portuguese way of eating . . . a great mixed grill of fresh fish with piri piri, buttery garlicky oil, potatoes and bread, together with a mixture of music and the noise of children playing, unmatched plates, and a lady slapping more freshly grilled fish on to my grilled bread."
A cozido, or mixed meat dish, eaten in the Azores was another highlight. "It's most often boiled, but we ate it in Furnas on the island of São Miguel in the Azores, where it is cooked in the earth, from the heat of the volcanic lava." The island, as well as its food, seems to have made an indelible impression.
"A mixture of blue, blue sea everywhere, exotic greens, sulphur, morning mists in a totally surreal village, completely unique and amazing, with different sounds, silences and smells than anywhere else," is how she describes it.
Asked which recipes from Piri Piri Starfishbest sum up her interpretation of Portuguese cooking, Kiros reels off grilled sardines; prego rolls (a sort of steak sandwich); crème caramel; baccala (salt cod) with eggs; pork and clams with coriander; piri piri and lemon butter grilled prawns; piri piri grilled chicken; caldo verde (potato and cabbage soup); and the pineapple cake. To those, I would add seafood in cataplana (catapana being the copper pot in which the fish and shellfish stew is cooked); pasteis de nata (custard tarts for which she says shop-bought puff pastry will work fine); and a gorgeous pale pink ice-cream made with port.
Portuguese cuisine hasn't shared in the popularity currently enjoyed by Spain. Perhaps it is a bit old-fashioned, too heavily reliant on those cabbages and potatoes? "Rather than old-fashioned, I like to see it as traditional," she says.
Traditional it may be, but there's nothing bland about Portuguese cooking, or about this lovely, stylish book, which bears all the hallmarks of being another successful collaboration between Kiros and the artistic team who have shaped all four of her books.
"We are the same team since the very start. Michail [Touros, the stylist and illustrator] is a friend from birth. He introduced me years ago to Manos [Chatzikonstantis, the photographer]. And my friend Lisa [Greenwood, art director], living in Toronto, offered to help me on my first book. It is quite amazing, actually that we have stayed together.
"When we meet, we all do our thing and the books come together. We all believe in sticking with something that works. I think the design is fundamental to the book. It's the first and the last thing you see. It either makes it work or it doesn't." Piri Piri Starfish, part travel memoir, part recipe collection, is firmly in the former camp. It works both visually and as a reliable reference source. Plus there are plenty of recipes in it that you'll want to cook, immediately, in addition to booking a flight to Portugal.
Kiros, who says she finds her inspiration anywhere and everywhere - "places, people mainly, doing what they are doing and loving it" - is working on her next book, "on beautiful Venice", which is due out later this year.
Piri Piri Starfish ... Portugal Found, by Tessa Kiros is published by Murdoch Books next Tuesday (£22.50)
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