If you’re thinking mixing pork and fish in one meal sounds strange, this isn’t a meal. This is an experience. And it’s all about market life, seasonal Portuguese products, and tips on the proper way to peel the garlic and chop an onion.
According to Ana, Lisbon has a network of 13 markets (not including the themed/branded Time Out Market at Ribeira, Cais do Sodré). Near Saldanha, the 31 de Janeiro is the closest one to the Lisbon Cooking Academy, less than 10 minutes away within walking distance.
An insider’s tip: the restaurant on the first floor (called Casa do Peixe) serves mainly fish (but has some meat options available on the menu, too), all purchased at the market downstairs.
Inside the market, fascinated by all the fruits and vegetables’ vibrant colors, we talked about which products were in season (or soon to be out of season) and the difference between a local apple and an imported one. If you spot shiny apples, it means they’ve been waxed and polished and, almost every time, they’re not local.
The ceiling light bounced off those snow-white-like red apples in a way that it was impossible to make a mistake. Then again, we weren’t there for the fruit.
Our first stop: pork.
There are many pork recipes in Portugal – it’s cheaper than beef but not as cheap as chicken. Traditionally, growing a pig (yes, to later slaughter) is relatively common and a sure investment in rural parts of the country. You see, every single inch of the pig can be transformed into some kind of food (except maybe the bladder).
Can you imagine having your own supply of meat all year-long without ever going to a supermarket? Well, if you don’t mind living only off pork, that is.
As the butcher browsed the pieces of meat in the refrigerated counter, pinkish under the neon lights, he asked what dish we were cooking. He needed to assess how much fat to trim.
For our sautéed pork Alentejo-style (without the clams), the fatter, the better, so the meat doesn’t dry out too fast when cooking (pork has to be extremely well cooked).
After butchering the meat to cubes, a look at the scale tells us we’re 100 grams over what we asked, but we agreed to take it anyway – what’s 100 grams more of high-quality meat anyway?