In the streets of the historical center of Recife it is very easy to find these true delicious called "Acarajé" by the Bahians who are women dressed in traditional African clothes specialized in making this delicacy of the Afro-Brazilian cuisine.

Acarajé is a word that was adapted by Africans who came slaves to Brazil in the XVIII century and who in the African language Yoruba is called "Akaráje", "Akara" means "Fireball" (perhaps it is because of the pepper that is the final touch of this delicious and that really burns like fire) and "Je" that means to eat. Putting the words together is like "Eat Fireball 🔥⚽️."

On Sunday, a rather busy day at Recife's Marco Zero, after I and @cleateles visited the First Synagogue of the Americas at Street of the Jews (you can see this post here), the hunger hit us and we went to one of those stalls that sell Acarajé. Arriving there the Bahiana soon posed and asked for me to take a photo.😃📷

Before we eat the acarajé itself, we have to understand how the acarajé is prepared...

The mixture or mass used to make our "Fireball" is quite simple. It is the mixture of peeled white bean "fradinho" (a white bean very common in Brazil), water, salt and grated onion. After making this mixture of ingredients it is necessary to beat the dough which can be either in the blender or in the traditional way inside some container and with a wooden spoon as the Bahiana is making it down until the dough stay homogeneous.

After the dough is prepared, the Bahiana make some balls with the help of a spoon and in the support of the wooden spoon and is gradually placing in the hot frying pan already with the "Dendê", a type of olive oil originating from a seed of the same name (another delicacy that have here) and let the ball roast for at least 5 minutes (The first cover image shows the Acarajés being fried ☝️).

After roasting, it gradually removes the balls, dripping the oil, placing in another container with napkin to be able to remove the excess oil and that is what comes the final and more special part that is the filling of the Acarajé.

Here we can see the Bahiana putting the sauces that make up the final part of the acarajé preparation and the filling is a delight😛.

The Acarajé filling is composed of"Vatapá" (a type of cream made with ground shrimp and added to it skimmed milk, tomato, onion and salt), "Caruru" (a stew of okra), shrimp and a simple salad made with green tomato and onion. The final touch is the chilli pepper that makes the Acarajé "catch fire"🔥.

It can be served in the traditional way that is the ball cut in half and stuffed or in the dish, where the bahiana cuts the ball into pieces and puts the fillings. We prefer to eat on the plate, because it serves us both well.

If you ever come to Recife and eat Acarajé, the price is cheap and it feeds very well. In the traditional way Acarajé costs 10 BRL (US $ 3.00) and the dish costs 13 BRL (US $ 3.20 more or less).

How could it not be, my accompaniment to eat this delicious delicacy of African and Brazilian cuisine was my delicious Heineken (I Love All This So Much!😍🍻)

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Stay tuned to the next chapters of my "Walking in the City", sure enough many stories, culture and curiosities about my city I will tell you here on my blog.

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Thanks for reading my post!

Obrigado por ter lido o meu post!

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All photos are signed in ©, are my own and taken with my camera Sony Alpha ILCE 3500📷

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