Bifanas à Moda do Porto (Porto-Style Pork Sandwiches)
- Prep
- 15 min
- Total
- 2 h 15 min
- Servings
- 6
Porto-style bifanas are different from the bifanas of the south. Instead of being fried, thin slices of pork stew slowly in a sauce of beer, wine, tomato and piri-piri until they almost fall apart. They’re served in a roll with the inside dipped in the sauce.
Every region has its own bifana. In the Alentejo, especially in Vendas Novas, the pork is fried in lard with garlic and served plain. In Porto, tascas and bifana shops keep a pot of meat stewing all day in a dark, spicy sauce, and you order one at the counter with an imperial (a small draft beer) at any hour.
Recipe
Bifanas à Moda do Porto
Very thin pork slices stewed in a beer, wine and tomato sauce until tender, served in a crusty roll dipped in the sauce. The street sandwich of the north.
Ingredients
Method
- 1Ask the butcher to slice the pork very thin, on the ham slicer. If you slice it at home, freeze the meat slightly first so it's easier to cut thin.
- 2In a wide pan, heat the olive oil and the lard. Add the chopped onion, the garlic and the bay leaves and cook until the onion is translucent.
- 3Add the tomato passata, the paprika and the chili. Stir and cook for 3 to 4 minutes.
- 4Add the meat and stir well, letting it color all over.
- 5Pour in the beer, the white wine and the port and stir. The meat should be almost covered by the liquid. Season with salt.
- 6When it starts to boil, turn the heat to the lowest setting, cover and let it stew slowly for about 1½ to 2 hours.
- 7Halfway through, stir so the slices don't stick together. The meat should start to break apart against the spoon. If the sauce gets too dry, add a little more beer or water.
- 8When the sauce is thick and rich and the meat very tender, turn off the heat.
- 9Cut the rolls in half, pulling out a little of the crumb if you like. Dip the cut side of the top half in the sauce, fill with plenty of meat and sauce, close and serve right away.
Tips
Give the stew time: an hour and a half to two hours on the lowest heat, covered, is what makes the meat tender. Stir now and then so the slices don’t stick together.
The port gives the sauce depth and a touch of sweetness. Adjust the piri-piri to whoever is eating, or leave it out and put hot sauce on the bread instead.
Dip the bread. Running the inside of the roll through the sauce before filling it is what makes a Porto bifana.
The stew is even better the next day. Reheat it over low heat with a splash of water or beer.
