Book of Days Tales

Today is the Day of Saudade in Brazil.  I’ll try to unpack the concept a little. The word “saudade” has no equivalent in English, and its meaning is complicated in Portuguese. It is something like nostalgia, but more nuanced. It is a feeling of emptiness when you miss someone or something that is a mix of sadness and joy. Saudade was once described as the love that remains after someone is gone. Saudade is the recollection of feelings, experiences, places, or events that once brought excitement, pleasure, well-being, which now triggers the senses and makes one live again. It can be described as an emptiness, like someone (e.g., one’s children, parents, sibling, grandparents, friends, pets) or something (e.g., places, things one used to do in childhood, or other activities performed in the past) that should be there in a particular moment is missing, and the individual feels this absence. It brings sad and happy feelings together: sadness for missing and happiness for experiencing the past.

Since saudade is strongly associated with missing one’s homeland, foods can be a part of the feeling. I’ve often had a hankering for a certain food, not just because of the taste, but also because of all the associations that go along with that dish. In the late 1960s I loved the steak and kidney pies that the landlady of my local pub made, and those days are gone along with the pies. In Argentina I used to spend idle nights conjuring up the hot pastrami on rye sandwiches I used to get on the lower East Side of New York with my girlfriend (I also used to miss lox and bagels).

A Brazilian friend living in New York suggested that I give a recipe for coxinhas (Brazilian Chicken Croquettes). This is a popular snack in Brazil. They make great finger food for parties.

Ingredients

Filling:

2 small skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1 cup chicken broth, or more as needed
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 onion, chopped
5 chopped green olives, or to taste
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
salt and pepper to taste

Pastry:

2 cups chicken broth
2 tablespoons butter
salt to taste
2 cups all-purpose flour

Breading:

1 cup all-purpose flour
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup dry bread crumbs

oil for frying

Instructions

Combine chicken breasts and 1 cup chicken broth in a pot over medium heat. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover, and simmer until chicken is cooked through, 20 to 30 minutes. Keep checking that there is enough liquid in the pot and add more broth if necessary. Remove the chicken from the pot, allow to cool briefly, and shred with 2 forks.

Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat and cook the onion until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add shredded chicken, olives, and parsley. Stir well and season with salt and pepper. Remove filling from heat and set aside.

Heat 2 cups chicken broth and butter in a large saucepan over medium heat; season with salt and bring to a simmer. Add flour all at once and stir to form a thick paste. Stir vigorously until mixture is smooth and no longer sticks to the bottom of the pan. Remove from heat and let pastry cool.

Once the pastry is cool enough to handle, transfer to an oiled work surface and knead until smooth, 2 to 3 minutes.

Take a portion of pastry and roll it into a golf ball-sized ball. Stick an oiled finger into the center of the ball and press edges to create a small bowl. Stuff with 2 teaspoons chicken filling and gather top edges to seal, rolling into a teardrop shape. Set the croquette aside and cover with a damp towel. Repeat with remaining pastry and filling.

Set out 3 bowls in the following order: flour, beaten eggs, bread crumbs. Roll each croquette in flour, then dip in egg, then cover in breadcrumbs.

Heat the oil for frying in a large saucepan or deep fryer to 350° F/175° C. Fry the croquettes in batches, until golden brown on all sides, 7 to 10 minutes. Remove from the oil and drain on paper towels.