The best Brazilian side dishes are full of flavor, color, and texture! From creamy Brazilian beans and fluffy garlic rice to crispy pão de queijo and savory farofa, these traditional Brazilian recipes are delicious ways to bring a taste of Brazil to your table. Whether you're serving grilled meat, chicken, or fish, you'll find the perfect sides to complete your meal.
When you think of Brazilian food, grilled meats might be the first thing that comes to mind. But some of the most delicious parts of a Brazilian meal are the side dishes! From creamy beans and fluffy rice to crispy cheese bread, savory farofa, and fresh tomato salad, Brazilian sides bring so much flavor and variety to the table. After living in São Paulo with my family, I fell in love with the variety of dishes served alongside the main course, and I'm excited to share some of my favorites with you.
Whether you're cooking a Brazilian-inspired dinner at home or exploring Brazilian cuisine for the first time, these recipes are a great place to start. You'll find traditional favorites, comforting classics, and easy vegetable sides that pair beautifully with steak, chicken, pork, or fish. Pick one or two to round out your next dinner, or mix and match a few for a Brazilian-style feast!
Find out more about my experience living in Brazil and cooking Brazilian food. Then enjoy your journey below through some of the most delicious side dishes.
Jump to:
- 1. Feijão: Brazilian Beans Recipe
- 1. Brazilian Arroz Pilaf ~ Biro Biro with Bacon, Egg, and more
- 3. Gluten Free Brazilian Cheese Bread ~ Pāo de queijo
- 4. Brazilian Farofa Recipe
- 5. Sauteed Kale with Bacon and Garlic {Couve à Mineira}
- 6. Carioca Beans ~ Dutch Oven Pinto Beans
- 7. Brazilian Potato Salad with Carrots and Olives
- 8. Brazilian Rice {with Onions and Garlic}
- 8. Tomato and Onion Salad or Sauce
- 9. Brazilian Cilantro Chimichurri Recipe
- 10. Crispy Breaded Okra
- Related
1. Feijão: Brazilian Beans Recipe
These Brazilian Black Beans, known as Feijão, are an absolutely delicious traditional dish in Brazil. The slow cooker makes it incredibly easy and allows all of the meat, onion, cilantro, and garlic flavors to cook into the beans for a distinctive, thick, saucy, hearty dish. Serve of rice for a delicious meal or side dish.
1. Brazilian Arroz Pilaf ~ Biro Biro with Bacon, Egg, and more
This Arroz Pilaf (also called Biro Biro) is a delicious recipe that gives plain rice, a staple in Brazil, so much flavor and texture! The rice is first sauteed in the bacon fat with onion and garlic, then cooked in broth for incredible depth of flavor. Then all sorts of goodness is added in to the fluffy rice! Arroz Pilaf has many different variations depending on the region or family traditions. This recipe is inspired by the versions that I have enjoyed here in São Paulo. It includes bacon bits, carrots, cilantro, and egg bringing color, texture, and taste bud delight with each bite!
3. Gluten Free Brazilian Cheese Bread ~ Pāo de queijo
Pāo de queijo, or gluten free Brazilian Cheese Bread puffs or balls are perhaps the most popular food to come out of Brazil. And it's no surprise!! They are absolutely delicious with a crisp ouside and the most soft, chewy, cheesy center. You start and just cannot stop. And they are gluten free, so if that happens to be a benefit to you, there you go!
4. Brazilian Farofa Recipe
Farofa is a very traditional side in Brazil with smokey bacon, salty calabrese sausage, sweet carrots, briny and salty olives, and aromatic onions and garlic. I's served with feijao (beans), meats, rice, and more. In this Brazilian Farofa recipe, it's used as a stuffing for turkey, which is also a very traditional use at Christmas, called Farofa de Natal.
5. Sauteed Kale with Bacon and Garlic {Couve à Mineira}
Kale with Bacon and Garlic is so easy but so incredibly delicious! This recipe, known as Couve Mineira in Portuguese, is a traditional dish in Brazil. Shredded kale cooks up so tender. The bacon gives it that familiar smoky and salty flavor. The garlic fills the air with delectable aroma and pungent flavor. It's a perfect veggie side dish for just about any dinner.
6. Carioca Beans ~ Dutch Oven Pinto Beans
These Carioca Beans, or Dutch oven Pinto Beans, are one of the most delicious side dishes from Brazil. They are creamy, rich, hearty, salty, and utterly delicious. The are cooked very similarly to other bean dishes, with traditional ingredients. Garlic, onion, cilantro, and pork fat (bacon in this instance) are the primary flavor enhancers. It's easy to make and tastes amazing!
7. Brazilian Potato Salad with Carrots and Olives
Creamy, hearty, fresh, and delicious! This Brazilian Potato Salad is a unique version that you will absolutely love! What makes the Brazilian recipe different is that you see carrots, olives, and cilantro. They bring salty and fresh bright flavor that you normally do not get in a the American version. The carrots are terrific for crunch and the scallions bring that slight onion note. You will fall in love with this recipe and add it to any dinner, picnic, or barbeque menu!
8. Brazilian Rice {with Onions and Garlic}
Brazilian Rice is a more flavorful version of white rice that has just a couple additional steps. You simply sauté garlic and onion with a little olive oil in the pot first. Then add the rice and mix it with the onion and garlic to allow the rice to absorb all of that goodness. Then add water and cook completely. You will never want to eat plain white rice again! Pair it with anything you would normally use rice with.
8. Tomato and Onion Salad or Sauce
Tomato and Onion Sauce or Salad is so easy to make, but really tastes amazing. It's called Molho a Campanha in Portuguese, which translates to a sauce of vinegar or vinaigrette. The tomatoes and basil are bright and fresh and the onions are mellowed out in the sweet and tangy vinaigrette. It compliments steak, chicken, fish, veggies, and more!
9. Brazilian Cilantro Chimichurri Recipe
This Cilantro Chimichurri recipe is herby, fresh, tangy, salty, slightly sour, slightly sweet, and incredibly delicious! Cilantro is a traditional ingredient in Brazilian cuisine. It's added to so many recipes either fresh or cooked. This Chimichurri is so simple to make in a food processor in just minutes. You will want to have it on hand for topping grilled meats, adding to veggies, mixing into salads, dipping a crusty bread into, adding to pasta, and so much more!
10. Crispy Breaded Okra
Okra grows in warmer climates, so it's in abundance in Brazil. With just a few simple steps you can take okra from slimy to crunchy! On the outside, you get a crispy crunchy layer and a soft and tender inside. These are perfect for a small family snack, a dinner, reception, party, or game day snack. Serve these yummy, crunchy little guys with your favorite dipping sauce.
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