Happy World Cup, all! I’ve enjoyed the matches so far. I didn’t see the Netherlands destroying Spain 5-1 coming at all. I was also thrilled to see the U.S beat Ghana 2-1 after losing to them in the last 2 world cups.

In honor of the host country, Brazil, I made a batch of the country’s national dish, Feijoada. Everyone’s recipe is a little different but it always includes black beans, rice and several type of meat, ideally smoked and garnished with orange slices. At my grocery store, the oranges looked rather sad so it’s instead topped with green onions. For the meat I chose double smoked kielbasy and Mexican chorizo. To elevate the spice I also added in chopped jalapenos. Traditionally, the dish is served with a bitter green. In this case I made some sauteed kale seasoned with butter, garlic, salt and pepper.

Servings: 4
Ingredients:
1 can dried black beans or 1 can *
6 garlic cloves, minced
½ onion, chopped
1 chorizo, chopped bite size
1 cup smoked kielbasy, chopped bite size
½ jalapeno, chopped small
salt to taste
pepper to taste
green onion for garnish
*note that using can will cut the cook time by 1/4th

Method:
In a deep pot brown garlic, onions, bay leaves and jalapenos for 5-7 minutes on medium heat. Add in meats and allow to cook for about 5 minutes until darkened. Now toss in salt, pepper, beans and 5 cups of water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer and cover. Cook until beans are tender, about 3 hours. Note: If using canned black beans, it only needs to cook for 45 minutes or so. Serve hot with rice and kale on the side. Hot sauce is also a must.