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The best foods from Portugal are not only found in the many fantastic restaurants and cafes; you can find them in small family-run eateries, bakeries, and small unassuming places you’re sure to discover along the way.
Whether you’re on a short stopover in the colourful cities of Lisbon, or Porto or planning to explore Portugal independently or even on a group tour, here are some of the best foods from Portugal that you simply shouldn’t miss.
Table of Contents
Let’s start this delicious list of foods from Portugal with a mouthwatering pastry. Pastel de nata is an egg yolk custard tart, a staple Portuguese dessert.
You can find them in bakeries and supermarkets all over Portugal, and if you’re spending a few days seeing the highlights of the beautiful city of Lisbon, be sure to stop by Manteigaria.
This small patisserie bakes the best Pastel de nata we’ve ever tasted. The secret is in the crunchy yet light pastry base.
These yummy tarts are also famous in countries we’ve travelled in that were former Portuguese colonies, such as Brazil, East Timor, Mozambique, and Macau (China).
One thing is sure in Portugal; the Portuguese know how to cook seafood! So this dish that translates into ‘grilled fish’ is just that; a fresh whole fish cooked perfectly over a charcoal grill.
Typically served with boiled potatoes, steamed vegetables, and a freshly dressed, simple salad, Peixe Grelhado is tasty. Fish such as grouper, seabass, and bream are ideal for this cooking style.
Bacalhau means cod in Portuguese, and a bacalhau dish comprises salted and dried cod. The taste is surprisingly sweet, mild, and soft, not salty at all, as many people would guess if you have seen Bacalhau in the markets before it has cooked.
Bacalhau is one of the quintessential foods from Portugal that you shouldn’t miss.
If you ask a local, they’d tell you that this is one of the top foods from Portugal. Furthermore, sardines are available throughout the country, especially in coastal cities and villages, where they’re incredibly fresh.
Sardines are cleaned, seasoned with salt, and then charred whole over an open fire. As a result, they take on a smoky flavour penetrating the sardines, and the inside remains soft.
Sardines are typically served on top of a slice of bread, which soaks up the flavoursome oily fats from the fish. Delicious!
These are the ultimate comfort snack foods from Portugal. You can enjoy these tasty snacks, hot or cold, and the best part is that you can find them at tavernas, delicatessens, patisseries, and small cafés all over Portugal.
Essentially, the ingredients that make Pastéis de Bacalhau are salted codfish, onion, potato, and parsley. Don’t miss them!
Sopa de Pedra is one of the most traditional Portuguese foods. A soup made up of cured meat that is typical of the region (such as sausages such as chouriço and morcela, pork belly and pig’s ear), along with kidney beans, potatoes, and other vegetables.
Caldo Verde is another delicious soup with the core ingredients: potato kale and linguica (cured sausage). Be sure to add this one to your list of foods from Portugal to try. The recipe to make Caldo Verde is simple and doesn’t require much time.
A comforting and filling meal, this is a traditional food from Portugal that hails from the Minho Province in the country’s northern region.
Locals commonly eat this dish at home on Sundays or for special occasions. Arroz de pato is Portugal’s version of a Spanish paella or a flavourful Chinese fried rice.
This tasty dish consists of shredded duck, stock-infused rice, smokey bacon, chouriço, vegetables, and a bunch of aromatic elements to flavour.
It’s a hearty meal and one of my personal favourite foods from Portugal.
Primarily, Bitoque is a lean cut of steak with an egg on top, and it’s often served with salad, rice, and chips. The best part is watching the egg yolk ooze over the steak.
This dish is a typical lunch menu for locals, and you can find it served in many restaurants and small eateries all over Portugal.
A good dish of Bitoque is when the meat cut is quality and it must be cooked just right.
Linguiça is one of the spicy foods from Portugal that you’re going to love. It’s a smoke-cured pork sausage, seasoned with onion, chillis, garlic, paprika and other spices. Some would say that it’s a cousin to the famous chorizo sausage.
Linguica sausage is an essential ingredient in some traditional Portuguese food from Portugal, such as Caldo Verde and Portuguese beans. It’s a much-loved food from Portugal and Brazil too.
Polvo à lagareiro is a delectable Portuguese dish of grilled octopus with smashed potatoes, flavoured in a wonderful herb garlic oil. It doesn’t get much better than this for seafood lovers.
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If you’re craving some tasty vegetarian foods from Portugal, pop this Portuguese snack on your list!
This simple dish consists of sliced-up vegetables that are battered and then deep-fried.
Green beans are the most standard vegetable used for this dish; however, capsicum, and squash are common too.
I like to order them as a snack with a cold beer or wine, although it’s a great starter dish too.
Read more: The Perfect Itinerary for 2 Days in Lisbon
The word Feijoada derives from feijão, or ‘bean’ in Portuguese. Feijoada is one of the traditional foods from Portugal.
Feijoada is a thick and flavourful stew made from beans, pork and beef.
Enjoy this dish in other Portuguese-speaking countries such as Brazil, Angola, Cape Verde, Guinea Bissau, Mozambique, & São Tomé and Príncipe, to name a few, all nations preparing the dish with slight variations.
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Want to enjoy a few sweet types of traditional foods from Portugal? This Portuguese donut is a must-eat! The best part is the ample amounts of a creamy, delicious egg custard filling that oozes out of it when you bite it. It’s remarkable, let me tell you.
Find them sold at patisseries, supermarkets, and small shops, and it’s a popular snack sold by beach vendors too.
Francesinha is a much-loved Portuguese sandwich, said to be invented in Porto. This food fave is a multi-stacked sandwich filled with various types of meat like sausage, ham, chourićo, and steak.
But then, this gigantic sandwich is covered in melted cheese, doused with tangy sauce, and topped with a fried egg!
This dish is a rustic fisherman’s stew that is traditionally cooked in the ‘caldeirada’ or a copper pot. The ingredients depend on what seafood is caught that day. Then, additional ingredients usually include potatoes, vegetables, and spices.
The stew is infused with saffron to give it colour and flavour.
Enjoy it with some crusty Portuguese bread to mop up the delicious broth.
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Carne de Porco à Alentejana is a traditional food from Portugal made from braised cubes of pork, crisp fried potatoes, and fresh clams simmered in white wine sauce.
And yes, it tastes as good as it sounds.
Once the dish has been prepared with the main ingredients, it is then topped with black olives, fresh coriander, and an assortment of pickled cauliflower, carrots, and red capsicum.
Bifana is arguably one of the best sandwiches you’ll taste in the country. The secret is in its simplicity. Slim strips of marinated pork are grilled and served in a white bread roll and then a tasty sauce is added to give it a delicious flavour.
Depending on where you’re eating the bifana, will determine the overall taste.
The secret is in the marinade and how it’s cooked they say. In Porto, the sauce is made from garlic, white wine, and a few spices. If you taste a bifana in the South of Portugal, it’s standard to put yellow mustard on top instead.
Either way, you need to try simple and satisfying foods from Portugal. Find these yummy sandwiches in snack bars and cafes for around €2.
Piri Piri chicken is one of the classic foods from Portugal.
A whole butterflied chicken is marinated in olive oil, secret seasonings, and crushed piri-piri peppers and then grilled over charcoal to create some of the best-roasted chicken you’ve ever eaten. Don’t miss it!
To complete this list of foods in Portugal to try, let’s finish with a popular Portuguese breakfast dish. The Pão de Deus, or ‘the bread of God,’ combines a soft brioche bun with a mixture of eggs and desiccated coconut.
The dough typically has rum or vanilla, and lemon zest to flavour. The buns are baked until the top is crisp and golden.
These sweet breakfast snacks are perfect for enjoying alongside a strong Portuguese coffee or tea.
If your plan is to explore more of Europe after you’ve had the best time in Portugal, then you’re in luck! We love this region of the world, and we’ve got some great tips for you. Check out our ULTIMATE Packing List for Europe for starters.
For the food lovers out there, you’ll love reading about all the new foods you can taste with our Complete Food Map of Europe! And if you’re wondering how to find the best food when travelling, this post we wrote has some great tips.
Are you travelling on a budget? These 10 Cheapest Countries in Europe to Visit may be just the tool you need to start planning an epic trip.
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2 Comments. Leave new
For those in Melbourne, there is a Portugese van often parked outside of the National Gallery of Victoria which makes the best Portugese Tarts
Great tip! Thanks Rob, we’ll be sure to check that one out too 😉