What to eat

Açorda If you are a soup lover, you must taste this typical soup prepared with large pieces of bread, garlic, olive oil, savory and a poached egg, the whole served in very hot water. Espetada em Pau de Louro It is one of the main traditional Madeiran dishes and one that you always find in popular festivals all over the island. It is meat, usually beef, cut into cubes and put on a laurel stick. The meat is prepared with salt and garlic over a wood fire. Filete de Espada com Banana Frita Fishing has always been one of the region’s main economic activities and fish has a particular place in Madeiran cuisine. One of the most typical fish dishes is Peixe-Espada com Banana that combines scabbard fish fillets with the island’s most representative tropical fruit. Carne de Vinho e Alhos This is a specialty of Madeiran cuisine which consists of small fried chunks of pork that are left to soak for a couple of days in a jar filled with vinegar, laurel and garlic and then fried. Milho cozido ou frito Boiled cornmeal like polenta or sliced and cut into cubes and fried, it is usually served as a side dish with tuna fish steak, although it also goes well with other fish or meat dishes. Bolo do Caco In spite of the word bolo, the Portuguese word for cake, it is a flat bread very popular on the island. It is best eaten warm with garlic and parsley butter. Bolo de Mel It is traditionally made on Christmas and is the oldest and the most representative example of Madeiran pastry. Its origin dates back to the time when the island was an important sugar producer. It is prepared with sugarcane honey, flour, anise, bread dough, cinnamon, nuts, almonds, candied fruit, among other possible ingredients and can last up to one year. According to tradition it must never be cut with a knife but by hand so as to better preserve its flavour. Broas de Mel These cookies are made with sugar-cane honey, like the bolo de mel, flour, butter, sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg. They are small-sized cookies that go well with tea, coffee or even with a fine liqueur. Queijadas Small pies prepared with cottage cheese, eggs and sugar. They are a reference among Madeira pastry. Pudim de Maracujá Delight in tasting this delicious combination of cream with condensed milk and the bitter pulp of the local passion fruit. Rebuçados de Funcho e Eucalipto Traditional tubular chunks of candy in two flavours: fennel and eucaliptus. They are wrapped in confectioners’ sugar so that they do not glue to one another and are often used to combat cough.