Brazilian Food

A beautifully photographed cookbook by acclaimed chef Thiago Castanho and food writer Luciana Bianchi, featuring more than 100 recipes that span the enormous breadth of Brazilian cuisine. The book includes contributions from guest chefs across the country, giving it a depth and regional range that few single-author books can match.

Why Start Here

If you already have some kitchen confidence and want to understand Brazilian cooking at a deeper level, this is the book that will take you there. Castanho grew up in Para state in the Amazon region and inherited a 40-year culinary tradition from his father, who turned their living room into a restaurant. That background gives the book an authenticity that extends far beyond the usual Rio and Sao Paulo focus.

The chapters cover small bites, street food, fish and seafood, meat and poultry, and a dedicated section on fire and grill cooking. You get recipes for moqueca de peixe, vatapa, acaraje, picanha on the grill, and a range of dishes from the Amazon that rarely appear in English-language cookbooks. Guest chefs including Roberta Sudbrack and Rodrigo Oliveira contribute recipes from their own regions, broadening the scope even further.

The photography by Rogerio Voltan was shot on location across Brazil, and the book reads as both a cookbook and a visual journey through the country’s food culture.

What to Expect

A substantial hardcover at 256 pages with full-color photography throughout. The recipes are more ambitious than a typical beginner book: some require specialty ingredients and multi-step preparation. This is the book you move to once you have the basics down and want to explore the regional diversity that makes Brazilian cooking one of the world’s great culinary traditions.