This Creamy Rice Pudding Is a Staple at Portuguese Parties

Chef Leandro Carreira’s new cookbook proves Portugal is more than port and custard tarts.

Rice Pudding
Rice Pudding | Photo by Mário Ambrózio and Rafael Rodrigues at Raw Studio
Rice Pudding | Photo by Mário Ambrózio and Rafael Rodrigues at Raw Studio

Leandro Carreira isn’t one of those chefs who has always loved food from a young age. In fact, growing up on the west coast of the Algarve in Portugal, he doesn’t have the fondest memories of his family boiling fish heads, salting pig bones, slowly curing meats, and fermenting pastes.

“As kids, we were like, ‘Wow this stinks, it smells so bad,’” he remembers with a laugh. “But those techniques of curing, marinating, and slow fermenting really helped dishes. Poor people were incredibly creative and came up with some of the best Portuguese dishes ever.”

Those memories of smelly fish broth and reusing leftover bread are translated into dishes like Açorda, a signature Portuguese soup, and one of more than 550 recipes in Carreria’s massive undertaking, Portugal the Cookbook, debuting on May 4.

“I never in my wildest dreams thought I’d write a book,” he says. “But I’ve been traveling for so long and left Portugal so many years ago, that it made me appreciate how great Portugal can be. I got to get back in touch with my own country from the inside and I couldn’t stop digging.”

Indeed, Carreira’s cooking career has taken him to Japan, the Basque region of Spain, and eventually London, where he opened his first restaurant, Londrino, in 2017, and started his current chef’s table project, The Sea, The Sea, late last year.

His travels and work helped him make connections between seemingly disparate cuisines, like how famed Portuguese sponge cake is similar to Japanese kasutera or how one recipe in his book for Battered Green Beans is inspired by tempura.

“I think people forget that the Portuguese were once immense traders and explorers. We went pretty much everywhere and took a lot of things with us,” he says. “They think of us as this little country in western Europe known for port and custard tarts. But we have an insane culinary landscape, deeply rooted in influences from the Middle East, Africa, and Asia.”

Portugal the Cookbook
Portugal the Cookbook | Photo by Mário Ambrózio and Rafael Rodrigues at Raw Studio

Carreira hopes his cookbook can help further broaden people’s perspectives about his home country, something he’s been seeing a growing interest in over the past 15 years. He’s noticed that tourists are now exploring areas outside of Lisbon to the south and Porto to the north, realizing the entire country has something to offer.

Every recipe in the book specifies the region where it originated and Carreira says some good starting points include the Turnip Tops with Corn Porridge (from Beira Alta), Pig’s Ear Salad with white wine vinegar (from Leiria), Pork Loin Preserved in Pork Fat and Paprika (from Algarve), or the more unique Salt Cod Bladder Stew with White Beans (from Beira Litoral).

The dessert section, of course, features the famed custard tarts and many variations of sponge cake, which Carreira says have become industries all their own. But not as well-known is how beloved rice pudding is in Portuguese culture—a comfort food served at parties and weddings across many regions.

“Short-grain rice is cooked gently in milk on the stove, with or without egg yolks,” he writes. “It can be very sweet or just a little, and served either creamier or more set, warm or cold. It is typically decorated with a dusting of ground cinnamon, sometimes with initials or elaborate drawings.”

A second recipe in the book features a rice pudding variation that includes the addition of egg whites, which get whisked into a meringue then broiled on top of the pudding until golden brown.

“I had actually never heard of this and came across this with a friend,” Carreira says. “Instead of just a one-dimensional rice pudding, you end up with extra fluffiness at the top. I’m a very textural person and this recipe has everything: gooey, chewy, creamy, and moist. This has it all.”

Rice Pudding or Arroz Doce from Beira Litoral

Yield: 4 Servings

Ingredients:
• ¾ cup short-grain rice, preferably Carolino
• 1¼ cups plus 4 teaspoons whole milk
• pared rind of 1 lemon
• 6 ounces caster (superfine) sugar
• ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon sea salt

Directions:
1. Bring 1 cup plus 2 teaspoons of water to the boil with a pinch of salt in a medium saucepan. Add the rice, reduce the heat to low and cook for 6 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, bring the milk and lemon rind to the boil in a separate saucepan, then remove from the heat.
3. While stirring, gradually add the warm milk to the rice, keeping the temperature low so the rice cooks evenly. Cook over a low heat for 30 minutes, stirring, until the rice is soft. Still stirring, add the sugar. At this point you should have a creamy rice pudding.
4. Remove and discard the lemon rind and pour into a serving dish. Dust cinnamon over the top before serving.

Baked Rice Pudding with Egg Whites or Arroz Doce com Claras from Lisbon

Yield: 5 servings

Ingredients:
• pared rind of 2 lemons
• ⅔ cup short-grain rice, preferably Carolino
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 cups plus 1 tablespoon whole (full-fat) milk
• 4 egg yolks
• 1 cup plus 4 teaspoons caster (superfine) sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 3 egg whites
• sea salt

Directions:
1. Preheat the oven with the grill (broiler) to 400°F.
2. Put 2¾ cups of water, the lemon rind and a pinch of salt into a large saucepan and bring to the boil. Add the rice, stir, reduce the heat to medium and cook for 15 minutes, or until soft. Add the butter, mix in, then gradually add the milk. Remove from the heat and leave to cool to room temperature.
3. Meanwhile, put the egg yolks into a small bowl and whisk lightly with a fork. Once the rice mixture is at room temperature, add the egg yolks, then cook over a low heat for 10 minutes, or until very creamy. Add ¾ cup plus 2 teaspoons of the sugar and stir well.
4. Pour the rice into an ovenproof dish and sprinkle with the cinnamon.
5. Put the egg whites into a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment and whisk until soft peaks form. While whisking, gradually add the remaining ⅓ cup sugar. Alternatively, whisk the egg whites in a large bowl with electric beaters.
6. Spoon the meringue over the rice to cover, then grill (broil) for 25 minutes, or until golden brown.

Excerpted (or adapted) from Portugal: The Cookbook © 2022 by Leandro Carreira. Reproduced by permission of Phaidon. All rights reserved.

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Jess Mayhugh is the editorial director of Food & Drink for Thrillist. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram.