BRAZILIAN FLAVOURS IN CANADA
BRAZILIAN FOOD
Changing countries means living a new reality, which includes one of the habits that most reflect our culture: the food. Talking about Brazilians, many would say that these habits go through the classic rice and beans, not forgetting, of course, the barbecue and the feijoada.
The good news is that thousands of Brazilians living outside Brazil, especially those who have adopted major world capitals such as Paris, London or Rome, do not need to change eating habits and give up Brazilian products – except if they want. It is easy to find local businesses that sell rice, beans, meat, items for feijoada, guarana and many other Brazilian products in all these cities, or even steak houses and typical restaurants.
TORONTO
In Toronto, for example, in Little Portugal, one can find a number of Brazilian products, not to mention restaurants whose menu includes dishes such as feijoada, barbecue and many other typical of Brazil.
“There are some Brazilian restaurants such as the Rio 40 Graus, Sabor Brazil and Brazilian Star Bar”, says Vivian Canoletti, from Santa Catarina. She has been living in Toronto for only three months, but already misses some flavors. “I miss Minas cheese, requeijão (a kind of cream cheese) and Bis (chocolate)”, she says.
The youtuber Ana Durand (De Boa no Canadá), from the South of Brazil and living in Winnipeg, misses a pretty typical product, which probably many Brazilians have never experienced. “I miss pine nuts” she says.
Ana has been living in Canada for 1 year and 6 months, and except for the pine nuts she managed to keep her eating habits. “I had no difficulties in my food adaptation, quite the contrary. Brazilian habits are similar to that of the US. Also, we love to vary the menu and this Winnipeg gives us excellently. Here we find Chinese, Indian, Pakistani, Vietnamese, African, Latin (Uruguay and Argentina), French and Japanese restaurants … and many others”.
What about that urge to eat something very Brazilian, like pão de queijo (cheese bread), for example? Ana goes to a Portuguese market. “It is easy to find in Winnipeg guaraná and a mix to prepare cheese bread, corn flour, rice and Brazilian coffees,” she tells. Mandy, from the famous YouTube channel Mandy e Mais no Canadá, completed in Canada her transition to a vegetarian diet to a vegan diet. “I believe that this transition has been easier here because there are many more options than in Brazil, including a great vegan food festival in Toronto, the largest in North America”, she says.
Very attentive to consuming, Mandy prefers organic and fair trade products. “I do not drink coffee in large networks, for example, and do my shopping in local supermarkets that sell organic and reliable products”, she explains.
As for the flavors of Brazil, she preserves some customs from Bahia, her home state, including tapioca. Mandy has a Brazilian and organic brand of preference, that her parents usually take to her. But there are other products that she can get in Canada. “Here I can buy good quality palm oil and coconut milk”, she says.
Source: CCBC – Brazil-Canada Chamber of Commerce – www.ccbc.org.br