Brazil’s Tradition of Barbecues for All Economies
HAVANA TIMES – One could say that a churrasco (barbecue) is at the top of the priority list for many Brazilians. Those who can afford it have one almost every weekend.
As part of our adaptation process to this culture, we sometimes take part in a barbecue too, either as guests or co-organizers.
Here, it’s customary for each participant to contribute a certain amount of meat, usually one kilogram, which can be sausage, beef, pork, or chicken.
There are expensive barbecues, due to either the quantity or the quality of the meat. People with more financial means use picanha (a Brazilian cut that doesn’t have an equivalent in many Spanish-speaking countries), alcatra (rump), boneless contrafilé (sirloin), and chicken hearts.
In all cases, these are very tender, juicy meats with a delicious aroma, and their prices range between 50 and 70 reais per kilo—about 10 dollars—except for chicken hearts, which cost around 35 reais per kilo.
Then there are other cuts, almost as good but less expensive, like bone-in contrafilé, setinho (tenderloin), pork leg and shoulder, and chicken wings, which you can get in a range between 15 and 35 reais—affordable for most people, though how often one can have a barbecue depends on income level.
Group churrascos are very popular, because sometimes with just 50 reais per family, you can have a good barbecue where everyone has fun and eats plenty of meat. They say that with around 300 grams per person, you can have a good churrasco.
In my family we don’t host barbecues, but we do participate in those organized by friends and fellow church members. Some are fancy, and others not so much, but we always have a good time.
On Easter Sunday, the team of butchers at my job got together for a barbecue. There was enough meat for each person to eat over a kilo. A lot was left over and we left it at the house of the friend who offered to host.
It wasn’t a rich man’s barbecue, but there was some picanha and bone-in contrafilé, plus chicken, pork leg, and sausage. There was lots of soda and a little whiskey, and it was great because those of us at work never get to gather except to work, since our days off don’t align.
Barbecues seem to be a cultural phenomenon accessible to almost everyone in Brazil, at least to some extent. Since I work in a butcher shop, I see some families buying meat for them on very limited budgets.
A humble, family-style barbecue might include: half a kilo of sausage (7 reais), one kilo of chicken wings (13 reais), and half a kilo of pork (10 reais), totaling about 30 reais (5 dollars), enough for six people.
It all feels so ideal, especially compared to Cuba, where a family doesn’t eat in an entire month the amount of meat people here consume in a single barbecue. It’s absurd. I can’t help but say it with a bit of shame.