Açorda and Migas

The Alentejo had wheat, olive oil, garlic, coriander and very little else, and both these dishes come from that. Açorda alentejana is the simpler: garlic and coriander pounded to a paste with salt in the bottom of a bowl, olive oil poured over, boiling water added, then torn stale bread soaked in it and a poached egg dropped on top - a meal made from nothing in a few minutes, and one that lives or dies on the coriander being fresh and the oil being good. Migas is the drier relative: bread worked in a pan with fat, garlic and often the juices from roast pork, kneaded until it forms a mass and turned out as a roll or cake, served alongside meat - migas com carne de porco, or with asparagus, or with sardines in season. Both are peasant cooking that was never dressed up, and coriander in this quantity is unusual in European cooking.

What you actually see

• The açorda - garlic, coriander and oil in a bowl with hot water, bread and a poached egg.
• The migas - bread worked in a pan with fat and garlic into a solid roll.
• The coriander - used in a quantity found almost nowhere else in Europe.
• The origin - dishes built to make a meal from stale bread and what the region had.

When to go

Year-round. A meal. Migas with pork is a winter dish; açorda is eaten in any season, often as a starter.

Honest expectations

Coriander in this volume divides people sharply - if you dislike it, avoid açorda entirely. Both are heavy and bread-dominated. Migas is served as an accompaniment, not a dish on its own. Neither is suitable for anyone avoiding gluten.

Nearby

Évora, Beja and the Alentejo towns all have tascas serving both.