Cabeço de Vide potato crumbs with fried pork ribs

In these Cabeço de Vide potato migas, thinly sliced bread and mashed potatoes come together in a sauté of garlic, tomato and pepper. The pork ribs are fried first; the oil flavoured by the meat is strained and used to make the migas. Finally, the migas are placed on the serving dish in a roll, with the meat alongside.

A way to use the frying oil

Carta Gastronómica do Alentejo records this recipe in Cabeço de Vide, in the municipality of Fronteira, in an interview with Maria Jesuína dos Santos Mourato. The method is what gives the dish its character: boil and mash the potatoes, sauté the vegetables in the oil used to fry the ribs, add the thinly sliced bread and only then fold in the mashed potatoes.

Serves: 4 people
Total time: about 1 hour and 15 minutes

Ingredients for 4 people

• 750 g pork ribs, cut into individual pieces
• 1 kg potatoes, peeled and cut into large cubes
• 100 g Alentejo bread, cut into very thin slices
• 4 garlic cloves (about 20 g), sliced
• 1 red pepper (about 150 g), cut into thin strips
• 5 ripe tomatoes (about 600 g), peeled and chopped
• 1 bay leaf
• 120 ml Cartuxa Extra Virgin Olive Oil 2026 for frying the ribs and making the migas
• 200 ml water to add to the bread sauté
• 1.5 l water for boiling the potatoes
• 7 g salt, divided between the meat, the potato water and the sauté
• 1 g ground black pepper

Preparation

1. Boil the potatoes. Put the potato cubes in a saucepan with 1.5 l of water and 2 g of salt. Boil for about 20 minutes, until a fork enters easily. Drain well and mash the potatoes with a food mill or masher. Set aside without adding milk or butter.
2. Fry the ribs. Season the 750 g of ribs with 3 g of salt and the pepper. Heat the 120 ml of oil in a large frying pan and fry the meat in batches, for about 7 to 10 minutes on each side depending on the thickness, until well browned and completely cooked through near the bone. Remove the meat and keep it warm. Strain the oil left in the frying pan to remove burnt residue and use it again for the migas.
3. Make the sauté. Pour the strained oil into a deep frying pan. Add the sliced garlic and let it brown slightly for 1 minute. Add the pepper, tomatoes and bay leaf; sauté for about 12 minutes, until the tomato loses its raw flavour and the liquid reduces.
4. Add the bread and potatoes. Cut the bread slices very thinly and fold them into the sauté. Pour in the 200 ml of water, boil for 3 minutes and add the mashed potatoes. Season with the remaining 2 g of salt and stir with a wooden spoon for 5 to 7 minutes, until everything is combined and comes away easily from the frying pan.
5. Serve. Using a spoon or by carefully shaking the frying pan, shape the migas into a roll and turn it out onto a serving dish. Serve immediately with the fried ribs on the side.

Tips to keep the migas from becoming heavy

Drain the potatoes well before mashing them. Slice the bread thinly so it partially disappears into the sauté without leaving dry pieces. The oil should be strained so you use the flavour of the meat, not the darkened residue. If the frying pan is small, shape the roll in two portions.

Wine pairing

Try Cartuxa Tinto Vinho de Talha Biológico 2023 – DOC Alentejo–Évora at around 16 to 18 °C. It is a red wine fermented and aged in clay amphorae, a choice to accompany the browned meat and the rustic character of the migas without repeating the wine from the previous stew.

Make-ahead and storage

The migas are best freshly made. If there are leftovers, store the meat and migas in separate containers in the refrigerator and consume within 2 days. Reheat the migas thoroughly in a frying pan and heat the meat until hot in the centre.

Frequently asked questions

Does the bread replace the potatoes?

No. The recipe uses both: 1 kg of potatoes and 100 g of bread. The potatoes give the migas body, while the bread combines with the sauté before receiving the mashed potatoes.

Why is the oil strained?

It is the oil in which the ribs were fried that goes back into the frying pan for the migas. Straining it removes the burnt pieces without losing the flavour of the frying.

More flavours from Cabeço de Vide

Cartuxa Olive Oil goes first into the frying and then into the migas. To finish the meal with another recipe collected in Cabeço de Vide, see our nógado with honey and lemon.

Source

Carta Gastronómica do Alentejo (2013), p. 184. “Migas de Batata com Entrecosto Frito”, collected in Cabeço de Vide, Fronteira, in an interview with Maria Jesuína dos Santos Mourato by Adelaide Martins (Leader-Sor), in 2012.

Recipe collected in Alto Alentejo, adapted by Herdade do Estacal for the blog “À Mesa com o Alentejo”. We retained 1 kg of potatoes, 100 g of bread, 750 g of ribs and the sequence of frying the meat, straining the oil and making migas with bread and potatoes. We reduced the source's 250 ml of oil to 120 ml in a domestic frying pan and set the weight of the tomatoes and pepper, water, seasonings and times for four people.

Illustrative image generated for this article.