Bifanas are traditional Portuguese sandwiches made with thin slices of pork that are marinated and simmered in a sauce of white wine, garlic, and paprika and served on soft rolls with plenty of mustard and piri-piri sauce.
In the pantheon of great Portuguese foods, there are few sandwiches that are more superlative than the bifana. Despite sounding like a beef sammie, bifanas are made from thinly pounded slices of pork marinated in white wine, paprika, garlic, bay leaf, and vinegar. It’s a simple dish, an unadorned dish. They’re such a casual meal, they’re often eaten while standing at bifana “palaces,” elbows up, a cold beer (or in my case, uma Coca) at the ready. Many people add a splash of piri-piri hot sauce and/or a squeeze of yellow mustard. Some care for caramelized onions on top. Purists want nothing but pork, bread, and sauce. I don’t care how you take your bifana, but by all means, please, take one. You won’t be sorry.–David Leite
Should I sauce or not sauce my bifana?
Just like there are lots of ways to serve bifanas, there’s no hard and fast rule about what to do with the sauce they’re cooked in. At some places in Lisbon, it’s pork and bread–that’s it. Não mais. Other cooks will ladle a bit of sauce over your pork. A few will dip the cut side of the top half of the roll. And then there are those radicals who will–wait for it–dunk the whole sandwich.
Me? I err on the side of sauce. But I also like to reduce it first, which is why it’s a bit thicker than what you’ll see in most places in Portugal. What are you going to do otherwise–throw it away?! Whether dripping or dry, few foods can best this humble icon.
UPDATE: FABULOUS TIP ON THE SAUCE
My Instagram friend Manuela Gil Pereira wrote, “[A good] bifana has a secret, it needs a very old sauce, a sauce that was used to make bifanas many times.” And that makes sense. In Portugal, the meat simmers in huge skillets all day, and when the meat runs low more is added. So, if you want to be in on the secret, don’t reduce the sauce as I do. Instead, bring it to a boil then set it aside. When it’s cool, pour it in a container, and refrigerate or freeze it. The next time you want to make bifanas, just heat it up!
Bifanas ~ Portuguese Pork Sandwiches
Bifanas are traditional Portuguese sandwiches made with thin slices of pork that are marinated and simmered in a sauce of white wine, garlic, and paprika and served on soft rolls with plenty of mustard and piri-piri sauce.
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Slip a slice of top round, a pork cutlet or pork chop into a zip-top bag or between two pieces of plastic wrap and pound it with a meat tenderizer or rolling pin until it’s very thin but not torn. Ideally, you want it to be the thickness of deli meat, less than 1/8 of an inch (3mm) thick. Repeat with the rest of the pork.
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In a small bowl, stir together the wine, garlic, bay leaves, vinegar, paprika, and salt.
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Add the pork slices to a shallow pan and pour the marinade over top. Stir the pork in the liquid, making sure the slices are pretty much submerged. Refrigerate the pan for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, stirring the meat several times.
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Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat until very hot and add the lard. Fry the bifanas quickly until cooked through, about 1 minute per side. Add more lard if the pan threatens to dry out. Transfer the cooked bifanas to a plate.
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Discard the bay leaves and pour the reserved marinade into the skillet and scrape up any stuck-on bits. Let the mixture boil until reduced by about 1/3, 4 to 6 minutes.
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Add the bifanas back to the skillet, reduce the heat to low, and simmer to warm them through.
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Slice the papo secos in half. Spoon some of the sauce over each half, pile with the pork, and, if desired, serve with the mustard and piri-piri sauce.
Serving: 1sandwichCalories: 541kcal (27%)Carbohydrates: 24g (8%)Protein: 41g (82%)Fat: 23g (35%)Saturated Fat: 7g (44%)Polyunsaturated Fat: 5gMonounsaturated Fat: 10gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 114mg (38%)Sodium: 1470mg (64%)Potassium: 804mg (23%)Fiber: 2g (8%)Sugar: 1g (1%)Vitamin A: 900IU (18%)Vitamin C: 2mg (2%)Calcium: 72mg (7%)Iron: 3mg (17%)
If you make this recipe, snap a photo and hashtag it #LeitesCulinaria. We’d love to see your creations on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.
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Originally published June 27, 2020
Recipe © 2020 David Leite. Photos © 2020 David Leite. All rights reserved. All materials used with permission.
If you make this recipe, snap a photo and hashtag it #LeitesCulinaria. We’d love to see your creations on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.
