Recipe of Bifana Porto

Abade Prisco's Pudding

Believed to have originated in the alentejo.

Recipe Summary Abade Prisco's Pudding

A velvety and sinful pudding, full of pleasure! Don't let yourself be discouraged from using bacon on this pudding -- the abbot knew what he was doing! You barely notice the pork; however, you get that incomparable taste of the yolks, wrapped with notes of Porto wine. It is velvety and melts in your mouth, vanishing. It's divine! This is a typical pudding from Braga, Portugal, and it was one of the finalists at the 7 Wonders of Portuguese Gastronomy.

Ingredients | Bifana Porto

1 cup white sugar

½ cup water

1 tablespoon water

2 cups water

2 cups white sugar

4 slices smoked bacon, finely chopped

2 cinnamon sticks

peels from 2 lemons, white pith removed

15 egg yolks

½ cup port wine

Directions

Heat 1 cup sugar and 1/2 cup water in a small saucepan over high heat without stirring. Reduce heat to low when sugar reaches an amber color, being careful to avoid burning. Carefully add 1 tablespoon water, stir, and remove from heat. Pour caramel into a lidded pudding pan, making sure to coat the entire inside of the pan.

Bring 2 cups water to a boil in a saucepan over high heat. Add 2 cups sugar, bacon, cinnamon, and lemon peels. Clip a candy thermometer to the side of the pan. Slowly heat syrup to 217 degrees F (103 degrees C) or until a small amount of syrup dropped in cold water forms a thin thread.

Preheat the oven to 475 degrees F (245 degrees C) while syrup is cooking.

Pass egg yolks through a sieve into a bowl.

Heat port wine in a small saucepan over medium heat until it reduces by half, 5 to 7 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool.

Pour the cooled port wine into the yolks, stirring as little as possible to avoid losing the color of the yolks.

Remove syrup from heat when it reaches 217 degrees F (103 degrees C). Pour into a bowl through a sieve to remove other ingredients. Allow syrup to cool slightly.

Pour yolk mixture into the bowl with the syrup. Pass the mixture through the sieve into a bowl. Pour mixture into the caramel-lined pudding pan. Cover the pan tightly with 2 layers of aluminum foil and the lid. Set the pan into a baking pan filled with an inch of water.

Bake pudding in the preheated oven until set, about 1 hour. Add water to the baking pan if necessary. Remove from the oven and place pan on a wire rack. Let pudding cool until center is lukewarm, at least 1 hour. Carefully unmold onto a serving plate. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

I used tawny port.

Yolks should be fresh and unpasteurized, to avoid compromising the texture, color, and flavor of the pudding.

The bacon should be larded and well salted.

Info | Bifana Porto

prep: 30 mins cook: 1 hr 15 mins additional: 1 hr total: 2 hrs 45 mins Servings: 8 Yield: 8 servings

TAG : Abade Prisco's Pudding

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