Rio De Janeiro
3h 30m
Rio de Janeiro: 9-Recipe Boozy Brazilian Cooking Class
Take advantage of your time in Rio with a hands-on Brazilian cooking class and make traditional dishes and Caipirinhas. Choose between 2 menu options...
from$86Check dates
History
Portuguese food historians place the fritter's origin in the Minho, where a cookbook of 1841 already printed bolinhos de bacalhau, nearer to a patanisca; the first modern recipe appeared in 1904 as bacalhau em bolos enfolados. Brazil took it with the Portuguese kitchen, and Rio's botequins still list it among the petiscos, beside empadas, coxinhas and pastéis.
Book a food experience
Tours, tastings and classes from the cities on this page, bookable on GetYourGuide.
Sao Paulo
Private tour · 5 hours
São Paulo 5h Private City Tour With Fruit Tasting
Get an insight of the city of São Paulo and its history along with the view of historic buildings, visit art galeries, the main park, monuments,...
from$186Check dates
Common allergens: Fish, Eggs
Make it at home
Ingredients
- 400g salt cod, desalted in cold water for 24 hours with several changes
- 400g floury potatoes, peeled
- 1 small onion, finely chopped
- 3 tablespoons chopped parsley
- 2 eggs
- Black pepper
- Oil for deep frying
Method
- Boil the potatoes until tender, drain and mash them while hot.
- Simmer the desalted cod in fresh water for 10 minutes, drain, remove skin and bones, and flake it finely.
- Mix the potato, cod, onion, parsley, eggs and pepper into a firm mixture and taste for salt.
- Shape into ovals with two tablespoons and fry in oil at 180C for 3 to 4 minutes until deep golden.
- Drain on paper and serve hot with lime and a cold chope.
Tip from the editors. Fry one test bolinho first and taste it; even well-desalted cod varies, and the mixture is easier to correct before shaping.
Where to eat bolinho de bacalhau
Bolinho de bacalhau in Rio de Janeiro
Bar Urca ★ 4.3
Bar Urca sells chope, fried sardines and empadas from a counter in Urca, Rio de Janeiro, to eat on the sea wall opposite with views over Guanabara Bay.
DrinkChope Brahma and bottled beer
FoodEmpada de camarão or siri, bolinho de bacalhau and fried sardines
TipThe ground-floor bar opens at 09:00 and the upstairs restaurant at 11:30; petiscos are carried across the street to the mureta.
Bar da Portuguesa ★ 4.4
Bar da Portuguesa, on Rua Custódio Nunes in Ramos, Rio de Janeiro, is a family botequim known for bolinho de bacalhau and aipim fritters with shrimp.
Why locals goIn Ramos, away from the tourist zones; the small inner room is the owner's family living room, and chilli plants grow in the street beds outside.
TipThursday broth is usually siri and Friday's mocotó; ask for the aipim fritters stuffed with shrimp and the house chilli.
Velho Adonis ★ 4.1
Velho Adonis is a Portuguese bar in Benfica, in Rio de Janeiro's Zona Norte, pouring chope with a head beside bolinho de bacalhau and empadas.
Why locals goA Portuguese bar in Benfica, in the Zona Norte, recognised as Carioca Cultural Heritage in 2013; it opens Tuesday to Sunday and closes Mondays.
TipOrder the chope with a head beside the bolinho de bacalhau, fried alheiras or jiló à milanesa; a weekly menu adds one special plate a day.
Petisqueira Martinho ★ 4.2
Petisqueira Martinho cooks seafood on Praia do Jequiá in Ribeira, on Ilha do Governador in Rio de Janeiro, and placed fourth in Botecar 2025.
OrderBolinho de bacalhau, casquinha de siri and camarão crocante from the petiscos list.
TipThe menu has an executive lunch section; the house is shut on Mondays and closes at 17:00 on Tuesdays and Sundays.
More cities are in research. Want bolinho de bacalhau covered somewhere specific? Tell us where you want to eat.