Leitão à Bairrada (Roast Suckling Pig)
Photo: Adriao · CC BY 3.0

History

Leitão à Bairrada is the signature dish of the Bairrada region between Coimbra and Aveiro, where wood-fired spit roasting of suckling pigs is a centuries-old tradition tied to the local Mealhada road. Porto's Cedofeita neighbourhood has hosted the Leitão da Bairrada restaurant since the 1970s, importing the Bairrada method to the city.

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Make it at home

Yield 6Hands-on 30 minTotal 5 hrDifficulty Advanced

Ingredients

  • 1 whole pork shoulder with skin on, 3kg (or a small suckling pig section if you can source one)
  • For the seasoning paste: 1 head of garlic peeled and crushed
  • 60g lard or pork fat
  • 4 tbsp coarse sea salt
  • 3 tbsp freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 bay leaves crushed
  • 1 tbsp piri-piri sauce
  • 2 tbsp white wine
  • 200ml white wine, for basting
  • 200ml water
  • Sliced bread, sliced oranges, peppery rocket, and roast potatoes, to serve

Method

  1. The day before: pound garlic, lard, salt, pepper, bay, and piri-piri to a thick paste in a mortar. Stir in 2 tbsp white wine.
  2. Score the skin in a diamond pattern, 5mm deep. Push the paste deep into the scores and under the skin where possible. Refrigerate uncovered overnight (this dries the skin for crackling).
  3. Heat oven to 200C. Place pork skin-up on a wire rack over a deep roasting tray. Pour the water and 100ml wine into the tray base.
  4. Roast 30 minutes at 200C, then drop to 160C and continue for 3.5 hours. Baste with pan juices and a splash more white wine every 30 minutes.
  5. Increase oven to 240C for the final 25 minutes; this is when the skin transforms into crackling.
  6. Watch closely the last 10 minutes; the difference between crackling and burnt is short.
  7. Lift the pork onto a board. Cover loosely with foil and rest 20 minutes.
  8. Carve at the table with a heavy knife. The traditional service is to break off pieces of crackling and lay them alongside the flesh, with sliced bread for dipping into the tray juices and a side of oranges for the cut-through.

Tip from the editors. Bairrada wood-fired roasts get their signature crackling from olive wood and 4 hours over coals; the home oven version cannot match the smoke, but the overnight dry-cure and the 240C blast at the end deliver the texture.

Where to eat leitão à bairrada (roast suckling pig)

Leitão à Bairrada (Roast Suckling Pig) in Porto

Leitao da Bairrada ★ 4.1

€€ Portuguese

Leitao da Bairrada is a Cedofeita suckling pig sandwich shop locals queue at 13:00; the orange-and-bay-leaf oil is the signature, ask for extra.

Why locals goBairrada-style suckling pig sandwich shop on Cedofeita that the locals queue for at 13:00 but tourists walk past on the way to the boutiques.

TipWalk-in only, takeaway-friendly. The orange-and-bay-leaf oil is the signature; ask for extra.

Directions

Leitao da Bairrada (Cedofeita) ★ 4.1

€ Portuguese

Leitao da Bairrada on Rua de Cedofeita in Porto sells a Bairrada-style suckling pig sandwich for 5 euros, with orange-and-bay-leaf oil drizzled.

TrySuckling pig in a roll

Directions

O Buraco ★ 4.3

€€ Portuguese

O Buraco is a working-day tasca behind the Bolhao market since the early 1970s, serving veal pie and tripas a moda do Porto to a 12:30 local crowd.

Why locals goLong-running working-day tasca behind the Bolhao market, open since the early 1970s with veal pie and tripas a moda do Porto on the menu and a 12:30 local-only lunch crowd.

TipClosed Sunday, no dinner Saturday. Best dishes are gone by 14:00; arrive early.

Directions

Adega Sao Nicolau ★ 4.3

€€ Traditional PortugueseRibeira

Adega Sao Nicolau in Porto's Ribeira has been pouring red since the 1940s, serving polvo a lagareiro on a small Douro-facing terrace below the quay.

OrderPolvo a lagareiro: octopus baked with potatoes, garlic and a slug of olive oil.

TipLunch service from noon. The river-side terrace fills first; the inside room is cooler in August.

Directions

Casa Guedes ★ 4.4

€€ PortugueseUntil Sat until 22:00

Casa Guedes on Praca dos Poveiros in Porto runs Saturday hours to 22:00, with the sandes de pernil still going out to a queue of locals and late-night.

TrySandes de pernil

Directions

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