Marinated pork cooked with garlic and wine and served hot inside a crusty roll, with mustard or chilli sauce: the sandwich behind Conga Casa das Bifanas.

The bifana is a Portuguese sandwich found across the country, and its name is often translated as small steak. Traditionally the pork is thinned or sliced and cooked with garlic and wine, then served inside heated bread; in the north it is usually made with shredded pork and a sauce, while the south favours a pork cutlet in a light marinade. In Porto, Conga Casa das Bifanas on Rua do Bonjardim is named after the sandwich.

Where to eat Bifana in Porto

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Make it at home

Serves 62 hrEasy

Ingredients

  • 600g pork loin, sliced 5mm thin
  • 5 cloves of garlic, sliced
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 tbsp paprika
  • 1 tsp piri-piri sauce
  • 200ml white wine
  • 200ml chicken stock
  • 1 tbsp lard or olive oil
  • 6 fofo bread rolls
  • Mustard, to serve

Method

  1. Combine garlic, bay leaves, paprika, piri-piri and white wine in a bowl. Add sliced pork and marinate 1 hour minimum.
  2. Heat lard in a deep pan. Add the pork and marinade. Pour in stock to just cover.
  3. Simmer 45 minutes over low heat. The pork should be soft enough to push apart with a fork.
  4. Slice each roll in half but not all the way through. Toast lightly on a dry pan.
  5. Fish three slices of pork out of the broth per sandwich, drain briefly. Pile into the roll.
  6. Spoon over a teaspoon of broth for the bread to soak. Smear mustard inside the lid and close.

Editor tip. The pork must be sliced thin enough to read through. Ask a butcher to slice on a deli slicer if you cannot do it at home; texture makes the sandwich.

Common allergens: Gluten.