Coxinha (Lit. Translation: "Little Thigh")

[Pronunciation: Co-Shee-Nya]

Coxinha is one of Brazil's most popular and most favorite street foods. It's a crispy croquette filled with shredded chicken and then shaped into the unique teardrop-like shape (meant to emulate a chicken drumstick), then breaded and deep-fried.

History

Coxinha originated in Brazil during the 19th century and has since become one of the most popular salgados (savory appetizers) across the country. Some believe coxinha was first made in the late 1800s as a snack for Princess Isabel's son, who liked to eat chicken drumsticks. (Fun fact: Princess Isabel became very important to Brazil's history, when in her father's absence, she signed for the abolishment of slavery in Brazil!)

One day, as the chef gathered the chicken to prepared her son's meal, he realized that he was out of drumsticks. With a rush of creativity, the cook used thigh and breast meat and had an idea. He started by shredding the chicken to make a filling for a flour dough. Then he shaped the dough to make it look like a drumsticks for the prince. The child was very pleased and it wasn’t long before others began making the new snack.

Others stories say coxinhas actually originated during the industrialization of São Paulo, when they were marketed as a "more affordable option to traditional chicken cuts,” then sold to the local factory workers. Whatever the true story of how it began, one thing is sure to be true: coxinhas were adored then and they are adored now!

Today

Coxinhas are a staple in Brazilian cuisine and can be found in snack bars (lanchonetes), cafés, buffets and even bakeries (padarias, pastelarias). In Brazil, they are also popularly sold at food markets (feiras) stand-up lunch counters and street food stalls. Typically two options of coxinhas are available: with "catupiry" and without "catupiry," which means that within the shredded chicken breast stuffing, you can choose if you'd like the stuffing to have a dollop of Catupiry requeijão cremoso, which is a creamy cream cheese filling. *Our café will be serving mini, bite-size coxinhas, without catupiry.

Ingredients:

Shredded chicken breast, flour dough, chicken stock, likely seasoning of garlic, onion, parsley, and salt. Catupiry (cream cheese cream) filling optional. Click HERE for a recipe.

Product from: Pastelaria Vitoria (192 Broadway, Somerville)