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Serra cheese is one of the specialities of Central Portugal where it is produced in the mountains from the milk of the sheep which roam there. Soft and creamy inside with an outer bandaged crust.
Chouriço - a spicy, rustic and chunky pork sausage, still made and smoked at home by most women in the villages from the pig they have fattened in a darkened sty during the summer. From the blood mixed with flour they make a version of black pudding and another version called "farinheira", is one made from flour and fat. All of these are boiled and served with bread and Serra cheese often as "lancha" which is similar to the British "high tea".
Bacalhau is dried and salted cod fish. It is rumoured that there are 365 different recipes for preparing it. Prior to using it, it has to be soaked for 24 hours in water before cooking. Portuguese people love it and it can be classed as one of the country's staple foods
 Leitao - suckling pig roasted on a spit, is a speciality of many roadside restaurants and attract whole families for Sunday lunch. It is served as all meals are, with chips, a mound of white rice and a plain green lettuce and tomato salad. Cooked vegetables are not common restaurant fayre but will be served if particularly requested
Couve is a kale like dark green loose leafed cabbage. It is served boiled with olive oil dribbled over it on the plate. Very delicious. Like the bacalhau it is eaten as a staple food and can be seen growing on its high stalks in just about every garden or field in Portugal. Being so proliferous, it is also fed raw to the chickens and other livestock.
 Caldo Verde means "green broth" and is made from the thinnest sliced couve leaves (described above) in a potato base and served with slices of chourico. It is onsidered one of the delicacies of Portugal.
Caldeirada is a fisherman's type stew containing mixed fish types. It is served from a steaming casserole dish placed on the centre of the table. The fish is generally cooked whole or chopped into big pieces and one thus has to be careful to remove the fishbones before consuming.
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