Did you know that the iconic Bacalhau à Brás (Salted Codfish à Brás), one of the most beloved recipes in Portuguese cooking, has a version that’s even simpler and just as tasty? Hehehe, it’s Frango à Brás (or Chicken à Brás). If salted codfish à Brás is perfect for using up leftover cod, this one is perfect for using up leftover cooked chicken and turning it into a quick, comforting meal that’s packed with flavorrrrrr…. i sound like Gordon Ramsey! ;D packed!
The origin of Bacalhau à Brás goes back to the nineteenth century, credited to a tavern keeper from Bairro Alto, in Lisbon, named Brás (or Braz). The recipe, made with shredded salted cod, matchstick fried potatoes, eggs, and onion, became so popular that it even crossed borders, showing up in Spanish versions under names like “revuelto de bacalao a la portuguesa.” The secret to its success lies in its simplicity and its knack for making the most out of cod scraps, creating a dish that can be as rich or as humble as whatever ingredients you have at hand.
Frango à Brás follows the same principle, we just swap the salted cod for leftover roasted or boiled chicken you might have. To keep things even simpler, we use ridged fried potato chips instead of the traditional matchstick fries, proving that you don’t need matchstick potatoes at all to make this recipe, you just need commercial fried potatoes or chips. Let’s get to the recipe!
Portuguese Chicken & Fried Potato Omelet • Frango á Brás
Think of this as Portugal's answer to the Spanish tortilla, just easier and tastier, I'm joking!!! Come on!!!! ;D
Ingredients
- Chicken – +/- 300g (I used 2 thighs only the meat)
- Onion – 1
- Garlic – 2 cloves
- Eggs – 4
- Cream – 50ml
- French Fries – 120g (Shoestring or Wavy)
- Parsley – A pinch
- Pepper – A pinch
- Salt – A pinch (The potatoes also have salt)
Directions
- In a frying pan, sauté the chopped onion and garlic in a drizzle of olive oil until the onion is completely golden and translucent.
- Now add the cooked chicken and sauté briefly. Then add the fried potatoes to the pan (I like half mashed the potatoes and the rest i put whole, so you have larger and smaller pieces of potato) and mix well.
- In a small bowl, whisk the eggs with the cream, season with a pinch of salt and pepper.
- Add the whisked egg mixture to the pan and cook until the mixture thickens and sets, you don’t want scrambled eggs, the final result should be creamy, so take the pan from the heat before the eggs set completely.
- Remove from the heat, sprinkle with a little parsley (or chopped black olives), and it’s ready to serve. Enjoy!
Note that some people like to add the parsley earlier and let it cook a bit with the eggs, I’d say it depends on the amount, a pinch of parsley tastes better fresh and sprinkled on top, but if you’re using a good amount it’s better mixed in with the eggs ;D
Also, in the traditional recipe the onion is cut into thin slices, just noting that I didn’t do that this time, I liked it a bit thicker, but yeah its a matter of preference, but you need to cook the onion through.
If you don’t have already cooked the chicken, start by seasoning a chicken breast with a bit of pepper and salt and cutting it into thin slices (as if you were making a chicken stroganoff), add the raw chicken at the same time you’d add the already cooked chicken, cut thin like that, it will cook in no time.
Use potato chips or fries that have gone slightly soft or stale, since they soak up the egg better and won’t turn to mush the way like fresh crispy ones can and don’t use home made ones, those are great but they wont make a good “á brás” recipe.
Keep the heat on medium-low once the eggs go in, “á brás” should be soft and just barely set, almost like a loose scramble, not a firm, dry omelet, so pull it off the heat while it still looks a touch underdone, it’ll keep setting from residual heat.
Sometimes we add a splash of white wine in with the onion and garlic while they finish sautéing, that adds a nice extra layer of flavor but only add if you have an open bottle hehehe its the Portuguese way. And if you want to stretch it further or add some brininess, a small handful of pitted black olives scattered on top does wonders alongside (or instead of) the parsley.
This recipe for Portuguese Chicken & Fried Potato Omelet • Frango á Brás was originally created on BakeAfter.com. Esta receita de Tradicional Frango à Brás Português foi publicada em português no Iguaria.com.
Nutrition
Per Serving: 833 calories; 52 g fat; 35.7 g carbohydrates; 53.7 g protein.Did you try this recipe?
Let me know how it turned out for you! You can leave a comment below ;D And if the question is why did i started adding the eggs to a bowl and then decided to take a picture of 3 eggs and then posted here, I think we will never know… 😀
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