Francesinha

Name: Francesinha
Cook time: 75 min
Total time: 75 min
Yield: 8 servings
Cuisine: Portuguese
Ingredients: 1 small Onion, Finely chopped; 2 cloves of Garlic, Minced; 1 leaf of Bay Leaf; 1 tbsp Olive Oil; 1 tbsp Butter; 200ml Tomato Passata, or smooth tomato sauce; 250ml Lager Beer; 250ml Beef Stock; 50ml Port Wine; 30ml Brandy; 2 tsp Worcestershire Sauce; 1 tsp Piri-Piri Sauce, or to taste; 1 tbsp Cornstarch, For slurry; 2 tbsp Cold Water, Mixed with cornstarch to make slurry; 4 slices of Soft White Bread, Thick; pain de mie / sandwich bread; 2 steaks of Beef Steak, Thin; about 120 g each; 2 Linguiças, Split lengthwise; 2 Pork Sausages, Fresh; split lengthwise; 4 slices of Cured Ham; 16 slices of Queijo Flamengo, or other mild melting cheese; about 8 slices per sandwich; 2 Eggs; 1 tbsp Butter, For toasting bread; 1 tbsp Olive Oil, For cooking meats; 500g Potatoes, Cut into fries (or 400 g frozen fries); Some Salt; Some Pepper (Black); Some Salt; Some Pepper (Black); Some Vegetable Oil, For frying

Francesinha is a decadent Portuguese sandwich layered with cured meats, steak and melting cheese, drowned in a rich, slightly spicy tomato-and-beer gravy and traditionally finished with a runny fried egg and fries. Bold, comforting and utterly indulgent, each bite delivers smoky sausages, tender steak and gooey [Queijo Flamengo](2598) under a glossy, savory sauce.

Francesinha is a decadent Portuguese sandwich layered with cured meats, steak and melting cheese, drowned in a rich, slightly spic... Show more

Traditional Portuguese Recipe

Health Grade

C · Balanced

Rating

4.5

Time

1 hr10 min

Price

2,54 €

Calories

728 kcal

high protein

low sugar

comfort food

portuguese

Method

Wash the potatoes

Scrub the potatoes well under cold running water. Peel them if you like, then pat them dry so they are easier and safer to cut.

Prep the vegetables

Cut the potatoes into even fries about 1 cm thick. Finely chop the onion, mince the garlic, and split the linguiça and pork sausage lengthwise if they are not already split. Rinse the cut potatoes briefly to remove excess starch, then dry them very well with a clean towel.

Heat the saucepan

Set a medium saucepan or small Dutch oven over medium heat and let it warm for 1 to 2 minutes.

Soften the base

Add the olive oil and butter. When the butter foams, stir in the onion, garlic, and bay leaf. Cook gently for 5 to 7 minutes, stirring often, until the onion is soft and translucent with no raw bite, but not browned.

Simmer the sauce

Pour in the tomato passata, lager beer, beef stock, port wine, brandy, Worcestershire sauce, and piri-piri sauce. Bring everything to a gentle boil, then lower to a steady simmer and cook for 20 minutes, stirring from time to time, until the sauce smells rich and slightly tangy; season lightly with salt and black pepper.

Mix the slurry

In a small bowl, whisk the cornstarch with the cold water until completely smooth and lump-free.

Thicken the sauce

Whisk the slurry into the simmering sauce and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring, until it thickens just enough to coat a spoon. Fish out the bay leaf, then taste and add a little more salt or pepper if needed. Keep the sauce warm over very low heat.

Par-fry the potatoes

Pour the vegetable oil into a deep heavy pot so it comes about 5 cm up the sides and heat it to 160° C. Fry the potatoes in batches for 5 to 6 minutes until tender but still pale, then lift them out and drain well. Let them rest for 10 minutes while you prepare the sandwiches.

Season the steaks

Pat the beef steaks dry and season both sides generously with salt and pepper.

Heat the oven

Heat the oven to 220° C so it is ready for melting the cheese.

Heat the skillet

Set a large skillet or grill pan over medium-high heat until it is very hot. You want the meats to sizzle the instant they touch the pan.

Cook the meats

Add the remaining olive oil to the hot pan. Cook the linguiça and pork sausage cut-side down first for 3 to 4 minutes, turn them, and cook for 2 to 3 minutes more until browned and cooked through. Sear the steaks for about 1 to 2 minutes per side so they stay juicy, then quickly warm the cured ham in the pan for 30 seconds per side.

Toast the bread

Lower the heat to medium, add the remaining butter, and toast the soft white bread for 1 to 2 minutes per side until lightly golden. The slices should have a little crust on the outside but stay soft enough to absorb sauce.

Build the sandwiches

Set 2 toasted bread slices on a baking tray or ovenproof dish. On each slice, layer 2 slices of cured ham, 1 steak, 1 split linguiça, and 1 split pork sausage, then cap with the remaining bread slices.

Bake the cheese

Drape the Queijo Flamengo over each sandwich, using about 8 slices per sandwich and overlapping them so the top and sides are covered. Bake for 5 to 8 minutes, until the cheese is fully melted and just starting to bubble.

Crisp the fries

Raise the oil temperature to 190° C and fry the potatoes again in batches for 2 to 3 minutes until crisp and deep golden. Drain them well and sprinkle with a little salt while they are still hot.

Fry the eggs

While the sandwiches finish baking, fry the eggs in the skillet over medium heat for 2 to 3 minutes, until the whites are set and the yolks are still runny, unless you prefer them more done.

Plate and serve

Place each sandwich on a plate, top each one with a fried egg, and ladle plenty of the hot sauce over the top so it runs down the sides. Add the fries alongside and serve straight away, with extra sauce at the table if you like.

Ingredients

Method

For 8 servings

Adjust servings

For the sauce

1 small Onion, Finely chopped
2 cloves of Garlic, Minced
1 leaf of Bay Leaf
1 tbsp Olive Oil
1 tbsp Butter
200ml Tomato Passata, or smooth tomato sauce
250ml Lager Beer
250ml Beef Stock
50ml Port Wine
30ml Brandy
2 tsp Worcestershire Sauce
1 tsp Piri-Piri Sauce, or to taste
1 tbsp Cornstarch, For slurry
2 tbsp Cold Water, Mixed with cornstarch to make slurry
Some Salt
Some Pepper (Black)

For the sandwiches and assembly

4 slices of Soft White Bread, Thick; pain de mie / sandwich bread
2 steaks of Beef Steak, Thin; about 120 g each
2 Linguiças, Split lengthwise
2 Pork Sausages, Fresh; split lengthwise
4 slices of Cured Ham
16 slices of Queijo Flamengo, or other mild melting cheese; about 8 slices per sandwich
2 Eggs
1 tbsp Butter, For toasting bread
1 tbsp Olive Oil, For cooking meats
Some Salt
Some Pepper (Black)

For serving

500g Potatoes, Cut into fries (or 400 g frozen fries)
Some Vegetable Oil, For frying

🧈 Plus ~20g of fat

🧂 Plus ~1g of salt

Nutrition

Per Serving.

Calories

728 kcal

36% of Daily kcal

Protein

42 g

85% RDI

Fat

50 g

21g sat fat

Carbs

24 g

9% RDI

Sugar

4 g

8% RDI

Fiber

2.2 g

7% RDI

Salt

3.3 g

65% RDI

Quality Profile

Scored against dietary guidelines.
Tap rows for a deeper breakdown.

Composite score - weighted by current nutrition science

C · 6.2 / 10

Comments

Click to rate