A visit to our beloved city is never complete without tasting Porto’s legendary dish. The King of sandwiches. Porto’s cholesterol bomb. Heart attack on a plate. (Drum roll! ) The belly-busting Francesinha. Literally, the only thing you can think about after booking a trip to Porto; and usually, one of the first Portuguese food items you miss after going back home. But worry not, today we’re going to tell you how to make Francesinha (a step-by-step recipe). If you’re hungry for more, have a look at Taste Porto online cooking classes. To die for!

How to make Francesinha (like a local)

Before we tell you how to make Francesinha at your home, let’s have a quick overview of this traditional Portuguese meal. Francesinha is a mixed sandwich that is made with a layer of bread, a steak, two different sausages, cheese, ham, bread, cover the sandwich with cheese, then melt all the cheese, egg on the top, fries on the side, and everything covered with a hot sauce (a little bit spicy without being too spicy).

Known as Little French or Frenchie, we have to be honest with you: the only thing little about Francesinha is the name. As with most food items in Porto, it is difficult to select just one as the best francesinha in the city. Each restaurant in Porto has its own recipe and most of them argue that the secret is in the sauce. Is it? Opinions diverge. Some argue that the secret of Francesinha is the quality of the products. In our opinion, both are correct. That being said, here’s how to make Francesinha like a local.

Ingredients for the Francesinha

• 2 slices/pp Loaf Bread (thick cut)
• 1 Linguiça/pp
  Cured traditional Portuguese pork sausage with a distinct orange look due to the usage of paprika. Aka “Portuguese Sausage” in the New England area and Hawai. Also can be found in Brazilian stores/butchers.
• 1 Sausage/pp (salsicha fresca)
  Uncured traditional Portuguese pork sausage. Closest equivalent would be Italian sausage.
• 2 slices/pp Ham (sliced thin)
• 2 slices/pp Baloney (sliced thin)
• 1 steak/pp Rump steak (cut thin)
• 5-6 slices/pp Flamengo cheese slices
  Typical Portuguese semi-soft, cow-milk cheese. Aka “Flemish Cheese”. If this cannot be found, the alternative should be a bland, neutral-type of cow-milk cheese. Provolone could be an option.
• 1 Egg/pp (optional)
• 130 g/pp Fries (optional)

Ingredients for the sauce

• 1, medium, Yellow onion
• 20 ml/1.5 tbsp Olive oil
• 200 ml/13.5 tbsp White wine
• 4 tbsp Ketchup
• 4 tbsp Tomato puree/paste
• 2 tbsp Oxtail soup mix
• 100 ml/6.5 tbsp Whiskey
• 50 ml/3.5 tbsp Tawny Port wine
• 2x 250 ml Pilsner beer
• 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 tbsp Piripiri sauce
  Preferred brand: Paladin – Sacana Extra Picante
• 1 uni. Chicken Knorr Natura Boullion
  The Knorr Natura line is sold in units of 28g and has a lot less salt than the original cubes. If this cannot be found, use the powder instead in order to control the salt level better or cut one cube in half.
• 100 ml/6.5 tbsp Milk
• 1 tsp Flour

In the case of not having deep dishes that can go in the oven, use an oven tray lined with parchment paper and then transfer the francesinha onto a deep dish, and add the sauce.

How to make Francesinha?

• Slightly toast the bread – in the oven or in the toaster but without smooshing it, so it doesn’t lose its thickness.
• Cook the steak medium/rare and allow it to rest away from the heat for a few minutes, to retain the juices. Slit it slightly so that it’s easier to cut later on.
• Cut the linguiça and the Italian sausage length wise and trim them, if necessary, to match the size of the bread. Cook them in the same pan as the steak.
• Fry the egg(s) in the same pan again (optional). Fry the potatoes on the side (opcional).
• Assembling: after toasted, place one slice of bread in a deep dish that can go in the oven, and lay the slices of ham and baloney over the bread; place the sausage and the linguiça interspersed, side by side, and then the steak; place the second slice of bread on top and cover it all with cheese slices.
• Turn on the broil and place it in the oven until the cheese has melted.
• Remove from the oven, (place the egg on top), pour at least two ladles of sauce over the francesinha and serve immediatly.
• Pour the rest of the sauce in a gravy boat and serve seperately (as well as the fries).

Recipe of the famous Francesinha sauce

• Dice the onion and braise in the olive oil, until soft and transparent.
• Add the wine, the ketchup and the tomato puree/paste – bring it to a boil and allow it to stay there while you prepare the next step.
• Disolve the oxtail soup mix in 520 ml of boiling water and add to the pot.
• Add the whiskey and the Port, and allow it to boil for 35 minutes until the alcohol evaporates (with the lid half on).
• Use the immersion blender to turn the mix into a smooth sauce.
• Add the beers, the Worcestershire sauce, the piripiri sauce and the boullion.
• Disolve the flour in the milk, add to the pot and allow it to boil for 15 minutes, with the lid on.
• Lower the heat to the minimum until it’s time to serve. Resist the temptation to open the pot as much as possible!

Taste buds craving more portuguese flavors?

After you have tried the city signature dish, francesinha, you must be ready to taste the other lesser-known local traditional dishes & wines? You might think of joining a Porto Food Tour and experiencing the Porto that tourists rarely see, taste important elements of the portuguese cuisine, and learn about the history, architecture, and culture while walking the streets of this city.

Enjoy & Bom appetite!
Your Foodie Friend at Porto