baixa chiado in loco
Hot and Tasty As the temperature drops, roasted chestnuts arrive on the streets of the capital. Enjoyed since pre-historic times, they may be good for your health, but they hide lives of hard toil.
A
ntónio has had his spot in Rua Augusta for 15 years. His source of income changes with the coming of the seasons. Now that there’s a nip in the air, it is time to swap ice creams for roast chestnuts. And the hardness of a life of hawking chestnuts can be seen in his dirty hands calloused by the oven. Twelve hours a day on his feet, in the cold and rain. “I may look like this, but at least I earn an honest living,” he stresses as if to justify his evident slovenliness, broken only by the clear blue of his big eyes. These are the details that pass locals by, used as they are to the packets of half a dozen and a dozen roast chestnuts. This way and that, they move hurriedly down Rua Augusta, concentrating on the latest fashions displayed in the shop fronts. It is the smell of autumn, in which the roast chestnut is the main protagonist, that draws them to António’s cart. The most interest is shown by foreigners, who, from curiosity and time to spare, want to know more about this wintry delicacy. António still remembers the heavy old clay ovens, but the history of the nut doesn’t seem to interest him much. Stainless steel ovens are now the norm, but the taste is still the same as ever. Already Ary dos Santos eternalised chestnut sellers in his poetry. “The chestnut man is eternal. He has no barn or roof, nor shelter, but hawks like a belter.” António agrees with the words, but ensures that the business “is worth it”. Some days are better than others in a business that locals take for granted as soon as autumn arrives.•
14 · BAIx a chiado con vida
A nut enjoyed since pre-historic times A delicacy that has turned into a street tradition, roast chestnuts are not a recent addition to the Portuguese diet. And it is not by chance that winter is when they can be found more readily. Rich in vitamins and minerals, they have played an important nutritional role since the 17th century, chiefly in the north of the country where the are still mainly produced. But this nut has been enjoyed since pre-historic times. As far back as the Greeks and Romans chestnuts were cooked with honey and were a core part of any banquet. They were used to make soups, stews and boiled dishes and they were even ground into a flour to make biscuits and bread at a time when grain was scarce. Over the centuries, recipes using chestnuts have been reinvented. Today, they can be eaten in myriad ways. Simply roasted in the street or in more elaborate dishes. And they are an excellent addition to any diet. Rich in fibre, protein, calcium, iron, potassium, zinc, selenium, vitamin E and folic acid, among much else, they are a good way of boosting the body’s natural defences. The chestnut is also very closely associated with the popular feasts. The best known of these is ‘Dia de São Martinho’, or St. Martin’s Day, celebrated on 11th November throughout the country. It is a day when everyone eats traditional roasted chestnuts washed down with água-pé. On other days, the street hawkers rely on their cries of “quentes e boas” (“hot and tasty”).•