you all must be laughing but I have to ask…are there traditional Portuguese dishes (even sides and soups) that are vegetarian?
or tips on how to eat well in portugal as a vegetarian? i’m quite happy with bread cheese olives, but not for every meal…
i eat dairy & eggs but no seafood, meat or poultry. my husband eats everything and is super excited about Portuguese cuisine so I want to accompany him but not go hungry.
Yeah, it's tough, especially if you exclude fish and seafood. About all I can say is that my wife found plenty to eat, just not always "traditional" dishes. There are some soups that are vegetable based, caldo verde comes to mind, maybe a bean soup, and of course any place likely will have salads, and if lucky, grilled veggies. There are some pickled vegetables, carrots mainly, and some restaurants serve a variety of rice dishes, including vegetarian ones. Migas are vegetarian in nature, but are usually served with meat as a side, so you might be able to ask for that separately. I think most restaurants try to list at least a few vegetarian dishes. If nothing else, Pastel de Nata are vegetarian.
Not sure how long you will be there, but most traditional restaurants serve a core group of dishes, your husband may tick through the main ones quickly, so nothing wrong with mixing in some Italian, or pizza, or other cuisines to mix things up.
Most small family restaurants will serve omelets but avoiding fish and seafood might be challenging. And, as stated earlier, vegetable soups are regular fare as that is how most Portuguese people eat their vegetables. Cheese is also plentiful and served in a lot of Portuguese restaurants as an appetizer brought to the table before ordering.
Luckily, Indian, Italian and Thai restaurants are plentiful.
The struggle is real. I found lentil soup offered in several traditional restaurants, but it was definitely a challenge to find hot filling vegetable based meals or even sides dishes that weren't just sort of boiled and bland. Maybe you can take turns between traditional Portuguese restaurants and Italian or Indian places.
I am a lifelong vegetarian (who eats some seafood) and I have not yet been to Portugal, but before I travel somewhere new I find that checking out some cookbooks can be really helpful, good luck!
