Legumes à Brás (Bras Style Vegetables) is a variation of the famous Bacalhau à Brás, a traditional dish from Lisbon created by a tavern cook named Brás. It’s an extremely popular dish, found in countless restaurants across the city and the country.
Over time, several equally delicious versions have emerged, such as Leek à Brás, Vegetable à Brás, or Chicken à Brás. Regardless of the ingredients used, it’s a recipe that almost always works and is full of flavor. The key is to keep the base: eggs, shoestring potatoes, olives, and parsley.
In this article, we’ll show you how to make Vegetable à Brás, step by step, along with all the tips you need. It’s an easy recipe to prepare and packed with flavor!
Want to learn how to make the traditional Bacalhau à Brás or Leek à Brás? Check out our recipes:
- Bacalhau à Brás Recipe
- Leek à Brás Recipe
Preparation
- Servings: 2
- Prep time: 30 minutes (15 minutes prep + 15 minutes cooking)
- Difficulty: Easy
Required Equipment
- Large nonstick skillet
- Fork
- Wooden spoon or spatula
- Knife
- Bowl for whisking eggs
- Grater
Ingredients for Vegetables à Brás
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 leek
- 1 medium onion
- 3 garlic cloves
- 1 large or 2 medium carrots
- 200 g green cabbage
- 100 g + 50 g shoestring potatoes
- 4 eggs
- Black olives (6 to 8, depending on your preference)
- 1 bunch of parsley
Vegetable à Brás – Step-by-step recipe
- Prepare the ingredients:
- Slice the onion and leek into thin rounds (white part only)
- Finely chop the garlic
- Peel and grate the carrots
- Cut the cabbage into very thin strips
- Whisk the 4 eggs until well combined
- Chop the parsley
- In a large skillet, add one tablespoon of olive oil and spread it evenly. Once hot, add the onion and leek and sauté over medium heat until soft and golden (about 5 minutes).
- Add the carrots, cabbage, and garlic, mixing everything well. Let it cook over medium heat for 5 to 10 minutes, until the vegetables are tender. They don’t need to be overcooked—you can adjust to your taste, depending on whether you prefer them more al dente or softer.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste (keeping in mind that the shoestring potatoes may already be salted).
- Add 100 g of shoestring potatoes and mix everything together.
- Turn off the heat and add the eggs, stirring continuously until you get a creamy texture and everything is well combined (avoid overcooking the eggs so they don’t become dry, like scrambled eggs).
- Turn the heat back on to medium and cook briefly until the eggs are fully set, while still keeping a creamy texture.
- Remove from the heat and add the remaining shoestring potatoes, mixing well.
- Finish with parsley and black olives to taste.
Tips
- This isn’t a recipe that requires strict measurements or exact ingredients. It really depends on your taste and what you have available at home. Try to avoid vegetables with high water content.
- It’s a very simple recipe. The most time-consuming part is cutting all the vegetables, so keep that in mind when preparing it.
- We recommend having all the ingredients ready before you start cooking, as the process moves quickly and there won’t be time to prep anything else.
- You can make your own shoestring potatoes by cutting the potatoes into very thin strips and frying them in hot oil. It turns out great.
Serving Suggestions
Vegetable à Brás is a quick, light, and well-balanced meal that doesn’t really need any sides. Serve it with a refreshing drink or a glass of white wine for a perfect pairing.
Storage and Reheating
You can store Vegetable à Brás in the fridge, in an airtight container, for 2 to 3 days. In fact, it reheats very well, whether in the microwave or in a skillet. We just recommend adding a bit more shoestring potatoes at the end to bring back some of the crispy texture.
Freezing is not recommended, as the texture becomes unpleasant due to the potatoes.
Conclusion
Vegetable à Brás is a versatile, easy, flavorful, and healthy recipe—a true Portuguese vegetarian dish. It’s one of our favorites, and we make it often when we’re short on time and want something simple.
It easily adapts to whatever vegetables you have on hand, and you can also try other variations, such as Leek à Brás or Bacalhau à Brás. We hope you enjoy it!
Bom Apetite!
Bras Style Vegetables
Equipment
- 1 Large nonstick skillet
- 1 Fork
- 1 Wooden spoon or spatula
- 1 Knife
- 1 Bowl for whisking eggs
- 1 Grater
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 leek
- 1 medium onion
- 3 garlic cloves
- 1 large or 2 medium carrots
- 200 g green cabbage
- 150 g shoestring potatoes
- 4 eggs
- Black olives 6 to 10, depending on your preference
- 1 bunch of parsley
Instructions
Prepare the ingredients:
- Slice the onion and leek into thin rounds (white part only)
- Finely chop the garlic
- Peel and grate the carrots
- Cut the cabbage into very thin strips
- Whisk the 4 eggs until well combined
- Chop the parsley
Cooking the ingredients
- In a large skillet, add a tablespoon of olive oil and spread it evenly. Once hot, add the onion and leek and sauté over medium heat until golden and soft (about 5 minutes).
- Add the carrot, cabbage, and garlic, mixing everything well. Cook over medium heat for 5 to 10 minutes, until the vegetables are tender.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste (keeping in mind that the shoestring potatoes may already be salted).
- Add 100 g of shoestring potatoes and mix everything well.
- Turn off the heat and add the eggs, stirring continuously until you get a creamy texture and everything is well combined (avoid overcooking the eggs so they don’t become dry, like scrambled eggs).
- Turn the heat back on to medium and cook briefly until the eggs are fully cooked, while still maintaining a creamy texture.
- Remove from the heat and add the remaining shoestring potatoes, mixing well.
- Finish with parsley and black olives to taste
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