Monday, September 17, 2007

Tambaqui fish

The live tambaqui (Colossoma macropomum) is sure a lot better looking than the dried-out skull I keep at Bosque Santa Lucia; and the fish is one of the best in the Amazon for eating. It is referred to as a vegetarian because it eats only fruit and small coconuts from the floodplain palms. The favorite part of the fish are the ribs, especially when the fish are fat. Barbecued tambaqui ribs are never again to be forgotten. When Pope Paul came to the Amazon on his first trip to Brazil in 1980, he ate barbecued tambaqui ribs, the only meat he ate on his stay here.

1 comment:

Ken Atherton said...

I had tambaqui for the first time tonight at a restaurant in San Jose dos Campos. You are absolutely correct... it was unforgettable.

I stumbled on your site looking for more information on the fish. My Brazilian host had never heard of it before, but I guess the fish isn't commonly available fresh this far south.

BTW, I've been enjoying looking through several other posts on your site since stumbling on this one.