When the dish is ready, it is served over white rice and eaten with farofa (fa-row-fa), which we would call toasted and seasoned manioc flour in the US, and couve (koo-vee), which is like collard greens. Sometimes people eat oranges after to help with digestion.
Beans have always been a staple crop in Brazil as they have been able to grow in almost all parts of the country. Because of this, it, like rice here, has always been cheap which allowed Brazilian feijoada developed early on across all kinds of communities. Different areas of the country sometimes add extra vegetables based on their geographic history with the dish. Even different families in the same city have their own special recipes. As much as the dish comes from the earth, it also comes from the community. Brazil is a friendly place where communal meals are common and celebrated. Feijoada is a perfect dish for this.
