data Data Descriptor A Data Set of Portuguese Traditional Recipes Based on Published Cookery Books Alexandra Soveral Dias and Luís Silva Dias * Department of Biology, University of Évora, Ap. 94, 7000-554 Évora, Portugal; [email protected] * Correspondence: [email protected]; Tel.: +351-266-760-881 Received: 27 December 2017; Accepted: 5 March 2018; Published: 8 March 2018 Abstract: This paper presents a data set resulting from the abstraction of books of traditional recipes for Portuguese cuisine. Only starters, main courses, side dishes, and soups were considered. Desserts, cakes, sweets, puddings, and pastries were not included. Recipes were characterized by the province and ingredients regardless of quantities or preparation. An exploratory characterization of recipes and ingredients is presented. Results show that Portuguese traditional recipes organize differently among the eleven provinces considered, setting up the basis for more detailed analyses of the 1382 recipes and 421 ingredients inventoried. Dataset: available as www.mdpi.com/2306-5729/3/1/9/s1. Dataset License: CC-BY Keywords: food; Portugal; traditional recipes 1. Summary Eating is one of the obligatory activities of human beings, but unlike many other activities, eating usually requires active and deliberate effort. In humans, this occurs hopefully once or twice a day, every day during our lifetime, requiring a more or less complex, extended, and permanent web of activities starting with production, through storage, transportation, delivery, and transformation, before foods are consumed. In addition to being an obligatory activity, eating is also a pleasure, especially as we distance from survival alone. As stated almost two centuries ago by Brillat-Savarin in the seventh introductory aphorism to his magnus opus,“the pleasure of the table is enjoyed at all ages, conditions, countries and days, can be associated with all other pleasures and is the last we enjoy, giving us solace for the loss of all others”[1] (p. ix). However, cultural habits and preferences create food tastes and choices as well as inhibitions and aversions, complicating the introduction of new foods and composite dishes while simultaneously, reinforcing the use of those already established [2] (p. 481). A good example of the former are the words of caution and simultaneously of seduction that an enthusiastic convert to a new cuisine offer to less knowledgeable and less fortunate [3] (pp. 16–18). An example of the latter is the persistence of recipes transmitted by word-of-mouth that are, by example and imitation, at the core of the so-called traditional cuisine. In this data set, we report the less-well-known traditional cuisine of Portugal. Portugal is a relatively small country, located in the western-most part of the Iberian Peninsula which comprises also two Atlantic archipelagoes, Madeira and the Azores islands. In all, it has slightly more than 92,000 km2 (89,000 km2 in mainland with maximum N–S length of 577 km and W–E length of 286 km, plus about 801 km2 in Madeira and 2322 km2 in the Azores). According to the 2011 census, the resident population is about 10,000,000 inhabitants in the mainland plus about 500,000 in the two islands, slightly more in Madeira than in Azores [4]. However, in a number of aspects, Portugal has little internal coherence and homogeneity for its size; there is a possible division of mainland Data 2018, 3, 9; doi:10.3390/data3010009 www.mdpi.com/journal/data Data 2018, 3, x 2 of 14 2011 census, the resident population is about 10,000,000 inhabitants in the mainland plus about 500,000 in the two islands, slightly more in Madeira than in Azores [4]. However, in a number of aspectsData 2018, ,Portugal3, 9 has little internal coherence and homogeneity for its size; there is a possible division2 of 14 of mainland Portugal (the islands being separate cases) between the more mountainous North and thePortugal flatter (the South. islands Alternately being separate, between cases) the between Atlantic the Northwest more mountainous and the more North continental and the flatter Northeast, South. bothAlternately, contrasting between with the Mediterranean Atlantic Northwest-type andSouth, the with more Atlantic continental and Mediterranean Northeast, both inroads contrasting in the Southwith the and Mediterranean-type North, respectively. South, Nevertheless, with Atlantic these and climatic Mediterranean and orograp inroadshic in contrasts the South have and North, been counteractedrespectively. Nevertheless,by long, intense these, and climatic homogenizing and orographic human activities contrasts [5] have (pp. been 144– counteracted167). by long, intense,This and heterogeneity homogenizing was humannoted with activities admiration [5] (pp. nearly 144–167). two centuries ago, especially in relation to the climateThis heterogeneity and vegetation was [6] noted (pp. 89 with–99, admiration 140–143). Later, nearly it twowas centuriesstated without ago, especially exaggeration in relation that “few to countriesthe climate of its and size vegetation present such [6] (pp.high 89–99,level of 140–143). natural differences, Later, it was so that stated someone without instantly exaggeration transported that from “few thecountries middle of of its Minho size present (the northern such high half level of of Entre natural Douro differences, e Minho; so that Figure someone 1) to instantly the middle transported of Alentejo from would the thinkmiddle to of have Minho travelled(the northern not about half 80 leagues of Entre (around Douro e325 Minho; km) that Figure separates1) to the them middle but thousands of Alentejo of would them think” [7] (p.to have xi). For travelled a short not but about insightful 80 leagues presentation(around 325 of km) thethat strong separates territorial them butheterogeneity, thousands of see them also”[7 [8]] (p. (pp. xi). 1For–4). a short but insightful presentation of the strong territorial heterogeneity, see also [8] (pp. 1–4). Figure 1.1. ApproximateApproximate limits limits of of the the Portuguese Portuguese division division in provinces in provinces adopted. adopted. Insets areInsets of theare Atlantic of the Atlanticislands of islands Madeira of Madeira and Azores. and Azores. Altogether, thisthis patchworkpatchwork of of climates climates and and landscapes landscapes explains explains the the various various attempts attempts to define to define and anddelimit delimit provinces provinces as administrative as administrative surrogates surrogates of the of so-calledthe so-called natural natural regions regions of Portugal. of Portugal. The The last lastsuch such attempt attempt was was in the in the 1930s. 1930s. In 1933’sIn 1933’s Constitution, Constitution, provinces provinces were were considered considered the the upper upper level level in inthe the territorial territorial and and administrative administrative organization organization of of Portugal, Portugal, their their exact exact delimitation delimitation being being done done only only in in1936 1936 [9], largely[9], largely based based upon upon Girão’s Girão’s proposals propos [10].als However, [10]. However, only eleven only provinces eleven wereprovinces considered were consideredin the mainland, in the instead mainland, of the instead proposed of the thirteen. proposed In 1959,thirteen. provinces In 1959, were provinces lawfully were extinguished. lawfully extinguished.Nevertheless, theyNevertheless, have been they recognized have been and recognize used in everydayd and used life in until everyday today andlife are—someuntil today more and arethan— others—asome more very than important others—a part very of important the territorial part identityof the territorial of Portuguese identity people. of Portuguese people. We hypothesized that provinces—beingprovinces—being climatic and environmentally natural regions that became identity identity-generating-generating entities entities—would—would somehow also correspond to separate and recognizable subsub-cuisines-cuisines withwith identifiableidentifiable and and segregating segregating traits. traits. For For example, example, in the in diachronicthe diachronic use of use herbs, of herbs, spices, spicesand other, and condiments; other condiments; in the way in alienthe way ingredients alien ingredients disseminated disseminated throughout throughout Portuguese Portu cuisineguese or, in a more encompassing framework, the reproducibility at the small but highly variable scale of the so-called “Darwinian gastronomy” hypothesis put forward to explain the worldwide pattern of the Data 2018, 3, 9 3 of 14 use of spices [11,12]. As a prerequisite to investigate these hypotheses, we set out to create a data set of recipes described by their ingredients and the province where they were traditionally cooked and eaten. For strictly practical reasons, derived from the provincial organization adopted in the cookery books, we further reduced the number of provinces, merging Minho and Douro Litoral under the more ancient designation of Entre Douro e Minho. Alto and Baixo Alentejo were also merged under the umbrella designation of Alentejo (Figure1). 2. Data Description Sources for the data set were recipe books explicitly dealing with or aimed at presenting Portuguese traditional cooking. To be included in the data set, the origin of recipes had to be known. Therefore, to be selected and abstracted, cookery books had to allow (1) all or at least most of the recipes to be assigned to any one of the provinces shown in Figure1, and (2) no