Brazilian Feijoada

Steps

1. Soak 1 pound of black beans overnight.
2. Drain the soaked beans and place them in a heavy pot with a couple quarts of cold water. Do not add any seasoning or salt at this point.
3. Place the pot over medium-high heat and bring it up to a simmer, skimming the foam if desired.
4. Simmer for about 1 hour and 30 minutes to 2 hours before adding the meat; turn down the heat to low and keep simmering.
5. Chop the dried beef (beef jerky) into small pieces.
6. Add the chopped beef jerky and a bay leaf to the simmering beans, stirring in well.
7. Cut the pork into large chunks. If using bones with the pork, add them to the stew.
8. Slice the bacon into nice big pieces.
9. Chunk the linguisa.
10. Leave the Italian sausage whole for now (do not cut it up).
11. Add the chopped meats and pork bones to the simmering beans.
12. Let the beans simmer for about 1 hour and 45 minutes to 2 hours, until they are almost cooked but still quite firm.
13. In a dry sauté pan over medium heat, cook the bacon until it is not quite crisp (just starting to get crispy around the edges).
14. Add the linguisa and Italian sausage to the pan with the rendered fat and brown them. Remove the browned meats to a bowl.
15. Add the onions and garlic to the same pan with all the reserved fat.
16. Cook on medium heat until translucent and soft, allowing the onions to deglaze the pan.
17. Stir in black pepper, cayenne, ground cumin, ground coriander, and Italian parsley; cook for 2 minutes to wake up the spices.
18. Go back to the bean pot and stir in the onion-spice mixture and all the cooked meats.
19. Add a little beef broth (B) to bring the liquid level just over the top of the meat.
20. Bring the stew back to a simmer, then adjust heat to medium-low and cook for about 1 hour until the beans are very soft and the stew starts to thicken.
21. While simmering, prepare a garnish by toasting breadcrumbs in olive oil until golden brown. Add grated orange zest and fresh Italian parsley to the toasted crumbs.
22. After the main stew has simmered for about 45 minutes and is thickening, optionally mash a few beans against the bottom of the pot and let it simmer for another 10-15 minutes to further thicken the texture.
23. Taste and adjust seasonings with salt if needed.
24. Ladle the Feijoada into bowls, top with the toasted breadcrumb mixture, orange zest, and fresh Italian parsley.