Feijoada is more than a dish, it is a piece of cultural heritage that connects all social classes in Brazil. This has been the case since the early origins of the dish. Even though feijoada may have been inspired by Portuguese dishes, it is undeniably Brazilian, and shouldn't be credited to Europeans. To do so would be a disservice; there is no dish or meal that makes people feel as connected to Brazilian culture as feijoada, and it inspires a sense of nationalism and hope. 

Camara Cascudo argues that the most national dish of Brazil, the complete feijoada, is an “acculturative model of the Portuguese stew with beans and dried meat,” (271) which makes sense given the influence the Portuguese had on Brazilian culture during the colonization era. While discussing Camara Cascudo’s work, Mariana Coração claims that “the colonial period is highlighted in his work as an incubating context for the food traditions he experienced in his youth. The cuisine of Portuguese colonizers, in this direction, receives a central role in the historical process of elaboration of Brazilian cuisine,” (409) which suggests that there is more to the story of the country’s national cuisine than colonial influence. 

Fajans, Jane. Brazilian Food: Race, Class and Identity in Regional Cuisines. Bloomsbury Academic, an Imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing Plc., 2013.