Dear Judy Through my learned friend I received the following message from you: Quote I was very disturbed by reading the article sent by Melvyn about our Goan Sorpatel. Did he research in our Goan cooking and culture with his big title as an editor? I think you should ask him if he is the authority to write crap about our Goan dishes and heritage with Portuguese history. Unquote It is bad enough observing some of our people walking cross nosed and speaking English with Portuguese accents. However, I would like to share your posting and my reply with our people on goanet specially for the attention of our current generation who are getting lost in the mongrel society and I hope our Goan street foods do not follow likewise. I am no expert chef and was astonished but not surprised that as a purveyor of our delicious Goan foods, you were very disturbed to read my article on Sorpotel. It is written by historians, Sorpotel (or Sarapatel) was brought to Goa (and to other parts of the world like Brazil) by the Portuguese. This dish was originally from the Alentejo region of Portugal. The name was changed in Goa from Sarapatel to Sorpotel as ‘soro’ was added to the dish. You can read all about it from the link below: http://globalvoicesonline.org/2014/02/27/how-the-portuguese-influenced-indian-cuisine/ To avoid yet another State of Goan confusion, at Goan Receipes blog, Glen writes: Quote The word ‘sarapatel’ literally means confusion, probably referring to the mish-mash of ingredients of pork heart, liver and even porkblood! Unquote Glen’s blog is shown in the link below: http://www.goan-recipes.com/goan-pork-sorpotel-recipe/#sthash.bhO2M9a8.dpbs As Sarapatel (or Sorpotel) originated from the Alentejo region of Portugal, it is appropriate to draw attention to the inhabitants of the region, mainly Portuguese peasants. There are some very interesting uploads on u-tube showing the life style of inhabitants of Alentejo region which could easily mirror Goa and village life of yester year some of which is still visible today. May I invite you all to click on the link below titled Saudade Tenho Saudade uploaded by Sempao Isaurindo. Note the map of Alentejo at minute 0.08 and the accompanying accordion and gumot music. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIQ2z5-gb9U There is also an excellent self-explanatory U-tube upload providing further evidence of the influence of Alentejo region in Goa : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pbt4XJt718s Minutes 1.50 and 6.31 - Choriz Pao Minutes 4.46, 5.53 and 10.01 - the baking of Pao Minutes 7.32, 8.44 and 9.23 – Claypot cooking Minutes 7.26 and 8.07 (most important) – Drying of Choriz Minutes 3.18 – Laying of a table Minutes 9.06 and 9.44 – the inside of a house in Alentejo (mirrored in Goa) Some of these farming items and claypots can be viewed at the Goa Chitra museum near Benaulim, Goa. There are also many other items of historical interest well worth a visit next time in Goa. After my last visit, I always wondered if we had a “wooden” age as a lot of farming equipment in the west appears to have been designed from the “wooden” items seen at the museum. We are told of the “stone” age and “iron” age, did historians leave out the “wooden” age when it came to inventions. Apart from museums, claypots are found in Niz Goenkar households to enhance the authentic flavours of our dishes. I hope this detailed explanation shared with the help of modern technology helps clear up this matter once and for all and the origin of our national dish Sorpotel can be given a certificate of a Portuguese peasant dish, served as the king dish mandatory at all our main events. What does this make us? It is said we are what we eat. Escola ghela, I was mainly trying to draw an explanation into the behaviour of some of our people when it comes to manners, queue jumping and specially the peasant school of thought throughout our community however educated they may be with regards to money and management matters. . We mirror Alentejo and serve Sorpotel at our feasts otherwise it will be like a Birthday Cake without candles. Long live Goa’s delicious street foods as savoured around the world.
Melvyn Fernandes Thornton Heath, Surrey, United Kingdom 26 September 2014
