Wow Thank you
On Sat, 24 Nov 2018, 14:53 Goanet Reader <goanetrea...@gmail.com wrote: > Going beyond xacuti and cafreal, an old cookbook serves the > delights of Goan Catholic cuisine > > The 'Goan Cookbook' by Joyce > Fernandes has been the kitchen > guide for Goans over the past > few decades. > > Oct 11, 2018 · 11:30 am > Anisha Rachel Oommen & Aysha Tanya > > In 1510, a Portuguese expedition led by Afonso de Albuquerque > conquered Goa, forever changing the cultural and economic > landscape of what is now India's smallest state. From the > 16th century until 1961, when Goa ceased to be a Portuguese > colony, the influences of the Estado da Índia Portuguesa > permeated every walk of life. To this day, it is seen in the > pillared porches (balcãos) and inner courtyards (saquãos) of > a house in Fontainhas -- the old Latin Quarter in Panjim -- > to the xacuti one might eat at a homestay by the beach. > > The confluence of lusophone traditions with local Hindu > customs has created a culture and community that have a > distinct identity that is obvious from even a cursory glance > at a Mario Miranda painting, or even the laziest Bollywood > trope of the fun-loving Goan Catholic. > > The Goan Catholics make up about 25% of the state's > population. They are behind many of the popular > Goan delicacies -- xacuti, chicken cafreal, > vindaloo and chourico. Their cuisine is a marriage > of local dishes with a burst of Portuguese > inspiration. The poi or Goan bread is a perfect > example of this. Lizzie Collingham, author of > Curry, writes that the Portuguese began to make poi > in rice-centric Goa, using toddy as a replacement > for yeast, to satiate their bread (or pao as it is > known in Portuguese) cravings. > > Taste of the sea > > One characteristic of the Goan Catholic cuisine is the use of > toddy vinegar or coconut vinegar. The sweet and sour flavour > of the vinegar is what gives so many of Goan dishes its > unique piquancy. The Hindus of the region though, prefer to > use kokum as a souring agent. > > As Goa is by the sea, seafood is an important part of the > everyday meal in a Goan Catholic home. "A daily lunch > consisted of rice, curry, vegetable, meat, fried fish, prawns > or any other seafood as per availability," said Jaqueline > D'Souza, an avid cook and a resident of Porvorim. Coconut too > plays a leading role in the cuisine -- the famous fish curry > of Goa is an example of a dish that gets its velvety lushness > from ground coconut. > > A cookbook that provides an insight into the cuisine, without > being intimidating for a beginner is Joyce Fernandes' Goan > Cookbook. The first edition of the cookbook came out in 1984 > and has been a constant on the bookshelves of Goan housewives > since. > > PHOTO: Sopa De Camarão or prawn soup. > > It is the first of four books written by Fernandes. D'Souza > says it was the first cookbook she owned and is very > sentimental about it. Jean Cardoso, a Goan who now lives in > Bengaluru, feels similarly attached to her well-worn copy and > says that it was the book she bought as a newlywed learning > how to cook. On *Traditional Goan Foodies*, a Facebook group > with 1.48 lakh members, pictures of dishes cooked from > Joyce's books pop up frequently. Back in the pre-social media > days though, when the books were published, it is said that > Joyce had a rather clever way of promoting her books -- > through hair salons in Panjim. > > The book is 71 pages long, with 105 recipes. It is not > divided into sections, and therefore, Bimbli Balchao sits > next to Lover's Pudding, segueing without pomp, splendour or > grand announcements -- into the dessert section. What it > lacks in frills, it makes up for in clarity and an easy, > relaxed instructional voice. There is something to be said > for finding a recipe to make sausages that does not come with > a litany of warnings that are meant to reassure, but in > reality make the process more harrowing. > > As with many cookbooks from the decade, not a lot of emphasis > is placed on timing. To be fair, however, on several > occasions, the instructions state the signs to look for -- > cook until the onions are brown, for example. > > PHOTO: The Marie Biscuit Cake. > > Although it may seem like Goan Cookbook might be a book that > values practicality above all else, Fernandes writes in the > introduction to the 1990 edition, "the original names of the > recipes have been preserved for sentimentality" -- and > sentimental, romantic and quirky they are. Lover's Pudding, > Tipsy Cake, Angels' Wings, Cobwebs and our favourite for what > appears to be a meringue, Sigh. We would not expect anything > less from a book that features a recipe for chocolate salami. > > The first dish we make from the book is Sopa De > Camarão or prawn soup. In today's style of recipe > writing, this is a recipe that would have taken at > least one page of directions. But in Joyce's clear, > to-the-point writing, in less than 200 words, the > instructions for a foolproof prawn soup are conveyed. > > The second recipe that we try is The Marie Biscuit Cake. > Although there is no actual baking or cooking involved, and > the final product is not a cake by any stretch of imagination > -- it comprises stacking coffee-soaked Marie biscuits, layered > with icing, one on top of the other -- the resulting dessert > is one that is sweet and simple. Yet, beyond the obvious > nostalgia value, we suspect this dish has very little > currency. Perhaps next time, we will spring for a Sigh instead. > > Recipe for Prawn Soup (Sopa De Camarão) > > Ingredients > 1 cup prawns (boiled and chopped) > 8 cups stock (water in which the prawns are boiled) > 8 potatoes (peeled and quartered) > 3 onions (sliced) > 2 tablespoons butter > 2 egg yolks > 1 cup milk > 1 cup croutons (slices of bread, cut into cubes and fried > crisp) > Salt to taste > > Method > Wash the potatoes, place them in a pan together with the > onions and stock and cook till potatoes are tender. > Pass through a sieve or liquidiser. > Pour the puree into another pan, add the chopped prawns and > bring it slowly to a boil adding a little butter at a time. > Remove the soup from the fire. > Mix the egg yolks with the milk and add a couple of spoons of > the soup to the milk mixture. > Mix well and add it to the soup. > Reheat the soup. > Be careful not to allow it to boil. > Serve immediately with croutons. > > All photos by Aysha Tanya. > Support our journalism by subscribing to Scroll+ here. We > welcome your comments at lett...@scroll.in. > > > https://scroll.in/magazine/896429/an-old-goan-catholic-cookbook-first-promoted-through-salons-is-still-indispensable-in-many-homes >