Dear Roland Having spent the best part of yesterday evening feasting on a table full of authentic homemade Goan food at our annual feast celebration of Saint Francis Xavier, the only grace that came from our lips was the "grace before meals".
Here in the United Kingdom at nearly every Goan occasion attended be it a wedding, christening, dance, birthday party, village feast, Easter or Christmas, Goan food is well and truly on the menu, with an excellent selection of delicious food. In days gone by in Goa, sorpotel and other labour intensive dishes were not prepared every day, every week or every month. They were made only on special occasions such as weddings, Christmas, etc. and this tradition still exists in the homes of many in our community world wide today. Breakfast would have been bakri, pao, etc., kanji and water pickle for elevenses. The main diet at lunch and dinner would have been say Goa rice and a little curry containing small pieces of fish, with maybe one or two pieces of fried fish and vegetables, depending on affordability. Meat would have been eaten occasionally, possibly on Sunday, it was not much more regular than that. Biscuits or cake were made for tea and all other sweets made only during Christmas time, put on plates and shared around with relatives, neighbours and friends. Maybe next year for World Goa day we could have a list of where Goan food is available around the world. If ever your tastebuds are in need of a Goan culinary fix, you have a opportunity to visit After Eight Take Out in Toronto - 30 New Delhi Drive, Unit 69, Markham tel: (905) 554-5694 website: http://aftereighttakeout.com/photo-gallery/ >From my experience, most women in our community dish up excellent cuisine, and >would not find a typical Goan diet hard to emulate. For those who have drifted from our heritage and culture, there are excellent cookery books available, the Goan Cookery Book by Elsie Maciel, released in 1983 being one of them. Most of the ingredients are available in the United Kingdom with a few exceptions being toddy but it will only be a matter of time when that too will be available here. If there is one thing that has survived more than anything else in our heritage is our undiminished love of our food, including our sweet dodol. Rose Fernandes Thornton Heath, Surrey, United Kingdom 4 December 2012
