St Andrew’s Church in Bandra prepares to host the East Indian Food Festival on April 26, featuring traditional cuisine and cultural performances | File Photo
Mumbai: The quadrangle of the St Andrew’s Church, Bandra, will host the annual East Indian food festival on Saturday evening.
The festival will showcase a cuisine which is a unique blend of North Konkan and Portuguese cooking, much like the East Indian dialect of Marathi is influenced by Portuguese, the language of the colonial power that ruled the area in the 17th century.
“Our food is a confluence of Portuguese dishes and Indian spices. Our sorpotel and vindaloo curries originated in Portugal but we adapted it to our palate by adding our spices. The mutton stew is an adaptation of Irish stew,” said Rekha Barretto, the Mobai Gaothan Panchayat’s coordinator for the food festival.
St Andrew’s Church in Bandra prepares to host the East Indian Food Festival on April 26, featuring traditional cuisine and cultural performances | File Photo
One example of the speciality of the cuisine is the use of ‘bottle masala’, a blend of over hundred spices. The recipes for the mix is a closely guarded secret and every family and village have their version. The name of the condiment comes from the narrow-necked beer bottles that are used to store the tightly packed mix.
Visitors at the event can taste fugiyas and umbers which are spongy breads, fish, and traditional sweets. A ‘Mobai Kitchen’ will serve a special buffet of 10 authentic East Indian dishes. Summer-time specialities like the white onions locally called ‘wil’ and sukeli or dry bananas.
Apart from food stalls, there will be display of the nine-yard lugra sarees and traditional jewellery, and cookery books. The evening will also feature the annual East Indian Music Awards for winners of competitions organised in the gaothans or villages. Performances of traditional music and dance will be another highlight of the evening.
St Andrew’s Church in Bandra prepares to host the East Indian Food Festival on April 26, featuring traditional cuisine and cultural performances | File Photo
The East Indian music bands which are a regular feature at weddings and festivals may not perform due to noise restrictions, but unique musical instruments like the earthen ghumats, a leather drum, will be on display. “The idea is to take our culture forward,” said Sion resident Sherline Barretto, the MGP coordinator for the music events.
