It was
an evening of all things Brazilian, Angolan, Cabo Verde and Portuguese at Clube
Harmonia on Saturday evening. ‘Feijoada and Samba’ was an invitation to all
Goans to sample the similarities in food, music, dance and culture between
these Lusophone countries. “This was the first time we hosted a Brazilian fest
in Goa, under the aegis of the Lusofonia Festival 2015. The food, music and
dance was atypical and traditionally from Brazil, Angola, Cabo Verde and
Portugal,” informs President of the Lusophone Society of Goa, Dr Aurobindo
Xavier.
On the
menu was a tempting array of Brazilian cuisine – Brazilian Feijoada, Pão de
Queijo, (Muqueca), Brazilian drinks (caipirinha, batida), Cape Verde cuisine
(Cachupa), Angolan (Mufete) and Portuguese Bolinhos de Bacalhau. “Goan cuisine
was skipped altogether. The idea was to familiarise Goan people with the
cuisine of Brazil, Angola, Cabo Verde and Portugal,” states Dr Xavier.
“There
are so many similarities between Brazilian and Goan cuisine and a festival such
as this just serves to highlight these aspects,” observes Benaulim-based pastry
chef Fernanda Pereira Figueiro, who has been in Goa for the past four and a
half years. Being married to a Goan has been an added advantage. To sweeten the
food quotient, Fernanda prepared two traditional Brazilian sweets – brigadeiro
and beijenho while also serving up an Italian version of the fejoada black
beans dish.
A
familiar dish to most Goans, the feijoada is nevertheless prepared differently
in Brazil and Europe. “The Brazilian feijoada, unlike the Goan one made with
brown beans, is made from special black beans available in Brazil and Europe.
In fact I specially brought beans from Europe for the occasion. Another
dissimilarity is that Goans add choricao to the beans, but Brazilians use the
typical Italian or Portuguese chorizo which is different and a less pungent
version of the Goan one,” explains Dr Xavier while elaborating that feijoada is
a national dish of Brazil which is consumed almost every day, by everyone.
Often accompanied by arroz (rice), the wealthier folks add meat to the dish.
To give
the Brazilian flavour a more authentic touch, traditional dances, music (albeit
recorded) and even comperes from Brazil, Angola, Cabo Verde and Portugal were
also showcased during the evening. “At the festival, the Angolans performed the
traditional Kuduro while the Brazilians rendered a mix of the samba and zumba
with traditional and contemporary music,” shares Dr Xavier.
Interestingly,
all the participants live in Goa. “There are 10 countries in the Lusophone
sphere, but we did not intentionally choose Brazil. When we decided to hold the
festival in Goa, we asked which of these nationalities were staying in Goa. We
got a good response from Brazilians, Cabo Verde, Angola and Portugal. Hence the
choice of a Brazilian Festival,” explains Dr Xavier.
True to
its purpose, the evening served to highlight the similarities between Goa and
Brazil, particularly in the culinary department.