Eastward ho! Fusion of traditional Indian dishes and Portuguese cuisine

Mumbai's East Indian fare is a fusion of traditional Indian dishes and Portuguese cuisine, best experienced at community weddings, celebratory events or festivals, writes Soumya Gayatri

“In East Indian homes, celebrations begin long before the guests arrive,” says Abigail Rebello, explaining how festive cooking in Mumbai’s indigenous East Indian community begins days, and sometimes weeks, in advance. “Whether it is Easter, Christmas, a wedding, or simply a birthday, we love to plan our menus early, get the masalas ready, and soak fruits in rum long before we finalise our guest list,” she adds with a smile. 

Rebello is the co-author of ‘Jevayla Ye’, an award-winning cookbook that documents traditional East Indian recipes passed down through word of mouth over generations. For her, festive food goes beyond the celebrations. It works as a living archive of centuries-old culinary history of the East Indian people and cherished memories of friends and family.

Mumbai’s little-known East Indian community is one of India’s oldest Christian groups, tracing its origins to Portuguese proselytising in the Konkan region in the 16th century. As a result, East Indian cuisine became a vibrant fusion of traditional Indian dishes and colonial Portuguese fare, blending flavours, ingredients, and techniques from the East and the West, best experienced at community weddings, festivals, and other celebratory occasions. “Our feasts are always elaborate with lovingly-cooked spreads,” says East Indian advocate Godfrey Pimenta, a trustee of Mumbai’s Watchdog Foundation. “There is rice, rotis, special breads, seafood and meat curries, sweets, pickles, and sometimes even homemade wine, all contributing to the sense of togetherness and festivity.”

Potato chops as starters 

East Indian festive meals typically begin with mouthwatering appetisers, such as potato chops filled with spiced minced meat. Crisp on the outside and soft on the inside, they are a universal favourite. Alongside potato chops are canapés topped with Russian salad — the East Indian version of the Russian Olivier Salad — which offer a refreshing, cooling start to the spicy mains that follow.

Indulgent, slow-cooked mains

The mains are slow-cooked, deeply spiced (often with the signature East Indian bottle masala), and unapologetically indulgent. Roast chicken stuffed with a delicious liver filling and flavoured with cinnamon, black and green cardamoms, and dried chillies, is a mainstay at many festive tables. 

“Sorpotel, a rich stew of pork meat, fat, and offal with intense flavours, is one of my favourites,” says Pimenta. “And of course, there’s the spicy and tangy pork vindaloo, an all-time classic.”

For Rebello, it is her mom’s special quail moilee that is the highlight of every family wedding.

Tender and juicy, this slow-cooked quail dish pairs beautifully with two distinctively-named breads, varias and foogias, that are central to every feast. 

Varias are deep-fried doughnut-shaped wedding breads, made from lentil, rice, and all-purpose flours, leavened with yeast and left to ferment overnight. Foogias are soft, balloon-like breads that puff dramatically when fried and turn deliciously spongy as they absorb moisture from the air.

Rice dishes, which reflect the community’s Indian roots, are also integral to East Indian celebrations. Wedding rice, a fragrant pilaf filled with raisins, cashews, ghee, and whole spices, is omnipresent, whereas tricolour rice, with its signature red, green, and white hues, is an absolute treat for the eyes.

The East Indian wedding pickle, a beloved accompaniment, is made from sundried carrots and raw papayas flavoured with ginger, garlic, chillies, and dates. 

Time for desserts

Desserts like dense fruit cakes, walnut fudge, and coconut cookies contribute to the grand finale. The dark fruit cake, a dense and moist plum cake filled with rum-soaked dried fruits, is a permanent fixture at weddings and Christmas. Bol de Coc, a soft, spongy coconut cake, reflects the community’s coastal origins and a strong Portuguese influence.

One can never forget the iconic kulkuls – sweet, crunchy, hand-shaped desserts that form an essential part of every East Indian kuswar festive platter.

Homemade wines elevate the East Indian festive experience. Spicy ginger wine, brewed weeks in advance in old-style jars called barnis, warms the palate while rose petal wine, made from fresh petals, adds colour and fragrance to the table. 

Stories and memories

For Mumbai’s East Indian community, “these dishes are more than just festive indulgence,” says Rebello. “They are laden with stories and memories, carrying our history and safeguarding our heritage,” she adds. According to Pimenta, “these occasions drive people to dig out traditional recipes, bring back old spice blends, and cook dishes that might otherwise be forgotten.”