Two Goan lives with Food
Adelaide Tavares
Her dad and mom were Goan but she was born in Kanwar, Karnataka. Her dad was a driver who would ride the train across the coast. She finally went to a school at a convent at the age of seven. Reached Belgum at the age of thirteen where she lived beside Walter. After finishing high school she became an administrator and expertised herself with the typewriter. One of her fondest memories of her childhood before her mother passed away was when her and her mother use to watch a movie and get lunch 'chapatee' is an unleavened flatbread. (Akbari)
She ended up getting a job in a manufacturing company at Bangalore for five years where she lived with her mother-in-law. She ended up leaving that for the opportunity to go to the U.A.E. where she worked at a British Bank for 18 years. While she was busy tending the kids, working, and cooking; she had extra help with cleaning and maintaining the house with a one maid as that how much they could afford at that time. Her favourite dish were shawrmas, kabobs, humus (lebanese style). She would work every single day.
Being exposed to many ethnic diversity around the world, it affected the way she would cook and appreciate the food she ate. She began loving Chinese Hakka food. Also one of her fav meals to cook were a goan meal called Potato Chops (where it's minced (shallow oil), cooked and stuffed inside the potato)
She is happy no one in her family are picky eaters. To accomodate the different dietary restrictions that some family members bring to the table, she only makes meat on the weekends and vegatables only on week days.
She hopes to pass on her Goan meals to the next generation of the Tavares.
Though she will continue her passion to cook by creating and continue her own catering business 'Goan Flavours' , through cookbooks, word of mouth, and passing around recipes.
The continuation of food exposure continues....
This project was made possible thanks to our partners at the Malvern Action for Neighbourhood Change.
Project Page:
Author: Asad Jamal
Course: GASD71, Cuisine and Culture of South Asia, Winter 2015