The Dying art of Bread Making in Goa

 

What’s the first thing that strikes you the instant you hear about Goa??? Surely the sandy beaches, palm fringed shores, riverside fronts, legendary nightlife that’s it?? 

Trust me, there’s a lot more to this beautiful little state than the sun, sand surf and sunshine.

Goa’s got everything from its richness in natural beauty, a laid back way of life, to all sorts of irresistible delicious food. Business industries currently in Goa are growing better day by day. Although the standard of living in Goa is high and is one amongst the developed states in India but there are areas where traditional businesses and artisans still exist. There are still few folks who are entailed in traditional local businesses like farming, fishing and toddy tapping. These businesses are mostly family business handed down over generations. The bread making business in Goa is one such business which is close to the heart of many Goan’s especially due to their fondness for bread. 

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Though the staple food of Goa is rice and fish curry, bread forms an essential part of this coastal cuisine too. Be it for breakfast, for evening tea or for any other occasion in the house the bread is always seen on the buffet table.

Towards the end of the Portuguese power, each and every Goan village had their own bakehouse and also the pao was essential at the breakfast table. 

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The art of bread making is a bequest granted to Goan’s by the Portuguese. Coming to culinary habits, Goa can quite simply be known as the land of bread eaters. Such is the symbiotic relationship goans share with this simple baked delight, the ‘pao’. 

Prepare for a visit on goan bread however before that a touch of history on how Pao was conceived in goa. Well according to what I’ve read so far I got to know that we do not have any ancient baking tradition in India and no history of ovens. So as a concept, Pão (bread in portuguese) was initially introduced over 450 years past in Goa by the Portuguese who had colonized this state. Earlier Goan’s had a diet quite similar with that of South-India. Ironically the bread lovers landed into a rice bowl. Thus they missed their own bread. So what were they to do? The European settlers then picked the next best thing that’s toddy (local palm liquor) for leavening and equipped the poder (a Goan baker) with the art of bread making. Thus the beloved bun shaped Goan pao we know today, was born which later spread to the rest of the country.

The first Goan pao were quite exceptional. They were prepared by utlising toddy(locally known as sur) , as a source of natural yeast. This gave the bread a particular character which is quite not possible to replicate with any other kind of yeast. This blend was then left to ferment for 2-3 hrs. The pao which was prepared with toddy in it used to last over a period of 5-6 days. The pao is baked in wood-fired mud ovens, locally known as forn The first Goan pao were legendary in that they were made using sur(local toddy)  a natural yeast; which gave the bread a distinctive character that's quite not possible to replicate with any other kind of yeast. 

Although the first poee were made using fermented toddy, that practice is almost obsolete now because sur is hard to find. Today, however, a handful of bakers use toddy to make the bread, especially because commercial yeast is far easier to find and is more stable than toddy. 

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Today, many bakeries in Goa still continue to bake bread in traditional brick ovens, the same way they have since the hour of the Portuguese. The rolls are  still made in traditional ways. The flour, yeast and water are mixed together. After the dough is kneaded, it is left to rise.  Moulding them and placing them on trays is done with hands. Yes, they are finished with bare hands.

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 The ovens, that they used are the traditional wood fired ovens known as forn locally. Dough in trays is passed in to an empty space, a niche on the divider. It is placed in to the room which acts as oven. 

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As the buns rise and turn golden brown the tray is pulled out and emptied into a huge basket.  Apart from Pao, there is a variety of brad in goa. There is Bhakri ,bol, Katro pao, Kankana and Poyi. 

Nearly everybody across the world use alarm to wake up in mornings if not then may be a direct result of the milkman, otherwise due to newspaper delivery boy. But not Goans! Ask  Goan's, you will be surprised to know how they wake up.

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In Goa people rarely use the alarm, for most Goans, it is the perpetual honking of the poder (Bread Vendor) the horn signaling the arrival of fresh pao for breakfast. It is a part of being in Goa. And till today this practice despite everything proceeds in villages only.

Here in goa each town generally has a couple of bakeries. In each and every area of each and every village , there is a bakery that churns out a range of Portuguese-inspired bread in a minimum of two batches every single day. 

Well, we just can’t simply carry on saying that the bread is an integral part of the Goan food, the same amount of credit ought be given to the poder who puts in his hard-work so that every Goan can get the flavour of the heavenly bread. The general food habits of Goans are changing. Traditional diets have got replaced with ready made, exotic fast foods.

The occupation has come under stress in recent times with the ever-changing social and economic patterns and as fewer people are keen on continuing the family-owned business of baking, there is a  real danger of this unique part of Goan heritage gradually vanishing. The government has not done much for the Poders by way of financial assistance to raise their level to compete with today’s challenging business situation.

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 If you visit their workplace cum residence you will witness that the rooms are brimming with dust. Many poders stock the firewood in or behind their houses. The presence of the dust and firewood makes their places hazardous. Generations of poders have grown up in such circumstances, to produce the beloved Goan pao. 

I feel the poders need practical support for their profession. Also it’s our duty to regard and acknowledge the contribution of the poders in our daily lives. They are doing an unsung service through their miniature units and it is high time that the educated civil society looks compassionately at their pitiful working conditions. 

 We must save their economically valuable  cultural profession from extinction. And be vocal for local before it is too late to act!