Sorpotel: Mumbai’s Father Warner D’souza on why the Goan dish is his celebratory dish for Christmas

There are many dishes that are cooked for Christmas but for Father Warner D’Souza of St Stephen’s Church in Cumbala Hill, the humble sorpotel trumps all. In part three of this series, Mid-day Online speaks to the city priest on his Christmas memories and his popular celebratory dish

Unlike most other people, Mumbai priest Father Warner D’Souza, says he has unconventional memories of Christmas and the festive season. They do not include lavish feasts but rather a close and humble family affair. “We didn't grow up with privilege. We had enough to live but not enough for luxury,” he says, continuing, “It was when Crawford Market had Rs 20 disgusting looking stockings with toys in it,” he laughs. However, as a child receiving stockings with trinkets in it was good he says because all children want is something that fascinates them. “We never got all that,” he shares. 

Instead, D’Souza’s mother, being a creative person, would decorate a very large tree that somebody had bought the family for free from America. “Every year, part of the tree would go bare, and she would make us paint the baubles and she would make it look absolutely gorgeous,” he reminisces. It was not only the decorations but also the lead up to Christmas making sweets with his mother that was an exciting time. “I learned how to roll kulkuls on well-washed combs, how to fry nevris and make milk cream, and one time even that went brown because we kept it too long. So, for me, Christmas was coming together, which is the joy of Christmas and making them rather than picking them out of a stall,” he shares, taking us all to the time we have grown up helping our mothers and family make Christmas sweets. 

While decorating the Christmas tree and making sweets was an integral part of his festive celebrations, it was the Christmas lunch that was his favourite. “I have a very strong memory of Christmas lunch where we had a pulao, chicken curry, which I salivate even thinking about now, and pork vindaloo,” he shares. D'Souza adds that today when he can put out a 13-course menu, if it doesn't have pulao, pork vindaloo and chicken coconut curry, it is not Christmas. “It is not what you eat but the memory of happy days when you smile through a simple meal,” he adds, continuing, “Even if you have little on Christmas day today, you have these memories and the identification of what comes on the palate and that is a tremendously strong memory.” The fact that you can have different kinds of dishes for the feast but every Christmas at the end of the day was about eating the familiar sorpotel and vindaloo is what he has always believed in. “The heart of Christmas is comfort food.” 

So, what is his celebratory dish? D’Souza is clearly torn between pork vindaloo and pork sorpotel but ask him again and he immediately says pork sorpotel. A chat with the priest who is associated with the St Stephen’s Church in Cumbala Hill is incomplete without a history lesson of how ‘sarpatel’ originated in Brazil and its journey to India, nuggets of which he often shares on his Instagram account. “While sorpotel was once upon a time a very humble dish, today it is at the centre of our Christmas celebrations,” says D’Souza, who goes by the name ‘Potty Padre’ on photo-sharing platform. 

Recipe for Sorpotel by Father Warner D’Souza 

Ingredients: 
Pork 1 kilo 
Salt 1 tbsp 
Turmeric powder 1 tsp 
Vinegar 1 ½ cup 
Kashmiri chillies - 20 - 25 nos 
Cloves 14 nos 
Cinnamon 1 stick 
Peppercorns 1 tsp 
Jeera 1 tsp 
Turmeric 1/2 tsp 
Garlic 1/2 tsp 
Ginger 1/4 inch 
Onions 3 nos 
Green chillies, slit 5 nos 

Method: 
1. Boil the pork with salt and turmeric powder for four minutes in a pressure cooker and turn off after the first whistle. Let it rest and cool completely. 
2. Grind the vinegar, Kashmiri chillies, cloves, cinnamon, peppercorns, jeera along with 1/2 tsp turmeric powder, 1/2 pod garlic and 1/4 inch ginger and set aside. 
3. Cut the pork into small dice. 
4. In a vessel, fry the pork in batches and set aside each batch. 
5. In the same vessel, using the fat of the pork, add three onions and cook till translucent. 
6. Add 5 slit green chillies, 1/2 inch finely chopped ginger and 1 whole pod of finely cut garlic. Stir and cook this well. 
7. Now add ground masala and the cut pork pieces. 
8. Stir this all well for about three minutes on medium heat and cook till done or keep adding warm water till it is done. You need a gravy with a thick consistency.

Also Read: Christmas 2022: Whip up these 5 cocktails to get in the festive spirit 

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