NT NETWORK
PANAJI/MARGAO
The Goan pao is losing its unique taste and texture. The traditional taste of the pao (bread) is changing due to the different materials that are used in the baking process by neo-bakers hailing from the neighbouring states.
The art of baking bread by using toddy for fermentation and thus coming out with a unique taste and texture has been now replaced with the use of modern yeast (baking powder).
The Goan pao, introduced by the Portuguese, is dying a slow death with several bakeries being leased out by Goans to persons, who lack expertise in the bakerA’s profession and try shortcuts to make fast money. Of the existing 600-odd legal bakeries in the state, there are hardly 25 bakeries, which proudly sell pao made in the old Portuguese style. Many bakeries in Goa have now turned modern but the quality and taste of the pao is declining.
According to traditional bakers, a pao made using toddy used to last for almost four days but as it has been replaced with yeast, the pao today cannot be preserved even for a day. A traditional baker from Altinho in Panaji Alvito Gomes opined that many factors are contributing to the deterioration of the quality of pao and added that labour or rather the lack of it has a major role to play in the deteriorating quality of the Goan bread.
“Goans today are not interested in bakery business. People are educated and want white-collared jobs. Many have left Goa for better prospects and settled in Portugal, England and other European countries,” he said. Gomes said that in the past, Goans completely concentrated on the traditional contents, which required a lot of patience, cleanliness and hygiene in the preparation of the pao. Moreover, the bread was prepared as per the Portuguese norms and bakers used to get scared of violating them as punishment was strict.
“Now there is no fear. Whatever you do is being tolerated. Either the baker can mix more yeast (baking powder) to get fast results, which is bad for health, or he has to wait for 8 long hours for proper fermentation. But nobody is using toddy, salt and jaggery these days due to the cost factor,” he said. Bakers now want quick results to cater to the ever increasing number of customers. So they use more yeast, salt, ghee and dough as the mixture ferments very fast, he said.
As such, only 20 per cent of the traditional bakers are into the bakery business while the rest of them are migrants running the show in the state, he said adding that it is due to this that the taste, texture and the traditional colour of the pao is getting lost.
“Today toddy is missing in the pao. Bakers use yeast in place of toddy and the pao made using yeast hardly lasts for a day,” said a prominent baker from the old market in Margao. “Since there is no choice, people are forced to eat such half-baked pao,” he said.
Though many Goan bakers have leased out their bakeries to people from the neighbouring states citing reasons of labour crisis and non-availability of firewood and raw material, it is understood that such bakeries are rented out to earn easy money.
“The non-Goan bakers want to recover the money they invest. Hence, they don’t wait for two and half hours that are required for fermentation of the pao. This is one of the reasons for the traditional pao doing the vanishing act,” said Peter Fernandes, president of the Goa Bakers and Confectionery Association. He said the Goa government should provide financial assistance to the bakers so as to revive the traditional tasty Goan pao.