In My Kitchen with Paula

Exploring Goan Food and Culture with Lara Victoria

• Paula Mohammed • Episode 23

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Have you ever wondered what makes Goan cuisine so special? What if the secret ingredient isn’t just the spices, but the sun itself?

In this episode, Paula sits down with Lara Victoria, a food and wine expert with deep roots in both Bombay and Goa. Lara shares her journey from pastry chef to sommelier, weaving in the rich cultural influences that have shaped her love for food and hospitality.

Together, they explore the vibrant flavors of Goan cuisine, from the legendary Goan sausages to the Portuguese-inspired vindaloo. Lara explains the relaxed Goan way of life, known as Susegad, and how the region’s unique blend of Indian and Portuguese heritage has influenced its food, music, and traditions.

Paula and Lara also discuss the deep role of hospitality in Indian culture, the hidden gems of Goa’s food scene, and even the art of pairing wine with Indian dishes. Whether you’re planning a trip to Goa or just love learning about food from around the world, this episode is packed with flavor, history, and inspiration.

In this episode, you'll learn about:

  • The must-try dishes of Goa, including chicken shakuti and chorizo pão
  • The Portuguese influence on Goan cuisine and how it evolved over time
  • How Lara transitioned from banking to hospitality and found her passion in wine education
  • The beauty of Goan hospitality and why Sussegad is a lifestyle worth embracing

Grab a cup of chai (or a glass of wine!) and join Paula for a delicious deep dive into Goa’s food, culture, and history with Lara Victoria.


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SAY HELLO

In My Kitchen creates connections one dish at a time, by exploring culture through food. I do this through unique culinary workshops, speaking engagements, and of course, this podcast.

I'd love to hear from you! Connect with me in one of three ways:

Paula Mohammed: I got so lucky when I was invited to a wine pairing dinner and I met Lara Victoria, who is a sommelier for the event. And I'm really excited to have Lara on the podcast show. Lara has a rich cultural background with her roots in Bombay and her influential teen years spent in Goa. In this episode, we talk about the food of Goa, exploring traditional dishes like Goan sausages and chicken shakuit. Lara also introduces us to the unique Goan lifestyle marked by its relaxed pace, known as susegad, and explains how the region's Portuguese and Indian heritage shapes its vibrant culture. Now remember, Goa was under Portuguese rule until the early 60s. Hearing Lara describe one of her favorite places and where her childhood memories as a teen reside is like having your own personal tour guide to Goa. Sit back, relax, and enjoy this engaging conversation with Lara Victoria. Welcome to the show, Lara. So great to have you here.

Lara Victoria: Oh, lovely to be here, Paula.

Paula Mohammed: I'm just so excited about this episode. We're going to dive right in. A little bit about Lara—qualified in food technology as a pastry chef, is certified WSET educator, a dynamic and multifaceted professional in hospitality and all things related to food, wine, spirits, sake, and entertaining. An international educator, speaker, and judge for beverage alcohol, as well as a recipe developer, food stylist, and food photographer, inspired by and curious about the influence of culture on global cuisines and hospitality. So, it's no surprise why you and I hit it off when we met.

Lara Victoria: It was instant. Yes.

Paula Mohammed: Lara, can you tell our listeners a little bit about your background and the cultures that have influenced you?

Lara Victoria: Yes. I think I'm the—I don't know—mixed nuts of a bowl of mixed nuts when it comes to all the influences, and I'm grateful for that. So I was born in Bombay in India—now it's called Mumbai. When I was there, it was always Bombay. So pardon me if I default to that, but I was born there, and I had the opportunity to live in Goa for three years during my teen years. So you can only imagine how influential those years were to me. Soon after that, after I finished my graduation in my BA, I've always loved food and, uh, I had a sweet tooth, so I found myself just slipping into the world of pastries. There's a story there, but we won't go there now. I found myself getting qualified to be a pastry chef and, lo and behold, soon after that, I actually immigrated to Canada, and life took on its own path. From there, I just—you know, you gotta pay the bills! I was new, I didn't know what was happening, but I did have a background in, as I said, I was educated in Bombay formally. So I came, I found myself in banking—completely out of the norm, but I loved it. Found creativity, found purpose, found value in what I did. And anyway, after a while, my children were growing older, and they needed more of my time really at home. And banking, as you know, is a very, very—I would say—invested (no pun there) industry in terms of time. Those days, remote working was not an option. I had to make a decision, and I decided that I was going to leave banking that I loved so dearly, but found, I would say, a new direction in the world of hospitality.

My earlier training in confectionery and bakery had this food science part of it, which really clicked in. I started looking at what else could go with food and wine pairings, and the science of it attracted me. I found myself taking a few courses in wine just because I was curious. Loved it. I don't know whether it adopted me or I adopted it. I don't know. But it was a beautiful relationship, educating myself in the vineyard world, and that's it. I guess I got hooked from there. I continued doing all my certifications, did the WSET diploma in wines and spirits, then went on to actually become an educator as well, and started my business in hospitality called Cru Class Hospitality Corp. here in Vancouver. I used to offer courses in wine, spirits, and sake. Of course, then the pandemic hit, as we know, and it was difficult to meet in a classroom. So I had to get creative, and that's when the food styling part of it really came into being. I was able to tap into some hidden talents that I had. I've always been very artistic. So anyway, I went and developed that, loved it, developed it, and now I find myself doing food styling, food photography, recipe development—because of the food science—and writing for magazines and thoroughly enjoying it. But I don't know, it's been such a beautiful world. It's taken me to places. I must say vineyards are always in gorgeous places, you know, so I have nothing to complain about. I love it. I've been able to travel the world, visiting vineyards, doing harvests—I actually did harvests in South Africa, which was a memorable experience—even presenting on wine, spirits, and sake, writing, as I said. Judging has been very good because then it's always wonderful, you get all these lovely, you know, accomplished palates meeting you in the same room from different parts of the world, and it just—it's like it amplifies your experience. So yeah, this has been—yeah, this has been my world so far.

Paula Mohammed: At an event where you were the sommelier, I don't know if I told you this, but I really appreciated your presentation and how you walked us through the pairing. Because you presented wines, and you had us guess the price points, but they were all something that, if you're interested in wine or enjoy wine, it wasn't going to break the bank. It was something that was accessible. I could leave there and—I actually bought one of the whites, the Joie Noble Blend, for a dinner party. It was really great. So I appreciated that you made it so accessible for us that evening.

Lara Victoria: Well, thank you. Thank you for saying that. Actually, that's one of my, I would say, mantras as an educator. One of the things I really focus on is to remove the non-accessible parts. And what I mean by that is, a lot of times people think you've got to be so sophisticated to know wines, you've got to be—let's be honest, there's a “pish poshiness” about it—and I have no time. Because the truth of the matter is, wine is fruit of the earth. The end. You know? It's really a beautiful product that, I would say, is a work of land and a work of hand, you know—how beautifully a grape grows, a vine grows, and how wonderfully the winemaker makes it into wine. Sometimes people misunderstand wines, and they see it's at a price point; they judge it by that price point. And that's what I think you experienced at that tasting—that it doesn't matter. And the truth really comes out in blind tastings. I cannot tell you how much fun I have with blind tastings because—I don't know if it's so much effect, I think it's just the way we consider things in life. We think that if it's more expensive, it's definitely better than the less expensive version. That's not always true. This concept of wine keeps us honest, and I really love that.

Paula Mohammed: You were born in Mumbai, Bombay, and then spent your summers as a teen in Goa. When we started talking about Goa, I went home and started researching it. I think I reached out to you and said, “I really want to make a trip there; I want to travel there!” It also reminded me—I was raised in Vancouver, but I spent summers and four of my prime teen years in New Zealand. I understand when you said how strong of an influence it has on you during those specific years. Can you tell us a little bit—for example, Goa, in case our listeners don't know, was colonized by the Portuguese and under Portuguese rule until the early 60s. It's on the coast of India. Can you tell us a little bit about life growing up in Bombay versus growing up in your time in Goa? Because they're close—on the same subcontinent—but culturally, how are they similar or different? What does that look like?

Lara Victoria: Oh my gosh, it's textured. It's beautiful. So you're right, I was born in Bombay; I was raised in Bombay. I used to go to Goa for my summer holidays as a child, and then I had the opportunity to actually live in Goa in my late teens. It is so different. To give you an idea, in Bombay, when I went to school—I went to a Catholic school, a convent school, and I am Catholic myself—there were only about 25 percent Catholic students. The rest were what we used to call “non-Catholics” those days, but they were all our friends: Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, Parsis, whoever—everyone. And you know, it was so beautiful because we never really found that to be a reason to differentiate us in a way that was “us vs. the other.” It was actually an opportunity to learn. We celebrated not just our own religious festivals, we celebrated everybody's religious festivals, and it was fantastic. We respected each other's differences. I remember we had Muslim friends, and if one of us in our group was eating pork, we would politely excuse ourselves, just to be respectful, because we'd share our food, etc., and we wanted to make sure. Or beef, for example—we would not offer that to our Hindu friends. So we learned to be very accommodating and respectful. That was this multicultural environment.

And then Goa is different. In those days, you would say you had the Christians and the Hindus primarily. There was a Muslim contingent too, but it wasn't as, I would say, multicultural as Bombay was. Bombay is like this—

Paula Mohammed: Just to put it in context, can you give us a decade here? Is this the 80s?

Lara Victoria: It was the 80s and 90s. Yes, exactly around that time. Yeah, because I left in the early 90s. This was the late 80s when I was actually living there into the 90s, and it was just fantastic. Growing up, you knew—at least in my environment—there were a lot of Catholics. The houses, in a way, were very Portuguese historically. There were some people within my family who chose to practice the Portuguese culture more than others; some didn't, but some did. The food had a very distinct Goan identity. And I know we're going to go there, because right now I think my mouth is salivating! When we talk of Bombay, you have food from every part of India. I'm blessed with that influence, because it has helped me understand what culture influences what and how the foods have evolved. Then there's Goa, which is just entrenched in its identity for food, which has a lot of Indian influence but also a very strong Portuguese influence in its dishes.

Paula Mohammed: If you put those together, would you find a dish there like a Portuguese bacalhau that’s curried or spicy? What would Goan dishes look like?

Lara Victoria: We have to go back to a bit of history too. The spice journey—you had the Portuguese and the navigators and trade, and the main trade was spice. As their colony, obviously, this was a very influential spot in Goa, so there’s a lot of that influence. Let’s say Vindaloo—we call it, like, pork Vindaloo, for example. I’m told—I don’t know, I wasn’t there then, but I've read—that it was a dish with cured pork, and one way they would preserve it was in wine: vin. The “vin” part of it, and garlic was the alho. So “Vindaloo” was meat with wine and garlic, and that’s how it was made. You can see how the language, the preparation, and the history influenced it too. Right now, when we talk of Vindaloo, some people call it Vindaloo, but in Goa you say Vindaloo, and it's mostly pork because that was the Portuguese diet in a way. So there are these influences, and there's so many others. Seafood is huge. If you go to Goa and you don't have seafood, something’s wrong! You can’t help it. The ocean’s right there, and the seafood is fresh and absolutely delicious. Anyone can cook for you in Goa, I tell you. That's one thing people can do in Goa: they can cook.

Paula Mohammed: If you were going to Goa to eat one thing, what would it be?

Lara Victoria: Goan sausages. I didn't even have to think about that!

Paula Mohammed: Okay, you need to elaborate.

Lara Victoria: Oh my gosh, okay. I’ve traveled quite a bit—nowhere in the world are sausages made the way Goa makes their sausages. These are spice bombs, and when I say spice bombs, it’s not oppressive. Yes, it is high on the spice scale, but it is so delicious. What makes it wonderful is also the process: these are hung to dry in the Goan sun, which is generous, let's put it that way! People from Goa are in every part of the world, and yes, they will make sausages locally, and it’s wonderful, but the reason more people across the world don't make it is because, yeah, you do miss the sun. I guess that’s an important ingredient.

Paula Mohammed: The Goan sun?

Lara Victoria: That sun, yes! You do taste the sunshine in the sausages. They are wonderful; they are so versatile. Every household has a stash of Goan sausages—where they eat pork, because they are made with pork. It is so handy, because if you’re busy and in a pinch—say it’s raining or something’s happened and you’re caught up in some project, and you have no time to cook—you pull out a few links of sausages, boil them, have some rice, got some vegetables, you’ve got a meal. In university, I remember, you had your ramen noodles—and I know I'm spilling a lot of truths that my university friends and I swore we'd never tell—we used to cook our ramen noodles in electric kettles. We weren't allowed to do that, but we were allowed to have a kettle for making a cup of tea for late nights—

Paula Mohammed: (Laughs) Right.

Lara Victoria: —for late-night studies. We were very industrious young women! So we managed to cook ramen noodles in electric kettles, and we'd throw in a few sausages, and it was delicious. These sausages featured in a great part of our crucial diet during university. You could cook it with rice; we call it chorizo pulao. I have to tell you, I think the best thing is called chorizo pão, which is essentially just boiled sausages—sometimes you throw sautéed onions in it—and you stuff it in a Portuguese bun. There’s nothing fancy about it, but honest to goodness, it is incredible. It is so satisfying, so delicious. Whenever I go to Goa—when I fly in, the airport’s in the south of Goa, and my home is in the north—on the way home, I actually make a stop. There's this village called Agassaim in Goa, which is on the way, and it's known for its sausages. I will hunt down a store that's open and buy my stash of sausages even before I go and see my family at my home there. So it's that important in my diet.

Paula Mohammed: Have you been to Portugal as well?

Lara Victoria: Yeah, yeah, I have.

Paula Mohammed: And the Portuguese sausage there doesn’t compare? Not the same?

Lara Victoria: That’s a great question, because that’s exactly what I was looking for when I went to Portugal. I was hoping to find a place that had the same spicing or flavor. Yes, I can see a similar recipe and ratio of spices; however, the texture is slightly different. In Goa, the sausages are chunkier; the meat is chunky. It's not as ground or homogenized. The only place where I found sausages that were somewhat similar to Goan sausages was, oddly, in Spain—in the north of Spain, Galicia. They’re smaller, thinner links, but taste-wise, they have chunkier meat parts in the casing. It was different, you know, but I guess that's how each place makes something their own. Goan sausages are definitely something you should look for when you go to Goa. I remember saying, “Don't leave Goa without having fish in Goa, seafood in Goa.” Now I'm going to add to that list—sausages too.

Paula Mohammed: I want to read you something from Lonely Planet when I went down my rabbit holes of dreaming about my trip to Goa. This is how they describe Goa: “A kaleidoscopic blend of Indian and Portuguese cultures, sweetened with sun, sea, sand, seafood, susegad, and spirituality, Goa is India’s pocket-sized paradise.” Now, I'm probably pronouncing this wrong—susegad—but what is that?

Lara Victoria: It is sussegad. That is the beat of every Goan heart. It's relaxed. It just means “don't worry, be happy.” It's a relaxed atmosphere, and if you go to Goa, you’ll see—anyone who is an authentically Goan person over there, you’ll see their pace: no one’s rushed. I wish I could remind myself of that in our daily activities here, where we are so rushed from one meeting to another, but there is a certain fluidity to time that people really live, and that’s beautiful. It is sussegad. In fact, in the afternoons—I think things are changing now because the world is changing around us—but there was a time when siesta was very, very important to the Goan business scene as well. You could be starving from 1 to 4, and things were closed. This was once upon a time. But now you do find some places open. Sussegad is that easygoing, live-and-let-live way of living that is relaxed. So yes, it is definitely something that every person going to Goa should tap into, because I think you deserve it.

Paula Mohammed: What you said about the siesta from 1 to 4, that's very similar to Portugal. So what I'm hearing as I listen to you: am I correct in saying that Goa is more like Portugal than it is like India, or is that too much of a generalization? What would a regular day in the life of someone who lives there—say a teenager like yourself when you were there going to school—what would that look like? And maybe I'll let you answer my first question first.

Lara Victoria: If it's more like Portugal than India, that’s actually a good question. The reason I say “good” is not cliché, but because perspective is important here. So today, the whole country—India—is kind of going toward a more unified identity, whether it's religion, political, etc., and that's a different podcast altogether. However, when we talk about the Goa I'm referring to, I’m going back to the 80s and 90s. That was different, so I can speak of that time and what it was like. As a teenager, you'd wake up, get ready, have your breakfast, go to the bus stop, and everybody knew everybody at the bus stop because you were either going to work, or you were going to college, or you were going to market. So you had the usual suspects you'd see at the bus stop, you’d chat about stuff, and then you'd reach where you needed to go.

College was interesting because—yes, I laugh (again, all the sins are being revealed here!)—we did attend class, but we also attended the cafeterias a lot. That was where we met all our friends. Believe it or not, we had fantastic musicians who would come to college with guitars, and we'd all congregate in the cafeteria during lunch hours. Sometimes there would be an extended lunch that would go into siesta time, perhaps. But there’d be music every day—jam sessions, we'd call them. I think that was the best part of our day in college. Then we'd hang out with friends, however we did in our friend circle, and then go home, study, do chores, get ready for dinner, etc. We were Catholic, so of course in every home we'd get together and say the rosary, then dinner.

So it was a very—I would say—nothing extraordinary, but I think the most extraordinary part of the day was the social aspect, meeting people, whether you met them in college or at home. Oh, actually, I should say even at home: you'd come home from college around early evening, and you'd have tea—because tea time is quite important around 4 o'clock—and you'd sit on your balcão, which is the balcony. Most Portuguese-inspired homes in Goa have this beautiful balcony in front, and you'd have neighbors passing by, and everyone would stop in and say hello. You'd invite people in for tea, and your doors were open in that respect. You never had to make an appointment to say, “Hey, can I come from 3:15 to 3:45?” It wasn't like that. You just walked in, and if people were home, they welcomed you. It was this lovely social—this access to humanity was there.

Paula Mohammed: Mm-hmm, mm-hmm.

Lara Victoria: You were there for people, and they were there for you.

Paula Mohammed: Let's talk about that a bit, because I think you brought that up somewhere as well. I love the way you said it is the role of hospitality and its influence on society. Was that hospitality also highly valued when you were living in Bombay as well?

Lara Victoria: Actually, I would say hospitality as a concept is celebrated all across India. That’s a beautiful thing. In fact, it's believed that a guest is an avatar of God in so many ways, and so you do everything for your guest. This is a good discussion because it talks about differences in cultural mindsets: say, for people from different countries, like India, who are, say, in Canada. To give you an idea, if you’re having lunch and someone pops in at your home, you would invite them in and invite them to join you for lunch. There’s no question—if someone’s at your home during lunchtime, it doesn't matter; you just invite them, and you'd share whatever you have with them. Here, I remember when I first arrived, I was surprised to see that if someone did pop in, you'd wait for them to leave before you had your lunch. It was like, “I'm hungry; can we just invite them?” But it was different. So that's one aspect.

Another aspect is, when you do invite someone to your home as your guest, you do everything for them. You think ahead of time—if it’s going to be a chilly evening, you'll make sure you've got an extra pair of blankets set out. You think of small details like that. You keep in mind: does this person have high blood pressure? Maybe they don't need so much salt in their food. You'd cater to that out of respect. So you consider your guests, and you do everything. There was never a concept of, “Okay, I'll bring salad, and you bring a side or dessert.” If I've invited you for dinner, I will cook you everything—your amuse-bouche, appetizer, every little part—because it's a generous way of saying, “You are so important to me; I'm grateful that you’re giving me your time, and I just want you to come have a lovely, relaxed evening. Let me facilitate that.” Hospitality is an attitude, and it is all across India. I've never seen any part of India that doesn't have this.

Paula Mohammed: You see it in many parts of the world except maybe North America. I see it in New Zealand very much the same way. Why do you think it’s so different? Is it time? Are we just so busy here in Canada, everybody’s working? Are we so self-conscious we think somebody’s going to judge what we cook or make? Are we uncomfortable? Many of our hosts—when we started In My Kitchen, a big part of it was, pre-pandemic, we were very passionate about the idea that people were having this experience in the host's home because that hospitality piece was so rich in their cultures. I’ve been thinking about it for a long time, and I can't figure it out myself—why we don't have that here or why it's not cultivated and valued as much. What are your thoughts?

Lara Victoria: I'm glad we're talking about this because, as it turns out, cultural studies is something I'm all over right now—very interested in it. I'm just trying to remember, but I cannot recall which book it was, but I recently read an interesting suggestion about your question of why some cultures like India are so different from, say, North America in this mindset of hospitality. You're right to a certain degree about how we are so rushed, everything is piecemeal, we have so many other stressors, etc. But if you think about it, those cultures—people there, too, are rushed, they, too, are working, they, too, have busy lives. So what makes the difference?

The suggestion is that you've got to understand that these older cultures have had the luxury of a long history and also the luxury of a kind of common culture that everyone shares. So everyone feels comfortable, and everyone knows that, “Hey, if my chicken burns, I'll invite you anyway, because possibly you've invited someone and your chicken's burned, too, and we accommodate. It’s all good.” We're not worried about it. Whereas in North America, people come from so many different parts of the world—Italy, Romania, Sri Lanka, Australia—different places. So if I burn my chicken, it might reflect on Indian cooking, you know what I mean?

Paula Mohammed: The pressure.

Lara Victoria: The pressure, yes. There's a sense of pressure as well. I believe the suggestion in that book was that it kind of fractures that sense of accommodation in hospitality. It becomes more about—maybe performance is not the right word, but also about, “I better be careful about this so as not to fail.” So you kind of say, “Okay, well, you do the salad because if it goes wrong, that’s on you,” or whatever. I'm just relating the connection to what was suggested. There could be some truth to that. When you go back to India, no one cares. In fact, you’ll sit down and eat, and one aunt will say to the other, “I really liked the way you cooked that fish—what did you put in it?” And here’s another part: no aunt, however much she loves you, is giving you the full recipe! Sorry, those are secrets—trade secrets. It's lovely. People will always say, “Oh, it was nothing; it was so easy. You just throw in some onions,” and then she’ll rattle out 25 steps that you haven't caught, you got lost at step four, but she’ll say, “It was nothing; just so easy!” and you’re like, “Wait, was that two tablespoons or five?” There is that comfort in accepting.

Paula Mohammed: To my listeners who are hearing what Lara is saying: don't worry if your meal is perfect or not—just enjoy the company, enjoy the connection. I enjoy what eating together brings. I love that connection. I love cooking because it's my creative outlet—I enjoy the process and the physical movements of it. But some people say to me, sometimes, when they invite me over, that they're a bit nervous, or, “Oh, it won't be as good as yours.” It makes me feel so uncomfortable. I just wish we could embrace more of the cultures that have this shared history of hospitality. I haven't looked at it from that perspective before, so that makes a lot of sense. I hope if there's any takeaway from this podcast episode, it's that people can embrace it as well and just enjoy the company and the time.

Lara Victoria: I think you're onto something there because when I'm invited to someone's home, it's more about the person for me and what they bring to the table—by which I mean the person they bring, not necessarily the food they bring. I revel in the stories the host shares because it's like reading a book: you see the cover, and you're happy with it, but there are so many chapters beneath that, and you learn to understand the cover better. It throws a new light. It's like a bottle of wine for me—I tell my students that, too. When you enjoy a glass of wine, if you really take a moment to understand it, to taste it, sometimes it sounds like, “Why are you tasting for mulberries and pepper and dark chocolate?” Well, these give you hints; they tell you stories about where it might have grown. Maybe the sun was so warm, and that's why you have this ripe, fresh fruit on the palate, or maybe it was cooler or there were eucalyptus forests around it, and you get hints of bramble or eucalyptus or mint. It tells you so much. Similarly, when you go to someone's home, whatever they share, the stories they tell you—whether they speak it explicitly or not—that’s what tells you more. And of course, the food is bonus. You’re grateful for what is given. I think that is the heart of hospitality: the human aspect and the moments shared in that time more than what is eaten or drunk.

Paula Mohammed: Remember, I have a lovely group of friends coming over this evening, actually, and just by chance we're all UBC—that's the university here in Vancouver—alumni. Not everybody knows each other, but I connected with each of these women in different ways throughout that time. Just seeing how our lives have evolved over time: we have a high-level equestrian dressage rider coming, we have an Italian slow-tour cultural food-tour owner coming, we have a physiotherapist, we have a sommelier and vineyard owner coming, and then myself, a lover of culture and food. Somebody would say, “Gosh, you're throwing a dinner party in the middle of the week for all these people!” and I'm like, “I didn't really think about it like that—I'm just really excited to have everybody and share the stories.” Don't put that pressure on me now! But you know, I don't feel that with them. Sometimes in life, when things are really busy and the kids are young, it can be stressful. I remember having to consciously take a step back and find that approach I had when I was younger—just gathering people around the table and letting go of the expectation around how the food is, because the magic is in what you're saying: the conversation around the table, the shared stories, and the level of comfort you can give to people in your home.

Lara Victoria: It is true, and food offers an opportunity for that connection. For example, your dessert—say you do something that has pistachios in it, and one of your guests says, “Oh, I love pistachios,” and you made sure that was on the menu because you knew that about your guest. There's that moment to smile to yourself and think, “Oh, I'm glad they noticed.” It's that connection, whether you speak of it or not. It’s, “Yes, I treated my guest to something that they like.” Or if you're making a tart that calls for nuts, but you don't put nuts in it, and you say, “Oh, by the way, there are no nuts,” and they feel relieved— “Oh, thank goodness, because I don’t eat them.” That’s hospitality. The care. It’s an opportunity that shows “I care for you, I value you, and I do care about your well-being and comfort. And thank you for the opportunity for me to be able to care for you.”

Paula Mohammed: That resonates in terms of not worrying about your performance in terms of what your food tastes like. It's about the care. Along those lines, if I were traveling to Bombay or Goa—you have encouraged me to really think about how countries communicate differently, different styles of communication—and I'm actually about to publish a podcast episode right after this in which I talk about that in a solo format. Now I'm very mindful of it. So if I were traveling to Goa or traveling to Bombay and I want to be aware of that area's style of communication, what would you say to me as a Canadian going to India?

Lara Victoria: Firstly, English is not a foreign language there. In Bombay and Goa, you'll be fine—people do speak in English. You'll find people are warm and welcoming in both places and are curious about what you tell them; they want to know about you. They will ask where you're from, and they do understand, and they're excited about sharing what is theirs—their culture and the food. You'll be spoiled for choices when it comes to food. If you ask people for recommendations, everyone will give you their favorite spots, because there are so many. We all have diverse palates. Someone will say, “Oh no, don't go to Juhu; that restaurant in Juhu doesn't have it,” and then two other people will say, “Go to Juhu; that restaurant is the best!” So if you stumble across any place, you'll be fine. I follow quite a few sources on Instagram, and the food scene in Bombay right now is incredible. I see these restaurants, and I think it's a treat not just for your taste buds but a feast for the eyes. The restaurants are gorgeous, and their menus are really fantastic. You'll actually find, in the new modern restaurants, more global cuisine taking part. If you're looking for authentic food, I'd say go to the small, run-of-the-mill places, and you'll be just fine.

My husband told me on one of his business trips to India, he was very tired after a day in Bombay, and he ordered on Uber Eats (or something similar) a plate of biryani. He said it was the best biryani he ever had, and I waited for him to say, “After yours,” but that did not happen! So I take it that was indeed the best biryani ever. He said it was from some random place. He said, “I just picked something on the menu, and it was incredible.” So you will find food.

Similarly in Goa, there are some dishes that are authentically Goan that you must try: chicken shakuti is a very important dish. I’d say every feast will have chicken shakuti on the menu for sure. There's of course vindaloo. There's another dish called sorpotel, which is pork, and it’s got organ meats like kidney and liver in it. It's quite fussy to make because you have to cut the meat into small pieces, then you fry them, and then you cook it again, and it goes on. But oh my gosh, it's fabulous. Of course, there's the quintessential sheeth curry, which is rice and curry—usually fish curry or prawn curry. There’s a whole list of things. Even snacks—you'll find some traditional cafeterias in Goa where, when you go sit down, they'll bring you a plate of snacks, and you don't order it, but they charge you based on what you’ve eaten. I wonder how that went during COVID, but that’s how it is. And you know what—I found that in Portugal, too. When I went there, I actually saw that happen in some places, and I thought, “Hey, this happens in Goa. I wonder where they got it from.” Usually you'll have something like patties—a potato patty stuffed with ground beef, for example—or some puff pastry with chicken and beef in it, croquettes (they’re called croquettes in Goa), mainly beef with spices. It goes on and on—there’s everything you could imagine. Then there's a long list of desserts as well—bibingka is very popular, and the cakes. I mean, yeah, just go there!

Paula Mohammed: You’ve shared a recipe with us to include in the show notes that people can link to on your site. Can you tell us a bit about that recipe—what it is?

Lara Victoria: Yes, that one is actually not from Goa. It's not a Goan recipe; it’s from Bombay, because that's where I mostly grew up. It's actually a Muslim dish. My grandfather was Muslim, so my own personal upbringing has a lot of Muslim-influenced foods. One of them is something we used to call mutton do-pyaza in Bombay. We don't have much mutton here in Canada, so I just go with gosht do-pyaza. Gosht means meat, and do-pyaza—I am presuming—refers to “two onions.” My understanding is you cook the recipe—the meat—with onions twice. You cook it first with the spices (and it definitely has its share of onions), and then there's a finishing process where you add onions again. I believe that's why it's called do-pyaza. That’s my understanding; I've never found official confirmation, but anyway.

The reason I chose this recipe is it is truly delicious. You have to try it. I'm quite sad that I don't see many restaurants in North America featuring it unless it's a Muslim restaurant, because it's from the area of Bombay. But yes, it's a delicious recipe. What makes it personally interesting for me is it's versatile. You could take that and layer it in rice, and in a pinch, you have some version of a biryani. Because it's rich in onions, like biryani is, it's got the meat component, and the spices are balanced. It has all the flavors—it has all five tastes we look for in food: it’s got the sweetness (the onions), the savoriness, the salt, the meat giving it umami, then a little bit of tang and a slight bitterness from the spices as well. The acid is there, so it’s a complete flavor explosion in your mouth. It’s so good because you can do so much. If you just want to serve it on its own with naan or paratha, it's perfect. As I said, you can fashion a sort of biryani out of it if you want to. You could put it in bread or roll it in your leftovers, and you've got yourself a nice wrap to go. An interesting thing is, if you have leftovers, these dishes keep well and sometimes taste even better the next day. It may not look as appetizing or glistening as on the first day, but gosh, it tastes good. I definitely think everyone should try it and make it their own. If you want more sweetness, add more onions; if you want more spice, increase the spice factor. It's a forgiving recipe—if you overdo the acid a bit, there's another factor that will balance it out. So yeah.

Paula Mohammed: You said your grandfather was Muslim, and you were raised that way too. I have to ask the question: Muslims typically don't include alcohol as part of their culture or religion. What role did alcohol play in your upbringing, and then how did you find your passion as a wine and alcoholic beverage sommelier?

Lara Victoria: Growing up, my mother did not really have alcohol. Alcohol wasn't part of our upbringing, except I was told my grandfather loved drinking, and he was a Muslim, so obviously he didn't practice his faith as much, even though he guarded the culture. That's interesting in itself: the very fact that he married my grandmother, who was Catholic—and in those days, in India, for a Muslim to marry a Catholic would have been taboo in many ways—but he did it. He was an interesting character, for sure. But yes, he did have alcohol growing up. Around me, the men consumed alcohol; the women didn't.

How did that influence my upbringing? In Bombay, where my grandfather lived, but also in Goa, alcohol is part of daily life. It's like an ingredient in your home. You put it in your cooking, you serve it with food, and that's, I guess, the Portuguese influence. A lot of spirits are consumed, generally. In terms of wine, it’s mostly port wine. It's interesting—we don’t have the dry wines as much, but mostly port. It’s not uncommon for children to have a little bit of watered-down wine at a meal, especially if it’s a feast—Christmas, Easter, etc. There isn't that sense of distance. As a teenager, though, I never drank alcohol. In Bombay, when I was in theater for a while, we’d go out with friends to clubs and bars, and I was the odd one who wouldn't drink. Like I said, I'd had watered-down wine at home, but that was it.

My journey actually began here in Canada, in my 30s, when I started going out with friends. Alcohol was a social connector; it wasn't something I reached out for because I wanted to drink, but it was part of the culture. I would say my initiation was more with spirits, you know—shooters. That was what you did when you went out. I'm not ashamed to say that; it was true. In fact, I'd say it was a smart choice, because if you go dancing, you know—it's better. (I can't believe I'm admitting this, but yeah!) You'd rather do a shot because the volume is much smaller, so you're not lining up at the washroom as often. We all know the state of washrooms in those establishments—I refused to go there. So I'd think, “Yeah, if I'm going to spend four hours here, a shot is a better idea.” So that’s how it went. But wine really came about with my husband—he has a great palate, and he's quite a wine collector and aficionado himself. When we started dating, he'd talk about wine and pairing, and that's when my food technology and food science background made me think, “Ah, I see why this pairs with that.” That’s exactly what initiated me to start learning about wine. I thought, “Well, if I’m curious, I'd like to learn more!” So that's how I got into wine. And as I mentioned earlier, it clicked.

Paula Mohammed: That marriage of your scientific background and an interest in wine as a hobby, bringing those two together.

Lara Victoria: And I have to share something funny: I enjoyed studying about wines, and I did well—I'm lucky to have passed my exams successfully. In our tasting group, I was good at identifying alcohol levels or calling out the vintage. We'd do it all blind, so people would say, “Very good—how do you do that?” And I couldn't help but grin to myself, thinking, “It's all those alcoholic relatives in the past who were so attuned!” Maybe it's a genetic thing, but there's a reason I could just connect to it. It was a blessing and a warning: it reminded me that there's a place for alcohol and what part it plays in your consumption. I'm cautious, and now there's plenty of research suggesting moderation is not just recommended, it's essential—and in fact cautioning toward lower consumption. From a health perspective, it doesn't hurt to pay attention to this and see what role wine or spirits play in your life. Whether you consume it or how much you consume, I think that’s an individual decision.

Paula Mohammed: Absolutely. I want to go back to Goa. When I go to Goa to travel, what would be some of your tips or suggestions about how to experience Goa?

Lara Victoria: November to February would be your sweet spot. Christmas is the best time because of the weather. Nowadays it rains, I'm told, in other months too, but usually the monsoon winds down by October or so. You have Diwali, then by November it starts cooling, and the weather is quite nice. December is fantastic, January is lovely. There'll be lots of excitement during Christmas time—you'll see lights and festivals. Do take part in them. I am told it might not be as vibrant as it used to be, but there are still opportunities to plug into the scene.

January, everything shuts down—the partygoers are gone, back to work, but the weather’s lovely, and that's usually shoulder season. It's more affordable, and hotels are not as expensive, so that's a good time. February is pretty good. Once you're into March, it starts getting hotter. May—no, I remember that as our summer holidays, and May was hot. But some people do live there year-round, and air conditioning is known, so you'd be fine. But I’d recommend anything November to February as the sweet spot.

There’s a lot in terms of cultural influence. The joke used to be you could toss a stone in the air, and it would either land beside a church, a chapel, a cross, or a bar, because it was so Portuguese and Catholic—everywhere! As a child, I remember one of my earliest visits, I was in the cab with my father, and I was taught to make the sign of the cross every time I saw a crucifix. After five minutes, my father said, “You can stop,” and I looked at him like, “Why?” And he said, “You’ll be doing it the entire time, because you'll see a church or a chapel or a dedicated cross in front of every home.” There's also a lot of Hindu history, because it's true that the Christians who are there today were converted Hindus, so you have beautiful temples to see. Look for the basilicas in Old Goa. You have the remains of St. Francis Xavier in the Bom Jesus Basilica. There's a spiritual aspect to it, as you read in your travel book.

Then the beaches—how can you not? If you're looking for a party scene, I'd say the north beaches. It's like a zoo now; I was there a few years ago, and there are vendors and all sorts of things happening. If you want more quiet and peace, the beaches in the south—though I'm told they're getting busier because the word is out—are gorgeous. Definitely check them out. As for the local scene, if you can find local restaurants, definitely engage. People are very warm-hearted. If you show an interest in the culture, they’re happy to share more of it with you. And don't miss the food. Please don’t go on a diet—just don’t do that. It won't work. Why bother? Go and surrender to the food, and you'll be fine.

Paula Mohammed: Fantastic. I can't wait. Lara, if people want to learn more about CruClass and what you're doing and follow along, how can we find you on social media and websites, etc.?

Lara Victoria: The website is cruclass.ca. It's spelled C-R-U-C-L-A-S-S-E dot C-A. I also have a creative side of my business under my name, laravictoria.com. That's where you'll find the recipes; you'll also find some of my food styling work—it's like a lookbook for my clients. Otherwise, on Instagram, my handle is @laravictoria.cheers, and you'll see some of my creative work there. So yeah.

Paula Mohammed: I'll put that in the show notes, and we'll have the recipe in there as well. This has been such a wonderful hour chatting with you. We've gone from Goa, Bombay, wine, sake, Portugal—it’s been great. I really appreciate you sharing so much of your knowledge and your personal experience and stories with us today.

Lara Victoria: Well, thank you for the opportunity. It's always a very special moment for me to talk about Goa, talk about Bombay, and talk about the culture and food. And you know, there’s one thing I missed, and I beg your pardon and your listeners’ pardon, that I didn’t speak about in Goa, which is just as important in food, and that’s music. So when you go to Goa, please do check out the music scene. It is second to none. Goa is all about good food, good music, good times. You’ll find people dancing—always. The jive—oh my gosh, the Goan jive is a thing. There is a very specific Goan style of jiving, too, which is absolutely fantastic. If you’re living life, no one does it better than the Goans. I really think you should go experience that, and hopefully it brings you memories to last a lifetime.

Paula Mohammed: Sounds wonderful. Thanks so much, Lara.

Lara Victoria: Thank you so much, Paula, and I look forward to all your other podcasts. I know I’ve listened to so many of them, and I can’t help but giggle at some because you bring in people from diverse backgrounds, and I always find something that connects—because I come from a background that’s different, too. And there’s always something that connects, whether it’s about how a recipe differs from one household to the other—that’s similar in India, too. In our diversity, we are linked and united, and I think it's so beautiful that you're able to capture that in the essence of your podcast. So keep doing it, and I look forward to all the others I’m sure you will captivate us with.

Paula Mohammed: Oh, thanks, Lara. I’m going to head off now and eat something—this episode is mouthwatering! I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did, and I look forward to catching you on the next episode. Don’t forget to sign up for the In My Kitchen newsletter at our website, inmykitchen.ca, where you’ll be the first to know about our podcast episodes and all the new things happening in my kitchen.

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