Cuisine of Goa - Goa

The Goan cuisine is a spicy blend of exotic Indian spices with the Latin love of meat and fish. Cashews play an important role in Goan food and you might get the taste of cashew in almost everything you eat there. There are many good restaurants, which serve excellent seafood.

Eating out in Goa can be a special experience. Goa is lined up with numerous restaurants offering Goan food or
any other food that you want. These Goan restaurants are usually situated by the beach and eating here with the setting sun for company can prove to be simply irresistible.

Rice with fish curry is the staple diet in Goa. Goa is renowned for its rich variety of fish dishes cooked with elaborate recipes. Pork dishes such as Vindaloo, Xacuti and Sorpotel are cooked for major occasions among the Catholics. A rich egg-based multi-layered sweet dish known as bebinca is a favourite at Christmas. The most popular alcoholic beverage in Goa is feni; Cashew feni is made from the fermentation of the fruit of the cashew tree, while coconut feni is made from the sap of toddy palms.

The cuisine in Goa has special treats stored for the vegetarians too. You will come across many restaurants in Goa, which serves unusual range of Hindu-Goan specialties. Try the Cashew Green Peas Bhaji (a tangy mixture of cashews, green peas, spices and fresh coconut), Sprouted Moong Ussal (bean sprouts with mustard seeds, green chillies and fresh coconut) and the Alsandachem Tonakh (kidney beans with a spicy Xacuti gravy)

Listed down are some of the traditional Goan preparations:

Vindaloo : A curry made with pork and marinated in vinegar, garlic and chillies.
Balchao : A fish cooked in shrimp preserve and coconut feni.
Ambottik : Baby Shark in hot and sour tamarind and chilly curry.
Xacutti : Chicken in Coconut based Masala.
Bebinca : Traditional layered sweet pancake dessert made with coconut milk.
Feni : Strong alcoholic spirit distilled from cashew nuts or coconut.
Galhina piri-piri : Fried chicken pieces marinated in a mild mixture of piri-piri and Goan herbs.
Chicken Cafreal : Fried chicken marinated in a mildly spiced green coconut-mint masala
Fish Caldine : Mildly spiced coconut and turmeric fish curry
Seafood Caldeirada : Seafood poached in a white wine sauce served with sautéed vegetables
Peixe Reachado : A fried seasonal fish stuffed with a spicy homemade Goan masala
Goenchin's Chicken Taipei : Chicken sautéed in hot green sauce
Prawns Taipei : Prawns sautéed in Szechwan sauce
Cashew Green Peas Bhaji : A tangy mixture of cashews, green peas, spices and fresh coconut
Sprouted Moong Ussal : Bean sprouts with mustard seeds, green chillies and fresh coconut
Alsandachem Tonakh : Kidney beans with a spicy Xacuti gravy
Bolo Sans Rival : A sweet cashew nut based cake with a layer of biscuit