Title: Minha Mae
Subtitle: My mother the greatest cook
Book summary:
It was the month of January 1963. Portugal was approaching the final decade of the oppressive dictatorship of Salazar and the Estado Novo reigime spanning more than four decades. The revolution to come in twelve years time would once more put Portugal out there and would evolve as a new destination for world travelers to experience.
The people of Portugal were terrified of speaking out against their leader for fear of being jailed or worse. Thousands had been incarcerated for merely questioning the reigime, its policies or showing dissent. The media was so heavily controlled by the government that the outside world thought Portugal was thriving and that the people loved their leader. Even within its borders citizens were unaware of what was occuring in other regions of the country and the poor living standards that this fascist dictatorship had caused. The minority of wealthy citizens became richer while the majority of the people suffered in near poverty.
It was in the picturesque fishing village of Sines where my mother was born and spent the first year of her life before their escape. My grandfather, a builder of schools and churches was denied payment by the government for his craft. His constant requests for the justified payment spelt condemnation for himself and his family.
My grandmother, uncle and mum fled overland in the dark of night across the border into neighbouring Spain in a similar state of opression, before boarding a train bound for Paris to seek asylum and a better life.
A year later my grandfather and aunty departed to join them, but their journey took a more rugged route involving a trek by foot through the Pyrenees mountains separating Spain and France.
For the next fifteen years my mother and her family grew up in the largely refugee populated arondissment of Saint-Denis in Paris. It was here that my mother watched her mother create wonderful meals out of very little and her love for cooking was born.
She would watch in awe and thorough concentration as her mother passionately created hearty and tasteful cuisine each night to feed the family.
In 1979 the Pedrosas decided that it was time to search for the best possible lives for their family and their sights were set on the island nation of Australia. They immigrated legally and lived in temporary housing in the south western Sydney suburb of Liverpool. My mother still recalls the hilarity of these Australians with their square bread and cheese from a plastic packet, something entirely foreign to her. Australia was still quite young in the culinary world. Little did they know that it would be immigrants such as themselves that would bring diversity to Australian culture and cuisine.
The other residents of the hostels would marvel at the smells that would emanate from the kitchen when Mrs Pedrosa would don her apron and food was freely shared with their new friends and fellow immigrants.
Soon after my mother would meet my father, a young man with simple taste. In his first meeting with my grandparents over an evening meal he shocked the Pedrosa family by asking for salt and pepper to sprinkle on his plate, of which he would never ask again.
My mother, my father and sister moved to become part of the growing city of Melbourne and it was here that I was born soon after.
Throughout her journey one thing had always been key. The food that was put on the table as well as the table we sat down to eat would shape our lives. The family that eats together, stays together and that we did every single night without fail.
Not only is this a story of my mothers journey half way across the world in search for a better life but it is also a recipe book that celebrates the food that shaped the existence of our family. Included is a few modern variations on some of these dishes to hopefully inspire you to not only cook and create, but to appreciate what your own mother creates in her kitchen and her own story.
I sincerely hope you enjoy and 'Bon Apetit'.