The Kiwi Gazette
Page 4
Sopa!
Through researching my family tree, I've learned that most (if not all) of my ancestors came from England many, many generations ago... not so for Jim. He doesn't have to go back very far in his tree to find the Motherland - his father was born in Portugal. Jim's mother was born in California, but both of her parents came from Portugal as well. More specifically, both sides of the family came from The Azores, a group of islands off the west coast of mainland Portugal and settled on the west coast of the United States as produce growers.
Jim has
childhood memories of his grandparents and other Portuguese immigrants in
the community, and the influence they had on their families who were
growing up as a generation of new Americans. He recalls a few of the
traditions they brought to America from the homeland... one of these being
traditional Portuguese sopa, or soup. While he doesn't remember his mother
ever cooking it at home (probably because it was reserved for special
occasions), but he does recall going with his father to pick up lunch
plates for members of the family whenever a local Portuguese festa, or
feast, was happening in their town.
At the festa, people lined up with their paper plates at the food line. They usually got a green salad and the sopa served on top of a couple of thick slices of French bread. One especially clear part of Jim's memory is that the guy that served the soup was
(Click to enlarge map)
always pretty haphazard with his ladle and managed to slosh the soup over a good bit of the salad as well as the sides of the plate! He said that even though it was a different person serving from year to year, the "sopa guy" always made a mess... it must have been a requirement for the job!
Several years ago, while we were still in China, Jim's cousin Darlene e-mailed her recipe for sopa to him. We filed it away knowing that, in time, we'd make a batch. Well, that time came a few days ago. With the season changing to winter, it was time to try the sopa. It is basically a beef and cabbage soup, with some interesting flavors like mint and allspice to give it a unique taste. I followed the recipe and we were treated to a really nice, hardy soup. We made the meal complete with a salad and bread and Jim said it tasted like the meal he remembered from the festa.
Little Jimmy Mello
(lower left)
Even though it is something as seemingly
insignificant as a bowl of soup, it is still a bit of cultural heritage. A
little way to enjoy some ethnic diversity in the kitchen and relive some
fond memories!
(Click images to enlarge,
then click "Back" on your
browser to return.)
Jim's Parents,
Tony and Marian
Jim's dad examining
a melon at the packing shed
(Tony, far right)
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