From the curry puff to the digital and green transitions: Portugal is reshaping globalisation

Mário Miranda Duarte

THE discovery of a new trade route between Europe and Asia around the Cape of Good Hope by the Portuguese navigator Vasco da Gama, in 1498, was a pivotal moment in history. The encounter of continents and cultures brought about by the Portuguese voyages led to the rise of global trade and showed the need for a common set of norms for commercial interactions, safety of navigation and various exchanges, a process which many consider the first globalisation.

The legacy of the Portuguese presence in Southeast Asia through the 16th and 17th centuries can still be found in many dimensions of our lives: from linguistic influences to clothing, from religious celebrations to, of course, gastronomy. If it is common knowledge that Portugal’s iconic pastel de nata inspired the famous egg tart, fewer appreciate that, for instance, the curry puff initially arrived in the region by the hands of Portuguese spice traders in the form of empadas, a popular Portuguese snack.