Narendra Modi in Portugal: PM surprised with Gujarati lunch by counterpart Antonio Costa

Lisbon: Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa on Saturday sprang a surprise for Narendra Modi when he hosted a special Gujarati vegetarian lunch for him that included dishes like ‘a__akhu shaak’ and ‘mango shrikhand’. Aakhu literally means ‘whole’ and shaak simply means ‘curry’. It is a dish in which vegetable stuffing is heavily spiced and is wonderful for big get-togethers. The other items on the menu included ‘saag kofta’, ‘rajma aur makai’, ‘tarkha daal’, ‘kesar rice’, ‘parantha’, ‘rotli’, ‘papad’, and gulab jamun and other sweets. Modi is the first Indian prime minister in Portugal for a bilateral visit. He has said his one-day visit to the country will further strengthen relations between India and Portugal.

Earlier on Saturday, Modi and Costa took a stroll around the Palacio das Necessidades, a historic building in the Largo do Rilvas, a public square in Lisbon.

Costa had visited India in January when he went to see his family members at his ancestral house in Goa.