Visiting Assamese Friends and Enjoying The Taste of Assam in Govindpuri

There are many things you love in Delhi and visiting Assamese friends and .I have enjoyed lots of trip to their homes in Delhi and Assam where we go by train paying six hundred for ticket .The confluence of rivers and plains enrich the diverse history- both culinary and otherwise, of the communities from the East, West, and North of Assam. From the capital of Guwahati, an ancient city on the banks of the Brahmaputra, to Majuli Island, teeming with a unique riverine culture, to Sibsagar, an important oil and trading centre- dissimilar elements make a line of attarction for visitors.Assamese cuisine unique. The complex cultural systems are marked by a heterogenous population of tribes, ethnicities, and religions, finding expression in distinctive culinary techniques.

Assamese Food owes more to the combination of various vegetables rather than spice.The combination of the vegetables with meat ,fish adds flavour to the respective dishes without the need of spice other than ginger garlic. 

 Leafy vegetable recipe

This is an attempt to make non-lovers of green leafy vegetables love them. Children and choosy eaters generally dislike green leafy vegetables.One of the easy ways to cook could be to add a potato sliced thin to the leaves.

First the leafy vegetables is cut thin. Oil is heated and pach phuron, garlic added to the hot oil along with onions and chillies.Thinly sliced potatoes are first fried in oil .Salt is added now.When they turn golden brown then the leaves are added.Along with leaves egg is added.The contents are stirred and cooked till the water content in the leaves is dried.Pepper may be added. 

Tangy dal

A hot afternoon and tangy dal for lunch go hand in hand.Summer time ,mangoes in season and often I get to taste this delicious dal.

Ingredients:

Arhar or toor Dal
Garlic
Onion
Turmeric
Salt
Raw Mango diced into small pieces.
Red chilli powder or green chillies(whichever preferred)
Seasoning.

Preparation:

Dal with turmeric,garlic,onions,chilli is set to boil.The mangoes can be boiled along with the dal or added along with seasoning to the dal.However I prefer the latter.

A little oil is heated in a pan.Seasoning is added along with the mangoes .The mangoes are reduced to a pulp with a spoon in the oil.And when the magoes becomes pulpy dal is added to the seasoning and boiled withthe seasoning for 3-5 minutes.Mango Dal is ready for the afternoon.  

Prawns

Simply fried prawns could be an excellent starter for a non-vegetarian dinner .The prawns with/without scales should be cleaned thoroughly.Then turmeric,salt and prawns are mixed well.Oil is heated in a frying pan and after adding whole garlic cloves ,a few cumin seeds ,the prawns are fried.We need not deep fry them.On turning golden chillies slit into two along the length and diced onions are added.Stir frying continues till the onions melt.Simple and yummy!!!! 

 Meat

Assamese are not used to excessive spices.Hence the correct proportion of spices,oil contributes to a good mutton curry.Here's  recipe:

Ingredients:

Mutton (medium size pieces)
Potatoes(medium size each diced into two)
Spices(Garam Masala)
Coriander
Adequate amount of Ginger Garlic Onion Chillies paste
Diced onions,crushed garlic
Vinegar
Red Chilli powder(Little)
Red Chilli whole
Mustard Oil
Bay Leaf

The meat is marinated with a little turmeric,ginger garlic onion chillies paste ,vinegar,little mustard oil,salt.Sufficient amount of the paste should be kept aside for use later.


Mustard Oil is heated .Bubbles will form in the oil when sufficiently hot.
First the potatoes are fried coated with turmeric and salt and fried in oil till half fried.On turning slightly brown in colour they are brought out of oil.The garlic ginger chillies and onion paste is now added to the hot oil.

Diced onions are added along with crushed garlic.Bayleaf and two whole red chillies are added.A nice aroma of crushed garlic and bayleaf will fill the air.The paste kept aside will be added to oil.The mixture is now fried till golden brown and till the oil starts getting released from the mixture.Marinated mutton is added to the mixture and fried well with the mixture.The gas is kept in high flame.The mutton starts releasing water and frequently the mutton should be turned in the cooking utensil.When the meat starts getting cooked it changes colour and starts releasing oil.Garam Masala(combination of cardomom pods,clove,cinnamon sticks powdered),chilli powder(optional) is added to the mutton mixture along with the potatoes.After mixing the potates ,garam masala and meat sufficient hot water is poured in the vessel so that the meat and potatoes get dipped in water completely.

If pressure cooker is being used then contents in the cooker is set to boil.The water is boiled till sufficent water evaporates such that meat pieces become visile partially.Lid of the cooker is closed and 5 whistles of the cooker (2 long and 3 of small duration)are blown.

If any other cooking vessel apart from cooker is being used then the a little more water than used in cooker is to be used.When the meat starts getting sufficiently visible then the potatoes and a piece can be checked whether they have got cooked.If cooked the we are almost done.

A little powdered garam masala along with chopped coriander is spinkled ove the meat and mixed.

Chalta tenga

Ou khatta aur chalta tenga which I bring from Machhi market is a delicious sweet and sour chutney made out of ou(elephant apple) and jaggery. The ou is first boiled and then mashed lightly. Then it is sautéed with mustard seeds in slight oil and then the jaggery is added. The dish then ready as a great compliment to your meal. 

Khar

Khar is both a term for an ingredient as well as a set of dishes which are made with it. The ingredient, known as Kola Khar is most commonly made by burning the dried skin of the bhim banana down to ash, which mixes with a little mustard oil before getting added to preparations. Currently the idea of ‘root-to-stem’ eating is in vogue, and it’s interesting to note how Assamese food embodies the frugal philosophy of minimal waste. Khar can be made from papaya, cucumbe, potato skins, and even fish. Many believe it is the scarcity of salt which led to the proliferation of this intriguing flavour and the profusion of fermentation in Assamese cuisine. Both these elements transform the food’s flavours, longevity and nutritional profiles. Salt was previously the preserve of aristocrats and high-castes, leading to the distinctive invention of khar which was easily produced and cost effective. Today, the use of khar is diminishing as baking soda, another alkaline is becoming more convenient for the modern cook, but, of course, there can be no comparison in taste. 

The cornerstones of the culinary traditions are the large varieties of rice found all over the state, which are subsequently roasted, ground, flattened, and then cooked in bamboo hollows, or made into pithas (soaked and ground glutinous rice sweets) on special occasions. There is hardly any ethnic community which does not consume fish, and pisciculture is commonly practiced by many rural communities. Meats such as mutton and duck are relished too, and the preparations for these are characterized with ginger, curry leaves and lemon juice, delivering hot, pungent and aromatic flavours.