Nuances Of Uttarakhand Cuisine: Know About The Flavour Of Kumaon And Garhwal Regions

People of Uttarakhand eat what they grow, thereby utilizing all forms of leaves, herbs, tubers, spices, and variety of grains.

Nuances of Uttarakhand cuisine ( Image Source :Neemrana's Glasshouse on the Ganges - 21st Century, Rishikesh. )

New Delhi: Uttarakhand is blessed with all the divine soil, water, and air, enriched with all natural resources. Nature has indeed fully supported the place by all source for boosting immune, staying fit, and to face all the favorable and harsh climatic conditions. People of Uttarakhand, their lifestyle, village culture, cuisine, and food is still very traditional and orthodox. They eat what they grow, thereby utilizing all forms of leaves, herbs, tubers, spices, and variety of grains. Farming is the main stay dominated by traditional subsistence of cereal farming, main crops are rice, wheat, millet, barley, all types of pulses, oilseeds and fruits. 

The Food From Kumaon And Garhwal Regions:

Talking about the two distinct regions of Uttarakhand - Kumaon and Garhwal, they offer simple yet incredible food, which is made of locally grown herbs, grains, lentils, and vegetables. Although Kumaon and Garhwal are divided into different regions, they unite as one in its methods of cooking and the choice of ingredients.

Still, there are slight differences. In Kumaon for instance, the black soybean is made into a flavorsome dish called churkaani, while the bhatwani is eaten in Garhwal. 

In this regard, Sumit Kumar who is a Corporate Chef at Leisure Hotels Group said, "Due to the tough climate and trails, locals make most of the resources available in the surrounding area. The ingredients mainly come from the gardens surrounding their home, nearby forests, farms on slope of mountains, fish from streams near home and livestock from villages, which are mostly goats and sheep."

"The dishes in both regions are prepared with the minimum number of fresh spices coming from their garden like fresh turmeric, asafetida, green chilli, fresh bay leaves, green coriander and garlic from mountainous region, which are grounded on SIL BATTA (Stone grinder). Cumin, coriander, red chili powders, garam masala and tomato, which are commonly used in Indian kitchen are a luxury for many local people," he further continued to say.

Ingredients That Are Popularly Used In Uttarakhand Cuisine:

"Curry leaves which are associated mainly with South Indian food, are found in abundance in Garhwal region. they are used for tempering or as paste in food," said Chef Sumit Kumar. He further explained the other ingredients which find place in the cuisine of Uttarakhand.

• Instead of cumin, Dun (a green herb) and garlic are used for tempering lentils.
• Gethi is used in buckwheat to enhance elasticity to avoid gluten.
• Salt grinded with herbs like garlic, coriander, green chili, turmeric, flax seeds, Jakhia, and hemp (Bhang seeds) are used as condiments to enhance flavor and wellness.
• Slices of vegetables like bitter gourd and white pumpkin are sun dried and used when not in season.
• Butter milk (Chhas) is prepared with radish leaves and Raita with mustard are quite popular.
• Nettle leaves (Bicchu ka ghaas) may cause skin allergy in many, used as green leafy vegetables in food.

In addition to him, Mani Mohan Pathak who is the Executive Chef at Pilibhit House, Haridwar- IHCL SeleQtions said, "The most impressive flavored salts (Sil Pisi loon/ noon) add an extra dimension to their cooking and flavoring techniques. It’s basic herbs and salt such as spiced Timur (Szechuan Pepper), Garlic Salt or Bhang (Hemp Seeds) salt that add unique flavour and taste to any spared or sprinklers."

Talking about the uniqueness of Uttarakhand Cuisine, Chef Mani Mohan Pathak said, "The unique things about Uttarakhand are that the cooking is not at all complex and even now they prefer to cook food on chullha. Tempering with jakhiya popularly known as dog mustard or wild mustard is used for while cooking dal, green leafy vegetables and tubers. Choru is a pungent spice much like the hing or asafetida, that is dried, ground and used as flavoring to lentils."

Lastly, Chef Sumit Kumar also went on to name some popular dishes from Uttarakhand which are Gahat ki daal, Arsa, Jhinogre ka kheer, Muspani, Dubka, Aloo ke gutke, Madue ki roti, Mustard Rita, Bhang ki chutney and Shikar gosth.

Recipes From Uttarakhand Cuisine:

1. Chha Gosht (By Mr. Ashish Pant & Mr. Pushkar Singh, Chef de Partie, Neemrana's Glasshouse on the Ganges - 21st Century, Rishikesh)

Ingredients:

• 350 gm boneless meat
• For marination:
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 tsp ginger garlic paste
• 2 black cardamoms-crushed
• 1 bay leaf
• 2-3 cinnamon-crushed
• 3 cloves-crushed
• 1/2 cup yogurt

 

For the main course:

 

• 2 Tbsp. mustard oil
• Pinch of asafoetida
• 1/2 tsp coriander powder
• 1/2 tsp red chilli flakes
• 3 green chillies-slit
• 1/2 tsp ginger-chopped
• 1 1/2 tsp onions-sliced
• 1 roasted gram flour
• Marinated meat
• Pinch of turmeric powder
• 1/2 tsp coriander powder
• 5 ladles yogurt
• 3/4 tsp salt
• Coriander leaves

For the margination:

• Mix the lamb meat with salt, ginger-garlic paste, crushed cardamom, bay leaf, crushed cloves and yogurt and keep aside in a cool place for 3 hours.

For the main preparation:

• Heat oil in the pan. Add asafoetida, coriander powder, red chilli flakes, green chilies and the cut ginger and mix well.
• Add the onions and sauté till they turn translucent.
• Then add the gram flour, marinated meat, turmeric powder, coriander powder, yogurt and salt and keep stirring.
• Cover and cook on a slow flame for an hour.
• Garnish with coriander leaves and serve hot with rice.

 

Chha Gosht (Image Source: Neemrana)

2. Arbi Ke Gutke (By Mr. Ashish Pant & Mr. Pushkar Singh, Chef de Partie, Neemrana's Glasshouse on the Ganges - 21st Century, Rishikesh)

Ingredients 

• 10-12 abri, peeled
• 4 Tbsp. mustard oil
• A pinch of asafoetida
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 tsp coriander powder
• 1 tsp red chilli powder
• 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
• 3 whole red chillies
• Water
• Salt to taste
• Chopped coriander for garnish

Method:

• Par boil the Arbi and cut them into cubes.
• Mix the coriander powder, chilli powder and turmeric powder in 4 tbs of water, making a watery paste.
• In a pan, heat 3 tbsp of mustard oil to smoking point.
• Add the asafoetida and the cumin seeds. Quickly pour the masala paste into the pan and cook for 30 secs, stirring continuously.
• Now mix the arbi into the masala.
• Add salt cook the arbi.
• In another pan, heat 1 tbs of mustard oil to smoking point. Add the whole chillies and let them crackle. Add this tadka to the abri, mix well.
• Garnish with coriander leaves. Serve hot.

 

Arbi ke Gutke (Image Source: Neemrana)