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 Tarua, a popular Maithil dish |
Maithil cuisine, also known asMithila cuisine, is the traditional cooking style ofMaithils residing in theMithila region of India and Nepal.[1] It is a part ofIndian andNepalese cuisine.[2]
Maithil cuisine comprises a broad repertoire of rice, wheat, fish and meat dishes and the use of various spices, herbs and natural edibles.[3] The cuisine is categorized by types of food for various events, from banquets, to weddings and parties, festival foods, and travel foods.[4][5]
The service style of the cuisine has little similarity with that of the Frenchtable d'hôte; all preparations are served together on a platter and consumed at once. The staple food is bhat (boiled rice),dal,roti,tarkari andachar, prepared from rice, lentils, wheat flour, vegetables, and pickles. The traditional cooking medium is mustard oil.Panchforan is a common blend of five spices:jeer,ajwain,mangrail,sounf andmethi, and is akin to the panchforan of Bengal.
Mutton and fish are the traditional non-vegetarian items. Chicken is also consumed, but it is seen as an inferior option. Mutton and fish have religious and cultural significance in the Mithila region as sacrificial offerings togoddess Durga andKali.TheMaithil Brahmin community of Mithila is one of the few non-vegetarianBrahmin communities in India, which otherwise is seen as a strictly vegetarian caste within Hinduism.
Vegetarian food likesaagak jhor (leafy vegetables with very thin gravy), as well as vegetables such asbitter gourd,ladyfinger, are eaten. Due to the large amount ofroot vegetables grown such as potato, yam, andkhamarua, they are used in a number of preparations such assanna (mashed vegetables, particularly root vegetables), bhajia (fried vegetables in mustard oil with salt, turmeric powder and green chillies or chilli powder), andtarua (marinated or coated deep-fried vegetables).Daail-jhimni consists of fried ribbed gourd cooked with lentil and cereals.Thadia saagak teeman is a simple meal withred spinach and lentils eaten with chapati or rice. Similar to a puree,teeman is made through the process ofghontod, manual churning. It can also be made withpaneer or in a non-vegetarian style withshrimp added.
Machh-bhat is a fish curry served with steamed rice.Machhak jhor is a traditional fish curry used in many events with the exception of some religious festivals.
Dried mango strips are widely used to give tartness in various gravies. Some sauces and gravies include:
They would often start their day with a cup of steaming hotchai served withchura and ghugni ( black grams sautèed with onions, green chillies and other spices).
Poori –aloo dum, a potato dish, is a breakfast item common to have along with a sweet dish,jilebi (also known asjalewi, roundels of deep-fried fermented flour batter dipped in sugar syrup). Apart from that there are several other items that are common for breakfast includingchini wala roti,pua,pachhua pu (flour pancake), andsuzi ke halwa (semolina porridge),mith makhaan,makhan ke bhooja (salted makhan).
Some snacks include:
Sweet foods are also popular. Varieties ofkheer are a common dessert, includingmakhank kheer which is prepared withlotus seeds, milk and dried nuts.Malpua is popular and has a traditional Mithila preparation that differs from that of north India. Both are prepared from a flour batter; in north India after deep frying they are dipped in sugar syrup, while in Mithila the batter itself is sweetened and it is a dry preparation which can be stored for two to three days. There are also sweetpreserves made out of fruit pulps such asammath (layered mango pulp sun-dried and cut into small chunks),kumhar ke murabba,papita ke murabba, anddhatrikak murabba.Laddoo,khaja,chandrakala,rasgulla, and other desserts are common.
Some traditional Maithil dishes are:[6][7][8]
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