Naga cuisine

Naga cuisine is the traditional cuisine of the Naga people. It features meats and fish, which are often smoked, dried or fermented .

Overview

The various Naga tribes have their own cooking varieties, but they often exchange recipes. A typical Naga meal consists of a meat dish, a boiled vegetable dish or two, rice and a chutney (Tathu). Nagas tend to prefer boiled edible organic leaves. Some common dishes are "fermented bamboo shoot" (made from the tender shoot of the Bamboo tree) with fish and pork. axone(soyabean boiled, fermented and either smoked or sun dried) with smoked pork and beef. Smoked meat is produced by keeping the meat above the fire or hanging on the wall of the kitchen for anywhere between 1 day to 2 weeks or longer, which could last for the whole year ahead. Anishiis fermented taro leaves made into patties and smoked over the fire or sun dried . Naga food tends to be spicy(chillies). There are different varieties of chillies in Nagaland. The ginger used in the Naga cuisine is spicy, aromatic and is different from the common ginger. The garlic and ginger leaves are also used in cooking with meat. Sichuan pepper is a popular spice used by the Nagas.

References

• Naga recipes from Naga Ethnic Cuisine - A Class of its Own, Naga Women Voluntary Association.