Bihar, the wild wild west, nay east of India :)

Known to most for its unique dialect, and being the equivalent of the "wild-wild-west-where-men-will-still-be-men" :), it would come as a surprise to many, yours truly included, that the state of Bihar (from the Sanskrit word vihara=abode) is where the concept of non-violence originated, nearly two and a half thousand years ago! Along with being the origin of Buddhism. And home to the famous Aryabhatta, who gave the number zero to the world, the nine planets theory, and trigonometric rules! This reference to Aryabhatta is enough, in and of itself, to give this colorful state a place in my heart FOREVER!

Continuing with the "did you know....?" theme, Bihar is one of the oldest living places in the world and was one of the greatest kingdoms in history, with lineage back to the age-old legends of India and traceability back to why India was known as "sone ki chidiya" (the golden bird)... the kingdoms of Magadha, Mithila and Anga have found mention and have been raved about in several ancient texts in the country. As one of the oldest living places in the world, you'll stumble upon, well not literally but you get the drift, thousands of historical sites from stupas to forts and ancient temples to palaces, it houses everything that can satisfy the needs of a history lover: think about the Tomb of Sher Shah Suri, the Barabar Caves, the Mahabodhi Temple... and many more.

From left to right: Tomb of Sher Shah Suri, the Barabar Caves, the Mahabodhi Temple

And then there's the lip-smacking cuisine! Some basic essentials regarding the food fest: When it comes to protein sources Biharis always prefer Chana Sattu, an indigenous protein source, mainly served in Bihar as Sharbat (drink) made from roasted gram lentils that give an instant cooling effect, and especially welcome in the hot, sultry summer months. Bihari delicacies use vegetable oil or mustard oil and panch phoron, literally the “5 spices” that include fennel seeds (saunf), black mustard seeds (sarson), fenugreek seeds (methi), cumin seeds (jeera) and nigella seeds (kalonji)... and then there's copious amounts of light frying (bhoonjnaa) in Bihari cuisine. And the various modes of cooking.... chokna ishtyle, the ghugni, [INSERT] ki bhujiya... We tried a variety for dinner this Sunday, and the prep was surprisingly easy! Here goes:

• Farra (a steamed whole wheat flour dumpling stuffed with lentils paste and spices) for appetizers

• Followed by dinner to include Aloo ki Bhujiya (a typical dhaba food, and one of the most common potato preparations from Bihar), Matar ki Ghugni (a spicy-tangy mouth-watering snack prepared with freshly peeled green peas, fried with onion and spices) and Baigan ka Chokha (a flagship delicacy from Bihar, roasted eggplant mash with a whole lot of garlic, coriander and mustard oil), and, Mutton (succulent pieces of goat meat, cooked with whole and powdered spices, to a thick gravy in yogurt), and,

• Saving the best for last, Malpua for dessert (a Bihari pancake, made with a unique milk & almonds based batter, deep fried in ghee and dipped in sugar syrup to a crispy crust and smooth center melt-in-the-mouth finish)

Farra

What you'll need:

• For the dumpling dough: 1 cup whole wheat flour; 1/2 tsp salt; 1/2 cup water

• For the filling: 1 cup split gram lentils, soaked overnight; 6-7 garlic cloves; 1" ginger piece; 3-4 green chillies coarsely chopped; 1 tsp salt; 1/2 tsp turmeric pd; 1 tsp garam masala; 1 tsp cumin seeds; 1/2 cup fresh cilantro (they actually use dill but i'm super NOT fond of dill, so I used cilantro): 1 tsp additional salt and 1tblsp oil for boiling the dumplings

• For tempering: 2 tblsp oil; 1 tsp mustard seeds; 1 onion, thinly sliced; 1 sprig curry leaves (optional)

Make the dough with the ingredients, and set it aside for about 30 minutes to rest. Next, put the soaked lentils (no water - drain the water completely), and the rest of the filling ingredients into a blender and blend to a paste... you may have to do this a few times, since it is a tad difficult since you can't use any water at all. Take a flat deep pan and add about 5-6 quarts of water to it, along with the salt and oil, and cover it until it starts boiling.

In the meantime, let's get the dumplings ready. To do this, make little balls with the dough (with the amount I used, I got about 10-11 balls of dough). Roll these out like you would for pooris into 5" discs. Put a spoonful of the lentil mixture in the middle and make dumpling shapes with the dough and filling, making sure you secure the edges so the lentils filling does not break out of the casing during the steaming process. Repeat the process to make the remaining dumplings.

Once the water starts boiling, add in all the dumplings gently, and cover the pan. Let the dumplings steam in the water for about 10-12 minutes. Open the lid to turn these over in between. Steam for an additional 5 minutes and then using a slotted ladle, remove the dumplings and place these in a plate. Wait for these to cool before cutting them evenly into 3-4 pieces each. Finally, for the tempering, heat the oil and add in the mustard seeds. Once they start crackling, add in the green chillies and onions and saute until golden brown. Now add in the farra and gently toss these so they get evenly coated with the tempering mixture. Serve hot or at room temperature as an appetizer to get the juices flowing... this is also typically served as a wholesome breakfast in and of itself!

Aloo ki Bhujiya

What you'll need:

• 2 potatoes, peeled and cut lengthwise

• 11/2 tblsp mustard oil; 1/2 tsp turmeric pd; 1 tsp cumin seeds; 2 green chillies, slit into halves; 1 tsp salt

Try and use a non-stick pan for this if possible... heat the oil, add cumin seeds and allow the seeds to splutter. Then add in the green chillies, saute for a couple minutes and then stir in the chopped potatoes and turmeric pd and salt. Now, reduce the heat and cook the potatoes covered, until cooked completely, about 10-15 minutes the flame. When the potatoes are nearly done, remove the lid and let the potatoes get a crispy exterior... If you really want to go Bihari, you could add some more mustard oil and then sprinkle some more salt. Ensure you keep stirring occasionally so it gets cooked from all the sides. Turn off the heat, and serve with your pooris!

Matar ki Ghugni

What you'll need:

• 1 lb freshly peeled green peas

• 2 tblsp mustard oil; 1 tsp cumin seeds; 4 green chillies, split/sliced into halves; 2 red onions, sliced

• 1/2 tsp turmeric pd; 1 tsp Kashmiri red chilli pd; 2 tsp coriander pd; 2 tsp salt; 1 tblsp lemon juice

This recipe works best with fresh green peas (pls dont use frozen ones! well, I guess preferably!). Heat the mustard oil and add in the cumin seeds once its hot. When the seeds start spluttering, add in the green chillies and onions and saute until golden brown. Now toss in the green peas, mix well with the sauted onions mixture, cover and cook on medium heat for 7-8 minutes, just enough time for the green peas to get soft. Open the lid, increase the heat, and add in the powdered spices, tossing the peas well all the time. Cook for another 5 minutes and squeeze fresh lemon juice on top just after you take the pan off the heat. Your matar ki ghugni is ready to be devoured as a snack on it own, or with pooris!

Baigan ka Chokha

What you'll need:

• 1 large eggplant

• 2 tblsp mustard oil; 4 green chillies, finely chopped; 1 red onion, finely chopped; 6-7 garlic cloves, finely chopped, 3 tblsp fresh cilantro leaves, chopped

• 11/2 tsp salt; 1 tblsp lemon juice

Simple, elegant and to die for! The chokha methodology can be applied to potatoes, tomatoes, eggplants.... and the results are exquisite each time. But the version with eggplant is my personal favorite. So we start with roasting the eggplant over the fire - you want the skin of the eggplant to become like brittle paper all around.. this was traditionally done by putting the eggplant between giant patties of cow-manure that was a common source of bio-fuel. Clearly our ancestors knew how to use renewable energy sources way better than us! Once you are done with roasting the eggplant, carefully remove the skin and mash the eggplant along with its juices with a fork. Then add in all of the ingredients listed above and mix well so that the flavors get induced into the roasted eggplant. The choka is ready to be served at room temperature.

Mutton, Bihari style

What you'll need:

• 2 lbs mutton (try and get the shoulder, cut into 2" pieces, bone in)

• 3 tblsp mustard oil; 2" cinnamon stick; 1 tsp cumin seeds; 1/2 tsp fenugreek seeds; 4 cloves; 3 cardamom pods; 1 star anise; 2 bay leaves

• 3 green chillies, finely chopped; 2 red onions, finely chopped; 2 tblsp ginger garlic paste; 1 tomato, diced; 3 tblsp fresh cilantro leaves, chopped

• 1 tblsp garam masala or kadai gosht masala; 1 tsp turmeric pd; 2 tsp salt; 1 tsp kashmiri red chilli pd; 1 tblsp dried fenugreek leaves; 3 tblsp beaten yogurt

Heat the mustard oil in a pressure cooker or on sear/saute mode of your instapot. Once the oil is hot, add in all the whole spices and let these roast until they start spluttering. Add in the green chillies and onions and saute until the onions turn a golden brown. Then add in the ginger garlic paste and roast until the raw smell goes away. Next, add in the tomatoes and the powdered spices, and roast until the oil starts separating. At this time, you can add in the mutton pieces and mix these well with the spices - continue to roast until the mutton changes its color just that wee bit.

Cover the cooker, and set it to high pressure - cook under pressure for 35-40 minutes. Let the pressure release naturally.... and then take the cover off, turn up the heat to dry off the liquid, while pouring in the beaten yogurt. You'll notice that the gravy starts to thicken to a thick creamy texture as the water dries off, and the yogurt takes over. Continue cooking for about 8-10 minutes until most of the gravy has dried off... this is honestly up to you, in terms of how much gravy you want. I like to keep it dry coz we usually eat this gosht with rotis or parathas. Garnish with the chopped cilantro and its ready to be served!

Holi ke Malpue

What you'll need:

• 1 cup all purpose flour; 1/2 cup khoya (evaporated milk solids); 1 can evaporated milk; 2 tsp semolina flour

• 1 tsp fennel seeds; 2 tblsp mix of slivered almonds and pistachios; a pinch of salt; 1/2 tsp cardamom pd

• For the syrup, 1 cup sugar; 2 pods of cardamom; 3/4 cup water; a few strands of saffron

• Ghee (or oil) for frying

Make the batter with the flour, semolina, khoya and evaporated milk, as well as the accompanying flavors of fennel, almonds/pistachios and cardamom. The batter should have the consistency of pancake batter. Let this rest for about 30-45 minutes while you get the syrup ready. In order to make the syrup, take a thick bottomed pan and add in the sugar and water to it. Stir the mix until the sugar melts, and add in the cardamom pods and the saffron strands to give it the rich flavor and color that shouts out "festivities are here"!

Next, heat the ghee/oil, and once the oil is hot, take a round deep ladle, and pour a ladle full of the batter in the same spot in the flat bottomed pan. Make sure you don't spread the batter in the pan... you want to pour it in the SAME spot. Reduce the heat to medium high and let this fry for 3-4 minutes until it rises up on its own... then gently turn it over so that it cooks on the other side as well. Once done, carefully drain out the excess oil and place the malpua on a plate lined with paper towels (to absorb the extra oil).

Then, making sure the sugar syrup is still warm, lower the malpua into the syrup and let it sack there for a few minutes so it soaks in the sweetness. Remove from the syrup and place in your serving platter. And repeat the same steps for the next malpua! You're welcome to go all out and garnish the malpuas with more dry fruits if you want to make it even richer :)

Ram ram... badhiya din rahe (have a fab fab day!)