Bihar is not only opulent with its knowledge, culture but owing to Maa Ganga (River Ganges ) its fertile lands too.Lets have a visual treat, though there is much to include but I have selected those quintessential 21 dishes.
1.Litti chokha: The lips smacking taste of litti which is opulent with taste of its stuffing s and chokha savoured by one and all need not to introduction . It is your grand welcome to the food of Bihar,in all its ghee (clarified butterd)dripping glory.Bihar and Biharis are incomplete without Litti and chokha.Prepared from dough of flour, stuffed with roasted gram flours and some spices.Baked over slow amber's of cowdung's cake and charcoal,it gives a particular flavour and aroma. Finally dipped in desi ghee and served with chokha of aalu (meshed potatoes with spices) baingan ka bharta (mashed eggplants ) and Tamara ki chutney(chutney of tomatoes).This bihari delicacy is simply heaven one cant just resist eating one..
2.Maal pua:Needs no to introduction.
Batter of refined flour, condensed milk,green cardamom (mashed banana:optional) is deeply fried in desi ghee.Then dipped into the sugar syrup.Its mouth melting deep fried pan cakes .Its also complemented with Rabri .
3.Anarsa :Rice flour is stuffed with solid condensed milk (mawa) dry fruits ,sugar or jagerry.Then finally coated with sesame seeds and deep fried over medium heat.
4.pitha…stuffed dumplings of rice flour.Dough of rice flour is stuffed with spicy daal (boiled and spiced lentils) or milk solids,vegetables and steamed.Somewhat similar to momos but we use rice flour.
5 .Daal ki puri :Simple pooris are stuffed with spiced split chick peas paste.Its mendorty to prepare this pooris in every auspicious occasions like marriage or festivals.
6.Thekua :Again own delicay of Bihar.Couarsed flour is mixed with ghee ,dry dedicated coconut, green or black cardamom ,cloves and fennels then kneaded with the water of jagerry and deep fried. Its very crispy and savoury and one of the main “Prasad” of chhath pooja.
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Preparations of main prasad of chath pooja,i,e.thekua.
My son with the main prasad of chhath pooja.
7 .Gaya ka tilkut and laai.
Its plethora of dessert and saviour which will be delight to your sweetened taste buds.Crushed sesame seeds mixed with sugar or jagerry. This mouth melting preparations of sesame seeds with sugar and jagerry only available in winters,especially in Makar sakranti.
Laai is Amarathus seeds dumplings…prepare with mawa and dry fruits. Exclusively made in Gaya.
7.Silaw ka khaja:Tasty and scrumptious of Bihar is believed to be 2000 years old preparation. This unique dish from Bihar is wafery and layers in texture.
Sweet and salty both are available,extremely thin layers,crispy and mouth melting.Absolutely best khajas of India,must try .Silaw is a small place located between Nalanda and Raajgir,famous for its khaja.
8.Mahaviram ke naivaidhya.Main prasad of Mahavir or kunal mandir of Patna.Equally famous for its prasad though original roots of Naivaidyam can be traced by Tirupati Balaji temple .Its unique prasad exclusive for Hanuman mandir .I don't have proper knowledge of ingredients except ghee and dry fruits.Truely a blessing.This devine delicacy melts in the mouth leaving an ecsataticaly content.
9.Dahi chura(flattened rice with yogurt).Breakfast of mostly biharis .Milk presoaked flattened rice is with yogurt ,sugar , jaggery or bura(unrefined powdered sugar)and consumed with finally chopped bananas or mangoes.
10 .Bhunja.Its one of the special kind of snacks extremly healthy and nutritious. All grains and seeds are dry roasted in hot sand it became aromatic and cooked.In home chopped onions,tomatoes,green chillies and coriander leaves are mixed, with few drops of mustard oil.
11.chura gughni:Evening snack tangy,spicy for every house hold of Bihar.Fried flattened rice is served with spicy curry of black gram.Served with finely chopped onion,green chillies ,corianderander leaves and finally bhujiya or namkeen sev is added for garnishing.It makes it perfect answer to satisfy ones hunger.
12.Baalushahi:Sweet porous flourccups enclosing a litany of flavour in the khaya inside. This deep fried dumpling of refined flour dipped in sugar syrup ,its simple and easy to prepare dish.
13.Sattu ke paranthe( Stuffed Chapatis of spicy roasted black gram powder) and sattu ki poori(Makuni)
One more thing am adding for health reasons regarding the importance of Sattu.Sattu sherbet is cooling drink of summers of bihar has very nutritious value.Extremely good for stomach.For salty sherbet dissolve 2 tb spoon of sattu in chilled or normal water according to choice. Add salt ,rock salt,roasted cumin powder and extremely finely chopped green chillies and onions.
For sweet sherbet just add either sugar or jagerry and have it .I like it with jagerry .Its penance for high acidity when taken empty stomach.
14.parwal ki mithai(Sweetets made of pointed goured):peeled and slitted pointed goured is scooped out and semiboiled in the water of soda bicarbonate. Then stuffing of dry fruits and mawa is filled inside and boiled in sugar syrup.Its one of it's own kind of sweet nutritious and super easy
15.Rasiya(jaggery kheer):kheer is rice cooked in milk with green cardamom and dry fruits.But in Bihar especially for chhath pooja it's made with jagerry with dry fruits and green cardamom cooked in earthen pot in the fire of sticks of mango tree only.In my home I add only bay leaves not cardamom and it tastes awesome.
Rasiya of chhath pooja.
This rasiya I made for dinner.
16.Black sesame ladoo.Extremely healthy sweet ladoo for winter.Black sesame is roasted till aromatic and them mixed with jaggery syrup to make a small ball like shape.
17.kadhi bari:Somewhat similar to kadhi of north India .This yummy and delicious dish is another staple delicacy of Bihar.Both bari and gravy is prepared from gram flour and sour yogurt is mixed with gravy.Tempered with dry red chillies,cumin,curry leaves and a pinch of as foetid a.All gives it a unique taste. It's also considered as one of the auspicious dish during festivals.
18.chandrakala and pedakia:Meant for those with sweet tooth,crispy covering of refined flour is deeply fried and dipped in sugar syrup.Its stuffed with mawa a d dry fruits,cardamom and grated coconut.
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Kesar peda:Milk is reduced till become solid. Then cardamom powder ,sugar saffron and dry fruits are added.
20.khurma or lakhto:
It is known as Shakkarpare too.Deep fried pieces of dough of refined flour is dipped in sugar syrup which when cools off crystalised to give a powdery outer texture..Where as lakhtho is made up with jaggery syrup .Both of them are really sumptuous to munch on.
21.kheer mohan of champaran:
Its quintessentially sweets till date I came across, divine just like its name.I truly don't know its preparation but it's made with mixture of cottage cheese and mawa .Balls of cheese and mawa is steamed or caramelised and then dipped in sugar syrup.Its truly mouth melting sweets ,simply heaven must try once.Its cooked in earthen pot which gives it a particular aroma and taste , in hindi Sondhi _sondhi.
Pics:Pics of silaw khaja ,Naivaidyam,kheer mohan,Gaya’s tilkut and laai and Anarsa are from google, rest dishes are made by me.😊
Image source Google
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