Bhansa Ghar is the traditional kitchen of Bihar. It is also called Rasoi. There are different sections or rooms in the kitchen, each with its designated space for storage of fuel, groceries, water and cooked food, with a special corner for dish washing. There are separate provisions made for cooking vegetarian and non vegetarian dishes.
The food is cooked in a clay stove known as a chullah, which is made of bricks and clay, with a mouth at the top and an opening at the bottom. The cooking equipment is placed at the top and fuel is ignited below. The fuels that are used in the rural kitchens of Bihar are cow dung cake (goyatha), wood, and steam of different crops. Keeping in mind that there is usually a generous amount of smoke released during the cooking process, the design of the kitchen is quite open; very well ventilated, and built slightly away from the main living area. The food is prepared in the Bhansa Ghar and brought to the dining area.
The kitchen in Bihar is considered a sacred place and people working here follow some basic rules – bathing before starting the cooking, not tasting the food during cooking, offering the first morsel to the fire (Agni Dev – chullah) etc. Traditionally, a lot of the cooking was done in earthen, brass, iron, or aluminum pots. However, today all the latest equipments and gadgets are found in the Bhansa Ghar.
Bihar’s cuisine is so varied that recipes do not just change between different districts or provinces; it changes from one home/family to another. Besides recipes, the various traditions and rituals associated with food are commonly discussed and recounted. The people of Bihar prepare and eat an extensive variety of food, but not enough thought or effort has gone into giving them suitable names or an identity.
Through this book we have tried to bring to you the wide-ranging culinary heritage of the State. We have collected some of the finest recipes (popular dishes from Bihar)) which we hope receives appreciation from a varied range of food lovers. There were many interesting, and sometimes daunting, challenges we faced while writing this book. The obvious one was in deciding on one recipe (foods from Bihar) for a particular dish that is cooked in a variety of ways in different regions and different households. We tried them one by one and selected the best for you.
The equations given below each recipe is intended to help you quickly recollect the steps.
Hope you enjoy using the book and find it good enough to bite into.
Contents: 1. About Bihar. 2. Shakahari – Vegetarian preparations. 3. Manshahari – Non vegetarian preparations. 4. Dal and Jhor – Lentils and Thin Gravies. 5. Roti – Breads. 6. Chawal – Rice. 7. Saha Bhojan – Side Dishes. 8. Mithaian – Sweet delicacies. 9. Nasta – Snacks. 10. Litti – Sattu Stuffer Balls. 11. Jalpaan – Beverages.
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