| Sikkim Food |
| Sikkim has its own unique dietary culture with specific cuisine and food recipes. In the Sikkim Himalayas traditional foods are an integral part of the dietary culture of the various ethnic groups of people. Rice is the staple food. Meat and dairy products are also consumed depending on availability. Besides these, various traditional fermented foods and beverages, which have constituted of about 20 percent of the basic diet for centuries, are prepared and consumed. The dietary-culture of this region is mostly reflected in the pattern of food production. Depending on the altitudinal variation, finger millet, wheat, buckwheat, barley, vegetable, potato and soybeans are grown. Kinema is a traditional fermented soybean food having characteristic stringy property with unique flavour, commonly served as meat substitute along with cooked rice in meals. Kinema serves as an inexpensive high source of plant protein food in the local diet. Gundruk and Sinki are traditional fermented vegetable products. Gundruk is a fermented product of leafy vegetables such as rayo sag, leaves of mustard, radish and cauliflower. Sinki is prepared from radish tap root only. Noodle-based dishes such as the thukpa (noodle soup), chowmein, thanthuk and wonton are common in Sikkim. Momos, steamed dumplings filled with vegetable, buff (buffalo meat) or pork and served with a soup, are a popular snack. Chhurpi is a fermented dairy product prepared from cow milk. Chhurpi is a traditional cottage cheese which gives a texture of a white soft mass with a mild sour taste. The people of the Sikkim Himalayas eat many varieties of wild ferns commonly grown in these regions. Recipes for wild fern are unique to these regions and it is mostly mixed with Chhurpi to taste. Normally it is not served in the restaurants but is prepared as a household dish. Sishnu soup is prepared from leaves of edible wild varieties of nettle. Drinks Mohi is a traditional non-alcoholic buttermilk beverage, which is usually served in vegetarian meals. Mohi is slightly sour-acidic in taste. Dahi is a fermented milk product, which is thick, non-alcoholic beverage. Fermented alcoholic beverages have strong ritual importance among the various ethnic groups of people of the Sikkim Himalayas. The social activities in these regions require provision and consumption of appreciable amount of alcoholic beverages. Traditionally prepared alcoholic beverages are commonly served in main meals among the alcohol-drinking communities as a part of dietary culture. Jaanr/Chaang is a mild alcoholic and sweet-sour fermented cereal-based beverage. It can sometimes be strong and very intoxicating. Jaanr is consumed in a bamboo vessel locally called "toongbaa". The fermented mass of millet is put into the "toongbaa" and a small amount of warm water is added upto the edge. After 10-12 minutes the liquor is sipped through a narrow bamboo straw called "pipsing". The drink is topped with warm water a couple of times until the millet loses its flavour. Another popular alcoholic drink is Raksi, a clear distilled wine with a characteristic aroma prepared from fermented starchy materials. Beer, whiskey, rum and brandy are widely consumed. Sikkim has has the third highest per capita alcoholism rate amongst all Indian states. |