A Myanmarese girl selling yongchak
at Indian border town Moreh, Manipur
Ask any Manipuri, who has been outside the Northeast for a good period of time, what he missed most in his daily menu; lo and behold, he will retort "yongchak iromba". Known by different names such as stink bean, bitter bean, twisted cluster bean etc., this tree bean, yongchak, has occupied a unique place in the culinary delights of every Manipuri in particular and every Northeastern tribal in general. The inclusion of this item, as a side dish, in the Ningol Chakouba festival of the Manipuris, held every year in the month of November, is considered privileged. Being a seasonable produce, the availability in the market just starts trickling in around this time and hence the scarcity galore. A couple of pods cost much more than what is in normal time.
An evergreen rain-forest tree, it is grown mostly in Manipur, Mizoram, Tripura and Nagaland. The height of the plant is about twenty five to thirty metres and leaves are evenly bipinnate, thirty to eighty cm long. Known as Manipur-urohi in Assamese, Manipuri-seem in Bengali, zawngtah in Mizo, with wide spreading crown having yellow white flowers, the pods are about thirty cm long, pendulous and greenish before ripe, black and shining afterwards. A plant of the genus Parkia in the family Fabaceae, both its flowers and pods are fondly eaten either raw or cooked by the Manipuris.
Loklei (galangal) a ginger family
The demand for yongchak is so much that the farmers of Manipur cannot meet it and therefore have to purchase from outside the state. Namphalong, near Indo-Myanmar border town of Moreh, and Silchar in southern Assam via Jiribam, are the known routes of this vegetable for Imphal market. Due to soil and climatic variation of different topographical areas, the flavour reportedly varies from place to place. This could perhaps be one of the reasons why it values in taste in some areas. Known as Kampai, among the Rongmei tribe of Tamenglong district in Manipur, the pods of the plant at Dailong village generally mature ahead of others. Imphal bound passengers rush for it in their morning market.
For preparing the famed yongchak iromba, a host of local spices as ingredients are needed to enrich the aromatic and tangy flavour. Loklei (galangal), lomba (esholtzia blanda), maroi nakupi (Chinese chives), tokningkok (chameleon leaves), phakpai (Vietnamese coriander), koukha (arrowhead), along with ngari (fermented dry fish) and fresh indigenous fish like ngakra (clarias magur), and Meitei ngamu (channa orientalis) are just some of them besides coriander, spring onion, Manipuri red potato, chilli etc. In fact a fish or chicken preparation is less expensive in terms of money and time than a yongchak iromba dish. For vegetarians who do not eat fish, yongchak can be cooked in many ways. Cooking with fermented soya bean, locally known as hawaichar, is one good combination, while stir-fry with koukha (arrowhead) and shrimp is another tasty option.
Lomba (esholtzia blanda)
Another equally popular item is yongchak singju -- a Manipuri style raw salad. Peruk (centella), pheija (flower of a wild plant), tender pea leaves, etc., besides yongchak make the preparation not only rich in anti-oxidant but also wholesome. In fact, peruk and pheija are never planted generally but grow wild naturally in the nearby hills and valleys. This makes their nutritive food values organic. The flower of the yongchak plant is also used in singju.
Known commonly as petai or pete in Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore, mai-karien in Myanmar, karieng or riang in Thailand, cupang in Philippines, the plant is native to Southeast Asian countries, including the Northeastern part of India and Bangladesh. It is said that no southern Thai meal would be complete without stir-fried stink beans. Indonesian nasi goreng kambing pete, fried rice with goat meat and stink beans, Thai mu phat sato, pork stir-fried with stink beans, are just some of the popular dishes.
Much had been said about Look East. And now it is about Act East. But what about Eat East? It is right time now to rediscover some of the traditional cuisines of the Northeast.
Konjengbam Kameshore
(Courtesy: Eastern Panorama, Shillong, March, 2015)
NB: The writer is not responsible for use or abuse of blog caption "Kameshore's articles" in any form, manner, site, whatsoever by anybody.
Konjengbam Kameshore
Imphal, Dt. 24.07.2015
