Recipes for a classic Chakma lunch platter

A typical Chakma luncheon is simple but nutritious. Traditionally, from blanched boiled vegetable dishes to herbed less-oily fish, and meat served with a plate of jhum cultivated steamed rice, the food choice of indigenous people of Chittagong Hill Tracts changes every season. We have more than a hundred varieties of seasonal vegetables and fruits that grow around the year all over the hills. From sweet fruits to sour veggies and bitter herbs to spicy chillies, all of the distinctive flavours of the different ingredients are found on our lunch platter.

The reason behind having a mixed-plate lunch is that it goes with our appetite genetically. The common practice is to consume sour, sweet, bitter, and hot but less spicy, or sometimes raw greens altogether to get every possible nutrition through our regular food intake. Traditionally, we call these food 'medicines to our body' to make our immunity stronger.

Here are a few typical and healthy recipes from a Chakma's regular lunch platter.

BACHCHURI TAABA (BAMBOO SHOOTS WITH DRIED PRAWN)

Ingredients 
10-20 pcs bamboo shoots (peeled and boiled)
3-4 long beans (optional)
1 cup Malabar spinach leaves or pui shak (optional)
10-15 pieces dried prawn
1 tsp sidol or shrimp paste/or 2 tbsp fish paste
Some slit green chillies, according to taste
Salt, to taste
Fuji leaves (a hilly herb)
A few drops of oil (optional)

Method
In a cooking pot, add the dried prawn, sidol, or any substitutes, chillies, and water, and bring it to a boil on high to medium heat for a few minutes. Add a few drops of oil, and the boiled bamboo shoots; cook for a few minutes. Add the long beans, and Malabar spinach, and cover the lid immediately. Cook for another minute.
Adjust the salt. Add fuji leaves and immediately transfer to a serving bowl.

AADA FUL GUDIYE (MASHED GINGER FLOWER)

Photo: Chiangmi Talukder Lena

Ingredients
15-20 pcs ginger flower (flowers along with the soft stems)
1-2 regular pieces of a big fish, or 4-5 chicken pieces
2 medium size onions, chopped
1-inch size ginger
2 cloves of garlic (if cooking with chicken)
A pinch of cumin powder (if cooking with chicken)
10-20 pieces of green chillies, or according to preference (Bird's eye chilli for authentic flavours)
2 tbsp oil
½ tsp turmeric powder
Salt, to taste

Method
In a large bowl, mix everything accordingly using a clean hand preferably, except water. Marinate for at least 10 minutes. Transfer to a thick-based cooking pot and add 1-1½ cup water for fish or chicken. Cover with a lid and cook on medium heat until the fish or the chicken gets well cooked. Add extra water, if needed. Adjust the amount of salt and cook until the water gets dry and the oil starts to come out. Turn off the flame and smash everything with a wooden pestle.

SHAK UJUNO-MORICH BATTYE (BOILED GREENS OR VEGETABLES WITH DRY FISH CHILLI PASTE)

Ingredients
Any leafy greens (shak) or vegetables (cabbage, pea eggplant, long bean, okra, etc.)
2-3 tsp fish sauce/sidol or shrimp paste
Salt to taste (if your shrimp paste or fish sauce is salty enough no need to add extra salt)
For the chilli paste —
10-20 roasted hilly or any green chillies
Roasted dried prawn or roasted piece of dried fish (churi/lottya shutki)
Salt, to taste

Method
Add the required amount of water to boil your greens in a cooking pot. Add sidol or substitutes and bring it to a boil on high heat. Add your greens or veggies and put the lid on immediately. Boil for a few minutes according to your ingredients' texture. Make sure not to over-boil; immediately transfer to a serving bowl when your greens are 80-90 percent cooked.

Roast your green chillies and dried fish directly over the flame. If you are using dried prawns, roast them using a tawa/wok on medium to low heat.
Make a coarse chilli paste with the help of mortar-pestle; mix the dried prawn or fish pieces. Serve with boiled or raw greens.

JHARO ALU LOI HURO AERA (CHICKEN CURRY WITH WILD POTATOES OR YAM)

Ingredients
1000g chicken pieces
500g wild potatoes or yam, big pieces
1½ cups of chopped onions
2 tsp ginger paste
1 tsp garlic paste
1 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp turmeric powder
2-3 tsp green or red chilli paste
3/4 cup oil
1 large bundle of fuji leaves (hilly herbs)
Salt

Method
Put the cooking pot on medium heat with oil. Add chopped onion, ginger-garlic paste and sauté. Add salt, chilli paste, turmeric, and cumin powder. Sauté until everything goes well incorporated. Add chicken, cook and stir until water dries and oil comes out. Add little water at a time and stir for about 5 minutes.
Add wild potatoes or yam pieces; stir again. Let them sizzle in the oil for a few minutes. Add the required amount of water and cook until chicken and potato pieces get well cooked. Adjust the amount of salt and gravy. Put the bundle of fresh fuji leaves. Put the lid on and let simmer for another minute on low heat.

HAJA OHLOD TON (FRESH TURMERIC ROOT CURRY WITH DRIED BOMBIL)

Ingredients
250g fresh turmeric roots (peel and make paste)
1-inch pieces of 5-6 dried bombil (loittya shutki; soak in hot water for 15 minutes before cleaning)
1/3 cup chopped onions
½ tsp ginger paste
½ tsp garlic paste
2 tsp green chilli paste
½ cup oil
Salt and water, to cook

Method
Heat a cooking pot with oil on medium heat. Add chopped onion and sauté. Add salt, ginger, garlic, and chilli paste, and mix well. Add dried fish pieces and shallow fry for minutes. Add turmeric paste and stir until oil comes out. Add the required amount of water for gravy. Cook for a few minutes.  Adjust salt and put off the flame once the gravy becomes thick.

Food and Photo: Chiangmi Talukder Lena