Sikkim Cuisine is the cuisine of the North East Indian state of Sikkim. These are some of the most popular vegetarian dishes.
Beware this is a long post!
For the last day under the theme Make a Meal, I have a meal from Sikkim. During the Diwali vacation, we took a trip to Sikkim. We visited Gangtok, Pelling, and Darjeeling. When we planned this trip I wondered as to what kind of vegetarian food would be available. North East is popular for its non-vegetarian food. While working on the Indian States for our mega marathon, we had a tough time cooking from the North-Eastern states. On my search, I had found that the staple was Momos and Thukpa. This time I discovered another soup called Kauri.
Kauri is a mini shell made from all-purpose flour, which is added as a mini dumpling to vegetable stock to make the soup. Vegetables or meat could be added to the soup.
Whenever I visit a new state I look forward to it. Meeting the local chef of the hotel, so I can get some unknown recipes. So I had a good meeting with the chef in Gangtok and he told me some dishes which were absolutely new and unheard of. In fact, he gave me a demo of a couple of these recipes.
Similarly, I met the chef in Pelling and Darjeeling too, and every time I got still different and new recipes and dishes. But what I summarized was that these people were basically from Nepal and the cuisine was a mix of Sikkim and Nepal, it also had traces of West Bengal cuisine. These people had a breakfast of momos, fried rice, a simple lunch which had a local vegetable, a green or Daal with rice and roti. The dinner for men would be alcohol and chilly chicken. I wondered what the ladies would eat, and I learned that they ate some chicken too. Even for lunch, they mix meat with local greens. Sikkim had lots of vegetables, but still, they live dominantly on nonvegetarian food.
Roadside Ghughni, Channa, Aaloo, Gundrak, and Muli ko Achaar
I must tell you a little about the food that was served on the roadside. While traveling from Pelling to Darjeeling we came across a couple of roadside restaurants that served breakfast. Since West Bengal is a neighboring state one could make out its influence. One of the restaurants served Gughni, Kala Channa, Momos with Tamatar ki Chutney and roti. They also had Gundrak ka Achaar. Gundrak is a dried rai ko saag. The rai ko saag is dried in a pit for about fifteen days and it has a very peculiar and strong smell. While making the achaar they soak and wash the Gundrak many times, then add some chilly and onion to it. I actually liked the flavor of it but the hotel chef discouraged me to carry its raw form as it has a very strong smell and he was scared that the people on the flight might run away.
you see the Bengali influence. Onion Pakora, Aaloo Chop, Parathas, Buns, and Momos on the streets.
Non Veg Parathas
Kala channa being boiled to make chaat
At another roadside joint we were served Momos and Noodles. Maggie is also something that one can see on the roadside. These people have lots of Chinese food, but Momos rank the highest. The locals made them with such ease and their chutney tasted stunning. I made sure that I tasted these everywhere I got them but concluded that the Momos did not have any spice. They added just salt and Ajinomoto to the sauteed cabbage, which made the filling for these. The chutney varied from vendor to vendor.
I went around the local vegetable market and saw different vegetables. It was rather interesting to see these new vegetables and I picked some of them, I took the recipes for the same and came and cooked a complete spread.
I also picked a kilo of Dalley Khorsani, the fireball red chilies which are very popular in Sikkim. The chilies are preserved for years either in vinegar or salt. I have to admit that these are real fireballs…very very spicy. A chutney made from these tastes heavenly. At the time of eating this chutney, I thought of Usha, as she loves spicy food.
Here is a glimpse of the local vegetables …
Ruk Labera also called Tree Tomatoes as these grow on trees
Squash
Rai no saag
Simrayo no Saag
Chuchey Karele
Butter Beans
I have collected many recipes from the state but as of now let me give you the menu and a description of the dishes that I cooked.
Snacks
( steamed dumplings made with all-purpose flour,stuffed with simply sauteed cabbage)
Main Course
Kalo Daal
( this is a Daal which is a cross between our Moong beans and black Udad. The color is greenish-brown. The Daal is made with the recipe of either Daal Tadka or Black Makhani Daal )
Rai no Saag
( this is a local green which tastes quite like sarso ka Saag and like radish leaves. It is cooked in a simple manner )
Simrayo ko Saag
( another local green which is slightly sour in taste, but truly delicious, also called the Spanish water Grass)
Sukhe Aaloo
( actually baby potatoes are used for this dish, but I used regular small sized ones. The potatoes are washed and then smashed and cooked with simple spices )
Churpi ka Jhol
( a Nepali cheese, cooked in tomato gravy. This was similar to our paneer but had a peculiar flavor. I guess we need to adapt it )
Squash
( local vegetable, looks like a cousin of avocado, tastes like bottle gourd. Simple comfort dish )
Chuchey Karele
( these are called karelas, but nowhere near their taste. )
Butter Beans
( a little like the Gujrati Vaal, but these beans are whitish-pink in color, though some of these are light green too. The taste is quite similar but these beans are a little mild )
Accompaniments
Pudina ko Chutney
( a chutney made with mint, tree tomato and lemon, one of the most delicious chutneys I have ever had )
Tamatar ka Achaar
( roasted tree tomatoes (ruk lambera is the local name for these tomatoes )onions, Local fireball chilly hand-pounded to make this achaar, which is more like a chutney. Yum to the core.)
Moola no achaar
( Rato Mula or red radish cut into juillines, spiced up with fireball chilly and drizzled with lemon juice. Makes an excellent accompaniment with any meal )
Bread and Rice
Rice
Roti
( whole wheat flatbread )
Dessert
( a kheer with the local field rice)
Awesome Vaishali. That was a wonderful post on your journey to Sikkim. And the thali, there is no way to describe it. That is why I call you Queen of thalis…
Kudos to your effort Vaishali!! Love it!!
Wonderful meal and what a collection of recipes and pictures from the local Vaishali. Btw that Squash you mentioned is same vegetable that we call chow chow in Tamil Nadu…enjoyed reading the post..
Wow !! Kuch baaki hain kya ? Lovely n healthy spread 🙂 loved the kauri especially
OMG! that is such a lavish thali.
Wow such a lovely thali. Looks amazing.
Wow!!! Vaishali hats off to your patience in cooking, writing and presenting. I'm always in awe.. seeing your posts. Lovely spread.
that was a very informative post on sikkim cuisine and a delicious wonderful spread…
Wow Vaishali. I am so loving it. Btw the sqash you have shown is available in Karnataka. It's called seeme badnikai
You rock Vaishali, seriously i cant take my eyes from that irresistible platter, omg, wat a varieties of food, one can enjoy throughly virtually this incredible thali. So many new dishes, had a fabulous read.
So much detail and so many dishes…Kudos to you Vaishalli
Since the day you mentioned that trip , I have been looking forward to this post. What an awesome spread.Learnt a lot about the cuisine and so nice that you clicked the street food pics and the local veggoes and greens as well. I have book marked this post .Will try out a few recipes from this thali..Hat's off to your patience and your zeal!