The Assamese food landscape is as rich as its flora and fauna. The local cuisine is often associated with mild use of spices, fermented ingredients, traditional cooking techniques, and bold notes. What makes Assamese cuisine distinct from other cuisines of India is the inclusion of tribal recipes.
If you have to learn more about the food of Assam and cooking methods that add a distinct flavour to the regional dishes, you should familiarise yourself with micro cuisines. From the food of the Mishing tribe to dishes cooked by the Rabha community, this is a food safari across the land of ‘red river and blue hills’.
Bodo Cuisine
One of the largest tribal communities in Assam is Bodos. They prepare dishes with rustic flavours and on an open fire. You will witness a lot of local greens, bamboo shoots, and pork used by them to prepare everyday and festive foods. Some of the dishes that stand out include Bodo rice beer, narzi (pork cooked with fried yam leaves, and onla (rice powder and chicken curry).
Rabha Cuisine
In the plain regions of Assam reside people from the Rabha community. They prepare dishes using fermented ingredients, fresh herbs, and easy cooking techniques. They cook meat with the goodness of vegetables. A few dishes that you must try include bamboo shoots with fermented fish, wangala pork (meat cooked with mild spices and locally sourced greens), rice pithas, and dhekiya xaak with fish.
Image Credit: Chef Atul Lahkar
Assamese Mainland Cuisine
In the mainland of Assam, the regional food is known for fresh ingredients and minimal addition of spices. Chefs and home chefs rely on the natural flavours of fresh herbs, meats, and leafy greens. The dishes that are must-try for foodies here are masor tenga (fish curry), khar (raw papaya dish), aloo pitika, and pitika.
Karbi Cuisine
The hilly terrains of Assam are inhabited by the Karbi tribe. Their everyday diet is rich in bamboo shoots, herbs, and meats. You will find that people here prepare dishes with fresh and fermented ingredients. If you are in the region, you must try kangji (fermented rice porridge), arong ajang (pork or chicken-based traditional dish), amreng dangdang (fermented fish paste), and hor arong (pork or fish with sour curry).
Image Credit: Chef Santa Sarmah/ Instagram
Tiwa Cuisine
Tiwa micro cuisine belongs to the central parts of Assam where people from Tiwa tribe live. They consume fermented foods, meats, and rice. Hence, they are heavily dependent on locally sourced ingredients. A few dishes that stand out under this micro cuisine are rice beer, sunga maas (meat or fish cooked in bamboo tubes), dried fish curry, and laopani maas (fish curry prepared with local herbs).
Mishing Cuisine
The Mishing tribe is settled near the banks of the Brahmaputra River. They are well-versed in agriculture and grow produce in the region. You will observe that they prepare a lot of smoked meat and eat fermented dishes like pork with lai xaak (pork cooked in mustard greens), tungtap (fish cooked in bamboo), rice beer, and tupula bhat (rice steamed in banana leaves).
Image Credit: Chef Atul Lahkar/ Instagram
Tea Tribe Cuisine
The food of the tea tribe of Assam is hearty because of the use of greens, rice, and meats. Since people from this community migrated from central India, they combined their traditional food with local ingredients from the state. Some of the must-try delights include haria (fermented rice beer), tilkut (sesame seed and jagger-based sweet), sabzi dal, and leta bhaat (fermented rice dish).