Jharkhandi cuisine


Jharkhandi cuisine is the cuisine of the Indian state of Jharkhand. Staple foods are rice, dal, roti, and vegetables. Common meals often consist of vegetables that are cooked in various ways, such as curried, fried, roasted and boiled. Many traditional dishes of Jharkhand may not be available at restaurants.

Foods and dishes

  • Malpua: A dish usually prepared during the Holi festival.
  • Arsa roti: A sweet dish prepared during festivals. Rice flour and sugar or jaggery are used in preparation.
  • Chhilka roti: Bread prepared by using rice flour and dal. It is served with chutney, vegetables and meat.
  • Dhooska or : Deep fried rice flour pancakes that may be served with gram curry and potatoes.
  • Aaru ki sabzi: Made with a root vegetable found in Jharkhand only.
  • Chakor jhol: A wild edible leafy vegetable, cooked in red rice soup.
  • Sanai ka phool ka bharta: A rural recipe made of Sanai flowers.
  • Moonj ada: A spicy dal, cooked over a low flame with a dash of lemon and chilli for flavour.
  • Dumbu: A rice dessert.
  • Tilkut: A sweet prepared with pounded sesame-seed cookies made with jaggery batter or melted sugar.
  • Meat salaan: A popular meat dish consisting of lamb curry and diced potatoes which is spiced with garam masala.
  • Maduwa khassi: Smoked mutton with the skin intact and served with rice.
  • Spicy chicken: A common meat dish.
  • Rohad haku: Fish which are dried in the sun and then stir fried in oil with lemon and vinegar.
  • Mushroom: Rugra or puttu is a type of edible mushroom which grows during the monsoon season and is used for vegetable.
  • Bamboo shoots: Bamboo shoots are used as vegetables in Jharkhand.
  • Red ant chutney: A dish of mashed red ants and their eggs.
  • Koinar saag: Leaves of the koinar tree are eaten as a vegetable.
  • Putkal ka saag: a sautéed leafy vegetable.
  • Pitha: Rice flour with urad or chana dal.

    Alcoholic beverages

  • Handia: Handia or Handi is a common rice beer in Jharkhand. People drink it during festivals and marriage feast.
  • Mahua daru: An alcoholic beverage in Jharkhand which is prepared using the flowers of the mahua tree.

    Food security

The 24 districts of Jharkhand receive supplemental food security supplies as per the National Food Security Act, 2013 of India. In the past, food supplies were distributed to the districts in phases, which some have criticized as problematic. In June 2015, Ram Vilas Paswan, the Minister of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution for the government of India stated a preference toward the Food Security Act to be implemented all at once, rather than in phases. In this manner, Paswan stated a preference for distributions to be completed in entirety by September 1, 2015.