“No one who cooks, cooks alone. Even at her most solitary, a cook in the kitchen is surrounded by generations of cooks past, the advice and menus of cooks present, the wisdom of cookbook writers,” said Laurie Colwin, an American author. This has always been true of me. My cooking is inspired by that of my grandmothers as well as my mother and aunts.
When I moved to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), 22 years ago, cooking any traditional Assamese dishes would mean a telephone call back home. However, the problem I faced while trying to replicate any traditional dish, is that no one had exact measurements for any of the recipes. This made me start documenting each recipe with proper measurements and instructions until it tasted exactly like it would if it was cooked in my grandmother’s kitchen, back in Assam. Sourcing ingredients was another problem but it was a boon to find that Southeast Asian supermarkets were well stocked and 80 per cent of the ingredients were available in the UAE. The rest had to be brought by visiting friends and relatives.
These tried and tested traditional recipes were included in the cooking classes I was conducting and they were greatly appreciated by people from different parts of the world. A lot of interest was generated in Assamese cuisine after the Bhut Jalakia chilli was certified as the world’s hottest chilli pepper by the Guinness World Record. Any dish which used the famous chilli as an ingredient was always met with a lot of interest and enthusiasm by those who had never experienced it. According to Maan Hamzi, a Lebananese food writer, “Bhut Jalakia is by far the most thrilling thing I have ever eaten.” Other dishes such as Fish tenga or Tangy fish curry, pitika or mashed vegetables and pitha or rice cakes are greatly enjoyed by anyone tasting Assamese cuisine for the first time. They are pleasantly surprised to find how different it is from other Indian dishes that they have tasted and that it is not as rich or heavy as the curry-based dishes served in restaurants offering Indian fare. Assamese cuisine is greatly admired for its fresh ingredients, minimal use of oil, and the use of fresh herbs and vegetables, especially by the health conscious people.
I soon discovered that there was a growing demand for more Assamese recipes, especially written in English so that they could be understood by a global audience. This led to the start of the Facebook page on Assamese cuisine and recipes. Today, it boasts over 40,000 members from all parts of the globe. The page became popular with both Assamese residing in Assam as well as the Assamese diaspora. It was interesting to find that the Assamese themselves were curious about dishes from their own cuisine and wanted to know more about them, in addition to foreigners who were intrigued by the food.
It is imperative to apply imagination to a dish, to make it visually pleasing as well as combine dishes in a way that is more appealing to a wider audience. For example, most people in the cooking class find the traditional mashed potatoes combined with fried fish a more palatable combination as opposed to serving the same with rice and lentils which is a more traditional practice. Taste, to a great extent, is personal as well as culturally defined, and modern tastes have been influenced by a variety of factors that cannot be separated from the equation. However, it is important to keep the recipes close to the traditional as far as possible while giving them a touch of modernity.
A love of food is something that binds us all, regardless of culture or ethnic background. Fortunately for me, I have friends who love to cook as much as I do; the joy of eating a meal cooked by friends from a different country is quite unparalleled .It is an immersion into food culture and a global adventure. Cooking for me is more than a passion, it´s a lifestyle. There is sheer magic in this simple ritual that bonds people together. It not only creates awareness of people and their cultures or the perfect setting for conversations, it connects us to each other.
Sharmin Pasha is an Assamese writer and stylist who loves to cook. Her workshops on Assamese cuisine emphasises on indigenous ingredients and traditional cooking methods. She is based in Dubai
500 gram river fish, cut into steaks
100 gram fresh Roselle leaves
1 ½ tsp turmeric powder
¼ tsp fenugreek seeds
1-2 green chilies
2 tbsp mustard oil
500 ml hot water
1 medium potato
Extra oil for frying the fish
Salt according to taste
Note: If Roselle leaves are not available, sour spinach can be used as a substitute.
400 gram red pumpkin, peeled and sliced
50 gram rice flour
150 gram gram flour
2 g baking soda
250 ml water, or as needed
500 ml mustard or vegetable oil, to deep fry
Salt according to taste
500 gram fish, preferably cat fish
200 gram tender curry leaves
2 tsp turmeric powder
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tsp garlic paste
½ tsp black pepper paste
1 tsp cumin powder
2 green chilies, slit
3 tbsp mustard oil
250 ml warm water
Extra oil for frying the fish
Salt to taste