LITTI CHOKHA

Bihari cuisine is eaten mainly in the eastern Indian state of Bihar, as well as in the places where people originated from the state of Bihar have settled: Jharkand, Eastern Uttar Pradesh, Bangladesh, Nepal, Mauritius, South Africa, etc...

The cuisine of Bihar is largely similar to North Indian cuisine and East Indian cuisines. It is highly seasonal; watery foods such as watermelon and sharbat made from the pulp of the wood-apple fruit are consumed mainly in the summer months, while dry foods such as preparations made of sesame seeds and poppy seeds are consumed  more frequently in the winter months.

Bihari cuisine include litti chokha, a baked salted wheat-flour cake filled with sattu( baked chickpea flour) and some special spices, which is served with baigan bharta, made of roasted eggplant and tomatoes. Dairy products are consumed frequently throughout the year, including dahi(yoghurt), spiced buttermilk( known mattha), ghee, lassi and butter.

 Litti, along with chokha, is a complete meal originated from the Indian state of Bihar and parts of Eastern Uttar Pradesh. It is a dough ball made up of whole flour and stuffed with gram flour, pulses and mixed with herbs and spices and then roasted over coal or wood then it is tossed with much ghee. Although very often confused with the closely related baati, it is a completely different dish in terms of taste, texture and preparation. It may be eaten with yoghurt, baigan bharta, alu bharta, and papad. The litti are traditionally baked over wood fire, but in the modern day a new fried version has been developed.

Herbs and spices used to flavour the litti include onion, garlic, coriander leaves, lime juice, carom seeds, nigella seeds and salt. Tasty pickles can also be used to add spice flavour. In western Bihar and eastern Uttar Pradesh litti is served with murgh korma( a creamy chicken curry) or chokha ( a vegetable preparation of roasted and mashed eggplant, tomato and potato).