Description

One of the local specialty cuisines is called Batti Chokha, and I’ll admit - I was surprised by how good it was, especially after watching how it’s made.

It all starts with a fire fueled not by wood, but by buffalo dung - common in rural India. It burns slowly and it imparts a nice smoky flavor to the food that you wouldn't get on a range.

The Batti, an unleavened wheat bread, is kneaded by hand, rolled into balls and thrown right into the fire - no foil, no baking tray, just directly onto the glowing cow dung. It is beautiful and primal. 

Next tomatoes and eggplant are laid on and around the coals, until they have a blistery charred exterior and soft, smokey flesh. Once everything is cooked, the eggplant and tomatoes are peeled, mashed together by hand with raw garlic, onions, green chilies, mustard oil, salt, and fresh coriander to make the Choka. This part - the mixing by hand - no spoons or gloves, was a bit of a culture shock for me, but hey, when in Rome... or, more accurately, when in Varanasi...

The dish is served with rice and dahl, a simple and beautiful accompaniment.

But wait in the temple, God eats first. Before anyone takes a bite, an offering is made to God. In our case, God got two plates. Each one contained a mountain of food. Apparently, God was hungry. 

It is a moment of reverence. The Monk rings a bell in Holy ritual.

After God has been fed, we eat. We sit on the ground barefoot with our tray of foot.

Where's the fork? There aren't any; we eat with our hands. At first, I was clumsy, spilling food everywhere, struggling to scoop up the dal and rice without making a mess. But my companions, amused or disgusted by my efforts, taught me the tricks - how to roll the food into a ball and scoop it up with three fingers, bringing it to my mouth without dropping the better part of it. 

At first, this very Earthy and intimate meal felt odd, but I settled into it. Now I see there's got to be something to it - the food tasted incredible, as if eating with the hands improves the flavor.

Photos