People living in the upper reaches of Himachal Pradesh, which receives heavy snowfall during the winters, have devised a unique method of storing meat by drying it and smearing it with spices to prevent it from rotting. The roads to these hilly areas are blocked due to heavy snowfall during winter. Therefore people in Himachal Pradesh start collecting their food and timber well in advance. They need to keep themselves warm in devious, cold conditions and cannot bear to go to meat shops as the shops get closed on heavy snowfall.
"There are months of extreme cold, so we chop the meat and store it in cold places. We eat dry meat in the winter which is very good in taste. Also it tastes better.," said a local lady from manali. She later on explains to me how this method helps them preserve food for long winters, which continue from December to April Or May ;maybe. This tradition is a necessity for the people here in such cold places. The dry meat can be preserved for months together without getting stale because of the climatic conditions that prevail in the state.
I asked her "Is that true you don't use fridge here while it snows"
She laughed a bit at my question and said " Yes! Here we love to eat freshly cooked food although if given a choice can eat the food for two days once prepared since due to climatic conditions here the food does not stale"
I nervously looked at my plate. I was served rice and some veggies by her. Her 23 year old son giggled at the same time and started putting more wood in tandoori.
We sat around tandoori for so long and I had no intention of going outside in such harsh cold so she showed me how they dry meat. This picture you can see is they call tandoori. The tandoori is made of iron and inside they put wood by removing the lid. And the pipe going upwards you see is for the smoke. The pipe is attached to the roof of the house So it acts like a chimney. So smoke free warmth of fire inside the kitchen. I am definitely taking this brilliant idea to my state(Jharkhand).
I asked why they had hung it in the room. Instead they can put it in sunlight on the roof. Since it was kinda smelly in the room.
"Then there will be flies sitting on it and crows will put their beaks on it" She replied.
" Oh yeah yeah! " It made sense.
They store it in plastic containers once it gets dried completely. It's not dried properly yet. I have no idea how it tastes but judging the way how the pahadis make food. I am pretty sure it will be mouthwatering.
I cannot show you the dish prepared by it since it is not dried properly. Once it's done I am definitely gonna post it on Instagram - @foodiey_panda or probably gonna write another blog.
I am Sunita, a tribal girl from Jharkhand and currently residing in Manali for the past 3 months. I am a solo traveler and explorer who loves to travel and write. I have an immense love for writing and am a very active internet couch potato.
