Bai
The defining dish of Mizo cuisine — mustard greens, raw banana, yam, or taro boiled together in a single pot with pieces of pork fat, sometimes seasoned with a spoonful of fermented soybean paste (bekang). Almost no spice, no oil beyond what renders from the pork. Eaten at every Mizo meal, three times a day, the liquid drunk as a soup alongside rice.
Cuisines
Mizo
Best for
Lunch
Dinner
Recipe
Prep: 15 min
Cook: 35 min
Total: 50 min
2-3 servings
Ingredients
| 200 grams | pork belly, cut into small pieces |
| 100 grams | mustard greens, chopped |
| 1 cup | bamboo shoot, sliced |
| 1 teaspoon | baking soda |
| 1 | onion, chopped |
| 2 cloves | garlic, minced |
| 1 inch | ginger, sliced |
| 2 | green chilies, slit |
| — | salt to taste |
| — | water as needed |
Instructions
- 1 In a pot, add the pork belly pieces and cover with water. Bring to a boil and let it simmer for about 10 minutes.
- 2 Add chopped onion, garlic, ginger, and green chilies to the pot.
- 3 Add the bamboo shoot slices and mustard greens to the pot.
- 4 Sprinkle the baking soda into the pot and stir well.
- 5 Season with salt to taste and add more water if needed to ensure everything is submerged.
- 6 Cover and let it simmer on low heat for about 20-25 minutes until the pork is tender and the flavors are well combined.
- 7 Adjust seasoning if necessary and serve hot.
Tips
For a vegetarian version, omit the pork and add more greens or mushrooms.