Sunday, September 5, 2010

Fresh Bamboo Shoot

A bamboo shoot is a young culm harvested at the time, or shortly after it appears above the soil surface.Most bamboo species produce edible shoots. In many parts of North-East India, bamboo shoots are an integral part of traditional cuisine – fresh, dried, shredded or pickled.In Assam it is called BaahnGaaj (the fresh form) and Khorisa(fermented and dried form).Bamboo shoot when consumed fresh have a far superior taste and texture- it has a crunchy and subtle flavor.It is a purely seasonal thing .Though they have already made an appearance in the local markets of Guwahati (my city), i bought it from a roadside vegetable seller on National Highway (on my way to Shillong).Look at the picture above--they look very fresh and tender.I bought three shoots for 20 Rs. Let me share few things about the pre-cooking and preserving process of Fresh Bamboo shoots with you.
Bamboo shoots have high nutritional value,low fat and are a good source of Vitamins,cellulose and amino acids.To know more about its nutritional value click here.The shoots we get to buy here are already devoid of their hard peels (sellers do this job).Bamboo shoots are naturally bitter .Therefore to remove this bitterness and to make it easily digestible ,it is very important to parboil them before their consumption.I will show you how i do it in my kitchen.After washing it properly in running water,i slice them into rings of medium thickness .After immersing them completely in water i add two to three red chillies(as you see in the picture below) .It was a tip given to me by one of the shoot seller only,she said that this helps in loosing the bitterness and in retaining its natural color.I boil it uncovered for 20-25 minutes-if a skewer easily passes through the shoot,i consider it done.After putting off the flame i keep it aside for cooling down.Once it cools down ,i wash them once more with drinking water .
After that once again i immerse it in water and store in refrigerator in an air tight container.It is very important to change the water daily if you want to retain its freshness.This way it can be kept for two weeks.(see the picture below).It is now ready to be used in your meat/veg curries or for stir frying.
Here is Khorisa which is a fermented and dried form of bamboo shoot.It is pungent smelling and is a bit sour in taste.Tastes very good if added to mashed potatoes(aalu-pitika) or fish curries.
The very same day that i bought the shoots ,i used it for two different dishes .The first one was ' boneless chicken with vegetables and sliced bamboo shoots' (the picture below).I am a vegetarian so i don't know how it tasted...my kids and husband loved it though.
Second dish was almost same with the chicken replaced by Tofu (one can use paneer/cottage cheese too).If you don't get fresh ones you can use canned one which is more convenient but little less in taste and texture.Is Bamboo Shoot  a part of your cuisine too ?

53 comments:

  1. I have always used canned bamboo shoots that have already been sliced. It's very common in Korean and Chinese cuisine. By itself, it's very bland so I have to add soy sauce, sugar, etc. to the sauce to give it flavor. Yummy!

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  2. would love to try it fresh, I've only had canned also.

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  3. I never knew you could eat bamboo, but I guess the Pandas enjoy it. Your chicken dish looks very delicious. Maybe I will give this a try. Thank you for coming by.

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  4. Both soups look yummy. But I would probably pick the boneless chicken with vegetables.

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  5. That looks wonderful, Kavita. Our family loves bamboo shoots. We call it takenoko (child of the bamboo). Unfortunately, it's really expensive. I've never seen it sold fresh.

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  6. I have heard that tender bamboo shoots are edible...saw these shoots when I had been to Chikmagalore, but had not tasted it. My sister was there and she had not learned to cook it.

    Very interesting and you have explained so nicely how to cook it. Let me send this recipe to my sister and see if she liked the taste.

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  7. You put up interesting bits on your Blog. Good I enjoy it. Do keep it up

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  8. This looks new to me, but I would be willing to try. The food pics at the bottom look totally yummy!

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  9. You always bring us a different kind of interesting world, thanks Kavita

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  10. oooh nice .. I have only tried it canned since yahan fresh kahan se laun.. But will definitely try it if i can get from somewhere ...
    and the pics wowow My stomach is making rumbling sounds now telling me to get foooooddd :)

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  11. btw you mentioned the fish curry thats not fair .. you should tell how to make it also :(

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  12. @Gigi...you are right ,it has a very subtle flavor .I add lots of chillies and all kinds of sauces to make it spicy in my vegetarian dishes.But my husband and kids like it plain (no sauce) .Thanks.

    @Lin Floyd...fresh is tastier and i am sure easily available in asian stores.thanks

    @Margaret Cloud...it is used in traditional cooking by many other countries too.Thanks.

    @Patty...thanks a lot.you made the right choice.

    @Kay...i have tried many Japanese recipes before.Fresh bamboo shoot is available at very cheap prices here.

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  13. @Sandhya...please do try and let me know .i am a vegetarian so i make it with either tofu,paneer or mostly just plain with other vegs.

    @Anilkurup...thanks for your appreciation.

    @Cloudia...right,coconut juice !Mahalo!

    @Opus..a warm welcome and thanks a
    lot.Please do try,you will not regret it.

    @Suffix..thanks a lot for liking it.

    @Bikram..thankyou.I will try to write the recipe in my other blo very soon.thanks for the idea.AApko ye zaroor accha lagega.


    @

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  14. Bamboo shoots are not available fresh in this part of India but I often have it in Chinese eating places here. What you cooked here seemed delicious. Specially the one with tofu. I have never cooked tofu at home though. Very informative post.

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  15. I only heard about it. Thanks for sharing so much of interesting information.

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  16. Wow! It really does look yummy...would love to try it :)
    And it looks so tender and fresh like u said it...great pictures...

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  17. Absolutely gorgeous and fresh bamboo shoots. I feel like having those as I always use the canned ones. The chicken dish looks delicious and mouth watering. Very beautiful presentation.

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  18. Food with fresh tender bamboo shoots...sounds interesting. Would definitely love to try it (eating I mean, coz I'm not into cooking!). The pic with the sliced bamboo shoots looks like squid, doesn't it!

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  19. The fresh ones look soo soo cute and inviting :) I hv heard soo much abt bamboo shoots, but hv never seen them here. Should launch a treasure hunt for them :P

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  20. Where I grew up ... off course in the NE, Bamboo shoot and dried fish was a real delicacy. Never got the opportunity to try that though
    I must have eaten this as part of Chinese cuisine.

    Great post!

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  21. Never knew about bamboo being edible!! Thanks for enlightening!!

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  22. lemme repeat what my friend suffix said: You always bring us a different kind of interesting world, thanks Kavita

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  23. I feel so dumb!! I didn't know that bamboo shoot is edible too! and the thing is - I have had it in chinese!! I do not bother about food ingredients while eating :P

    great post kavita.. :)

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  24. Aha that’s mouthful…feast for eyes and mouthwatering too….
    I have had this cuisine, but no idea how it s prepared, and definitely it s not the way, you have done it…which means bamboos can come in variety of dishes…
    yummmmmyyy

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  25. Great preparations from bamboo. One day I would definitely love to taste this.

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  26. Hi Kavita,

    Wow...i have onely bamboo plants at home...This is quite new to me...

    Sameena@

    www.lovelypriyanka.blogspot.com
    www.myeasytocookrecipes.blogspot.com

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  27. I never knew that we can cook bamboo shoots.Sounds very interesting!! New here .I really enjoyed your blog .Do drop by my space when u find time

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  28. Hi Kavita just a few words to say you hv a very informative blog about food and places in India...love the way you cook bamboo shoot, kinda similar to how we cook it here too:D

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  29. @Magiceye..thanks.

    @Aparna-Tofu is an acquired taste,try,you might like it !thanks.

    @Vicious-thanks.

    @Onkar-thanks.

    @Destiny's Child-thanks.

    @Babli-thanks.

    @Sonal-Thanks.

    @RGB-yes,it does look like squid.Try Bamboo shoot dish sometime ,you will love it.

    @Swaram-hey,invite me too:)

    @Sumandebray-many say that it tastes best with pork and dried fish.

    @Shilpa-thanks.

    @Ramesh-Thanks anna !

    @nNeha-next time you bite on one tumhe meri yaad aayegi :):thanks.

    @Deeps-yes,it can be boiled,pickled ,stir fried and can be added to any non veg dish.Thanks.

    @Rajesh- thanks.

    @Dr.Prathap..thanks.I visited your blog and liked that cabbage recipe a lot.Thanks.

    @Padhu-you have got amazing ideas and recipes for kids meal in your blog.loved it.Thanks.

    @Jeannie- i visited your blog and found that betel leaf n shrimp (Meing Kham)recipe very unique.You have a great blog.

    @

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  30. They look so fresh and delicious
    I agree with aparna, I have not seen fresh bamboo shoots in the places I have stayed. The dishes look so tempting. I am waiting for another invitation from you so what if there is no lizard in my kitchen!

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  31. this was very interesting ...to know how bamboo shoots are used in Food...and how to preserve them!
    nice post!

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  32. Haven't tasted it yet. Seems interesting. Here, in northern kerala district of Palakkad, we eat raw the palm sapling shoot. It is not bitter but not everyone's taste

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  33. omg anna bana diya...baapre..too many sisters around..i have to runn..hehe..thanks Kavi..:)

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  34. Sikkim e thakte bamboo shoot kheyechhi kintu banabar uppai jaani na. Tomar blog pore seta jaanlam dhanyobad.

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  35. good one. u have a nice blog here maa'm :)

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  36. Happy Ganesha Chaturthi to you and your family. Hope Lord Ganesha brings happiness and peace in your life.

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  37. I never ate this.The dry ones looks delicious.

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  38. Ur new post i saw in the reader but didnt find that here??

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  39. Bamboo shoots are the first thing that comes to my mind when I think about Assam...Thank you for giving such a detailed description..looking forward to taste it.

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  40. Please, I am looking for the meing kham recipie. please will you send it to my email aummm@mac.com
    Thanks!

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  41. hi kavita ji.how ru ? i read ur post on bamboo shoots.we hail from magalore ,karnataka,and we are very much familiar to this.We use this for a variety of dishes ,the one very famous is to chop it into small pieces, (like onion mincing )and mix it with fresh soaked moon dal and make a sabzi out of it.its delicious.Some people even make pickles oout of it.

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  42. If you could e-mail me with a few suggestions on just how you made your blog look this excellent, I would be grateful.

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  43. Kavita could you please tell me where i could purchase the dry khorisa?is it available in nongpoh?
    Thanks

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  44. Kavita could you please let me know where one can purchase the dry korisa.is it available in nongpoh?Thanks.
    Sharmin

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  45. we nepalese people also eat this kind of food of bamboo shoot.

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