Abstract
Exploration of ethnic traditional food recipes has an immense contribution to the preservation and sustainability of traditional food habits and culture. The main objective of this study was to explore and document traditional food recipes prepared from wild edible vegetables among two ethnic groups of Mizoram, Northeast India. The method employed for this study was mainly based on a household survey; randomly selected 35 households in Aizawl district representing the major ethnic groups, namely Hmar and Paihte. Information was collected on different types of wild edible vegetables ethnic food, as prepared and consumed by the local people. Twenty-four types of traditional food recipes were documented according to their seasonal availability, and the affinities of choices in food consumption are comparable among the two ethnic groups. It was also reported that wild edible vegetables play a significant role in safeguarding food security and improve nutrition in diets. The present work documents the wild edible vegetables used traditionally by two ethnic groups of Mizoram for various recipes and highlights the necessity of conserving such traditional knowledge besides throwing light on their economic potential. The study suggests that future investigation be carried out to evaluate the nutritional and bioactive properties of wild edible vegetables.
Highlights
Knowledge of traditional foods from the wild and their preparations have been transferred verbally among the indigenous people [1]
Study area and sites Mizoram is the fifth smallest state in India having an area of 21,087 km2, the Tropic of Cancer runs through the state closely at its middle
During the field survey, twenty-four (24) types of traditional food recipes consumed by two ethnic groups of Aizawl district, Mizoram were documented according to their seasonal availability
Summary
Knowledge of traditional foods from the wild and their preparations have been transferred verbally among the indigenous people [1]. Wild edible vegetables (WEVs) define plant resources that are harvested directly from the wild for the benefit of human consumption [2, 3]. Wild edible plants provide food in times of food shortages and in normal times. These wild foods add unique tastes, providing important essential biochemicals, which help in maintaining the proper functioning of the human body [4, 5]. Around one billion people use WEVs daily as a source of food [6].
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