When it comes to food, rice has been a favourite item to eat for most of the people. Easy availability, easily cooked etc are some of the reason that people prefer to eat rice. In India, it is a go to food item for many bachelor's. There are so many recipes that could be made out of it. From biryani to yellow rice to our favourite "Daal bhat chokha" (lentils + rice + messed potato). This one has been a major combo items for many indian household. But at many parts of the remote areas, this combo took a differrnt form, and lentils (daal) is replaced by the starch that rice produces. The new combo is known by the name Maar Bhat chokha
Maar bhaat, is a starchy rice gruel that is made up of raw rice which is cooked without discarding the starch, making it mushy. When we cook.rice we generslly tend to remove the fluid that fluid is known as maar or mand. Or we can say a simple boiled rice for eating. This type of food is very popular in villages especially during summer time. It does not require much of the effort and simply made by boiling rife and potato together. Earlier, I do not like to it, but gradually develop a taste for it. It is a heslthy food for summer.
Maad, the starchy fluid drained out of the pan during an intermediate stage of cooking rice, is used as a substitute to daal.
The presence of water makes it very mushy. To add differrnt taste, we could est it with pickles, curd, added salt, and messed ptato, and chopped raw onion. This is pure village food, that many farmers like to enjoy in summer. It is easy to cook, as we can boil both rice and potato together. Rest of the items were readily available at home. So to avoid much effort in cooking spicy food, this one cooked much earlier than other food items.
As I was travelling this weekend, on of my cousin who is living alone cooked this food for me. Reaching his house in middle of afternoon in the scorching heat of 42°C, this is what we had in lunch. This food is much healthier than other food items. The presence of rice water is what makes it too healthy.
Rice water can provide energy to stay active throughout the day.
Rice water help in improving digestion, relieve constipation, and prevent several ailments.
Rice water contains vitamins and minerals, iron, zinc, and magnesium, which helps in strengthening the body immune system.
I remember in earlier times, these rice water is used to starch clothes. Even I have seen many people like to drink the rice water by adding pinch of salt. It has several advantages and finding this starch mushy rice, I simply started enjoying it.
A simple boiled rice is taste less, this is what made to add differrent option to enjoy this food item. While many like to have it with raw onion and salt, the meshed potato is a blessing in disguise. I enjoyed it completelly.