Today, I invited Khevito Elvis Lee also known as ‘The Tribal Chef’ (on Instagram) to teach me how to make my favorite Yongchak Singju. I am an ardent admirer and follower of his work – especially his food posts. He lives up to his name as ‘The Tribal Chef’ by regularly sharing a range of local dishes from Northeast India.
Khevito is also the owner of the Hornbill Restaurant in Safdarjung Enclave, Delhi, which has been serving mouth-watering local dishes to Northeastern folks there – and most importantly, introducing our region’s cuisine to non-locals in the city.
Coming back to the recipe, Yongchak Singju is a local’s favorite – especially in Nagaland and Manipur. It is made of Yongchak (monkey beans) which is a popular local ingredient, often used in making authentic Manipuri specialties like Eromba and Singju. It is a long twisting bean that is a member of the pea or beans family. Yongchak beans have an unusual smell and are crisp, soft, and tender with a rich and pungent flavor. Now, let’s learn how to make Yongjak Singju Elvis Lee’s style 🙂
Main ingredients for Yongchak Singju (left to right): Yongchak (Stink beans), king chilly, onions
Ingredients you’ll need:
- Yonchak ( stink beans )
- King chilly
- Ngari ( fermented dry fish)
- Onion
- Pea leaves
- Chakhawai ( Rice beans)
- Salt
Steps to make:
- Peel the Yonchak skin and cut it into thin stripes .
- Burn the dry fish and king chilly ( you can put the king chilly as per your spice level) then smash then both into a fine paste .
- Boil the Chakhawai for sometime until it’s little soft and then drain the water and mix it with the Yonchak and dry fish , king chilly paste .
- Cut onion into thin slices , also clean the pea leaves and add them both with the Yonchak mixture and mix them all very nicely with your hand.
- Add salt as per taste.
Your Yonchak singju is ready:) Highly recommend it! Check out more recipes by Khevito Elvis Lee.
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