'Elections are crucial but food is essential': Kiran Rijiju digs into 19-course Manipuri thali

Sharing the details of his meal, Union Minister Kiran Rijiju tweeted, " When in Manipur eat Traditional Manipuri Thali - served on banana leaves."

Political leaders usually have a lot of their plates ahead of polls. This seems to be especially true for Union Law Minister Kiran Rijiju who has been campaigning in poll-bound Manipur.

In a recent tweet, the BJP leader shared what's on his plate (quite literally) and revealed a sumptuous Manipuri spread served on banana leaves.

"Elections are crucial but food is essential. When in Manipur eat Traditional Manipuri Thali - served on banana leaves," tweeted Kiran Rijiju.

Elections are crucial but food is essential. When in Manipur eat Traditional Manipuri Thali - served on banana leaves. Side dishes include a variety of ooty, boiled vegetables, pickles, mustard paste and iromba (fermented fish, potatoes, shrimps, mushrooms, red chillies etc). pic.twitter.com/8vfZFDTmoz

— Kiren Rijiju (@KirenRijiju) February 13, 2022

The video seems to be taken at one of the hotels the Minister stayed at during his campaign and it features one of the hotel staff explaining the dishes to him. The nearly 19-course meal comprised vegetable, fish and chicken dishes with desserts made from black Manipuri rice (chakhao) and cooked pineapple.

After the presentation, Rijiju thanked the staff and said, "Thank you, I will not eat the fish and the meat but I will eat all other items. Manipuri black rice is very popular. The fruit-based sweet dishes are very good."

According to a report in News18, typical Manipuri meal consists of the following dishes: steamed rice (which is the staple) is accompanied by kangsoi (a vegetable stew with ngari), ooti (a thick curry made of green/yellow peas, chives and beans), nga atioba thongba (a curry made of fish), kanghou (stir-fried vegetables), eromba (a mash of boiled vegetables, ngari and chilli), singju (a salad made of seasonal vegetables) and morok metpa (a paste of roasted chilies, ngari and garlic). An exotic dessert called chakhao (a pudding made of black rice) completes the meal.