Slow Food in Meghalaya

Dine At Mother Earth Cafe, Khweng

We all know what fast food is - you open a bag of pre-processed food, add liquid heat, and eat. This is a story about eating food fresh from the field to the plate without any adulterations.

We ate seasonal foods straight from the field at Mother Earth Cafe.
Recently, we were invited to visit a village called Khweng, where the North East (India) Slow Food and Agro-biodiversity Society (NESFAS), located in Shillong, has been doing research.


They found new types of maize when they visited people's store rooms.
There were new types of yams, beans, and okras found in old storage baskets. Plus some newly designed beautiful baskets.
They discovered that many hill and mountain villages are a rich source of local germplasm. In the village homes, there were many types of rice, chilies, beans, maize, and millet stored. Many seeds had disappeared with the introduction of new varieties from the government, and some were damaged by heat and insects over time.
When they went to look for local millet varieties, an unexpected amount of agro-biodiversity was found. 
Rice - many different types were found stored in homes.

A wide variety of vegetables were on display for us to see.
Women were sorting through their ginger harvest.
To find markets for these village products, the NGO helped start a small processing center. The woman below has canned all types of chutney and pickles.

Then it was time to try some slow food - fresh from the fields to the plates.
The settings were also special, with all-natural materials from the water jug to the glasses and plates.


The Mother Earth Café sprouted to encourage the use of the different seed varieties that would rejuvenate the local foods.
There were 9 different dishes of “slow food” - so with a plate full of rice, beans, yams, banana flower curry, greens, raw flowers, leaves, and chutney, it was time to dig in. It was delicious - spicy, crunchy, bitter, and a totally refreshing mix of new and different foods.
Mother Earth Cafe 

The setting is ideal - near the fields where the food is harvested and directly brought to the cafe. The food changes with the seasons, and the variety is refreshing.
So, with high recommendations, please eat "slow food" and visit Mother Earth Cafe, or even better, help start one of your own.
Location: Meghalaya, India

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