Skip to main content
Support

Browse by category

All categories
Home

Other from Mizoram, India

Chhi-um (Mizo fermented sesame)chhi-um

Chhi-um is Mizo sesame that is pan-heated, crushed in a wooden mortar and kept in a closed container on top of the fireplace for three days, after which it is used to add taste to other food. A second Mizo sesame, chhipui, is heated and pounded with salt until oily and sticky and is eaten as a side dish without further processing.

A short entry: the sources we found record only what is said here about Chhi-um itself.

Short entryOther3 days

Recipe

No fixed amounts recordedHousehold method with no fixed amounts.
Chhibung sesame seedThe whitish of the two Mizo sesame varieties[lalthanpuii2015]

Total time across the recorded steps: 3 days

Start
Drag the bar or press Play

What changes: Sesame seeds heat in a dry pan

Step 1 of 3
Heat the sesame in a pan
Time
Not documented
Temperature
Not documented
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented

Output: toasted sesame.

Flavour
Not documented
Texture
Not documented
Colour
Not documented

Microbes at work in this step

Not documented for this step.

Method

Measured measured in a studySet fixed by a specification or tested recipeReported one source reports itTypical a general value, not sourced for this fermentUnconfirmed not yet checked against a source

At a glance

Chhi-um is Mizo sesame that is pan-heated, crushed in a wooden mortar and kept in a closed container on top of the fireplace for three days, after which it is used to add taste to other food. A second Mizo sesame, chhipui, is heated and pounded with salt until oily and sticky and is eaten as a side dish without further processing. Made in 3 steps over 3 days. The longest step, keep closed on top of the fireplace, takes 3 days (Lalthanpuii P.B 2015).

Key numbers
Main step3 daysReported[lalthanpuii2015]Keep closed on top of the fireplace

What makes this one different

Unlike chhipui, which is pounded with salt and eaten at once, chhi-um is kept closed on top of the fireplace for three days. Other Mizo ferments named "-um" (ṭam-um, bekang um, ai-um) are also kept over the fireplace for two or three days.

Related ferments

Variants

  • ChhipuiThe other Mizo sesame; heated, pounded with salt until oily and sticky, eaten as a side dish with no storage step.
  • Ai-umGround crabs mixed with sesame, closed and kept over the fireplace for about three days, then dried.

History and sources

Every number is labelled with how it is known. How this atlas is made

  1. [lalthanpuii2015] Lalthanpuii P.B., Lalruatfela B., Zoramdinthara, Lalthanzara H. 2015, Traditional food processing techniques of the Mizo people of Northeast India, Science Vision 15(1):39–45paper
  2. [wiki-mizo] English Wikipedia, Mizo cuisine (read 2026-10; lists chhi-um among fermented dishes)wiki