Boka Saul - Magic Rice from Assam
‘The rice that needs no cooking’: magic rice variety from Assam gets GI tag
This food grain (whose name translates to ‘rice that is soft’) has gained a reputation as a “magic” rice as it need not be cooked the conventional way.
All one needs to do is soak the grains in some warm water for about 30 minutes (or in cold water for one hour) and it’s done!
Boka saul (oryza sativa) is a paddy variety grown in parts of lower Assam. Back in the 17th century, it was the fuel for the Ahom soldiers fighting the Mughal army. Today, it’s fuel for the hundreds of farmers who toil in the fields of Assam every day, for whom it’s become a staple. The urban populace hasn’t really caught on yet. “But they should. Boka saul requires zero fuel. The rice does not need to be cooked!” says Hemanta Baishya, founder-Member of Lotus Progressive Centre, one of the two organizations who applied for the patent in 2016. “Just soak the rice in (cold) water for one hour, and it swells up like a charm. Mix it with curd, jaggery, and banana, and it’s ready to eat. It will sort you for the whole day,” says Baishya, adding that the higher grade Boka saul swells up in fifteen minutes flat.
While the “zero-fuel requirement” rates high on its unique quotient, Boka saul is highly nutritious. It has 10.73 percent fiber content and 6.8 percent protein, according to a study by the Guwahati University’s Biotechnology department. “It also cools down the body and is ‘default organic’. Even if you aid it with chemical fertilizers, it just will not respond — the crop will collapse!” says Baishya. Over the last four years, the scientific tests and analyses for Boka saul was done in consultation with Assam Agricultural University, Indian Council of Agricultural Research, Assam Science Technology and Environment Council and Guwahati University’s Biotechnology Department. According to Kalita, the rice can work well as a “disaster management” food as well as a supplement for soldiers in high-altitude frontier areas. “During floods, this is a great ‘emergency food’ for obvious reasons.
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