Food is an integral part of any culture or community. Nothing brings people together like food does. There’s staple food, gourmet food, street food but the best food of all is anything that’s a cult classic. For the Maram Nagas of Manipur, ‘Gainam’ is the cult classic food. While the term ‘Gainam’ translates to the vegetable chives or Asian chives, it is also understood as the dish prepared out of the vegetable which is known as ‘Gainam Tam’ in the vernacular.
The slender chives with its strong odour and pungent taste is popularly eaten raw, mixed thoroughly with a chilli paste. It is best prepared, served and eaten with bare hands. Additional complementary ingredients are added as per the person’s choice. While the younger people popularly prefer to add Mimi/Waiwai (pre-fried, ready-to-eat instant noodles) to their Gainam mix, the older folks prefer to have it less complicated. It is addictive right from the first morsel. Gainam tastes best on a hot, sunny afternoon with friends or family. No picnic is complete without Gainam. If one takes a walk through any Maram village, it will be a nearly impossible feat to find any family that does not grow the beloved vegetable in their garden.
Testimonial by T Jane Mary – When I moved out of home for the first time, I felt terribly homesick. I had to adjust to new place and people in a hostel. I struggled initially but my sorrows went away one day when I made Gainam Tam with my friends. It was the most delicious meal I ever had! Gainam is simply home to me.
Testimonial by T Boyna Benjamin – I love Gainam so much that sometimes I think my veins are green because Gainam just flows in my system! If you ask me to describe my ideal day, I picture having spicy Gainam Tam with coca-cola to gulp it down on a summer afternoon in Zamning Valley.
Gainam is a dish best savoured in group. From trivial gossip to light-hearted jokes, there is no conversation it cannot carry that makes a group merry. The most usual setting is a group of friends seated in a circle with the Gainam Tam in the middle. As everybody devours the spicy vegetable, it easily becomes the catalyst of interactions. Friendship is made and mended over Gainam. It is as though joy becomes doubled and sorrows halved over a session of Gainam. There’s food and then, there’s food for the soul. Gainam definitely is the latter.
