Last Updated:
People cook and eat the snails found on the banks of fields and ponds with great enthusiasm. It is considered the purest meat. If this vegetable is prepared well then chicken and mutton fail in comparison to taste. The special thing is that it can be made easily at home. Read the report to know the recipe…
Madhubani: Doka (snail) found on the banks of fields and ponds in the Mithilanchal region of Bihar is considered to be the purest meat here. Which is prepared and eaten by a large number of people with gusto. The taste of Doka is almost similar to that of mutton, but the method of cooking it is slightly different. Because before eating it, its upper shell has to be removed. This special species of snail is easily found in wheat fields, during the rainy season and on the banks of ponds with low water. Since it is found only in places with soil and water and eats only soil, it is considered extremely pure. The farmers here select it and sell it in the market, where today its price ranges from ₹ 280 to ₹ 300 per kg.
Learn how to make it
To cook doka, first boil it in hot water, so that the meat (mutton) inside comes out from the shell. This meat has two parts. One is soft and the other is hard. The soft meat is eaten fried with garlic, chilli and salt, while the tougher part is used to make the main curry. To make curry, this tough meat is mixed with onion, garlic, turmeric, coriander, chilli, mustard oil and salt and marinated for 10-20 minutes. After this, oil, cumin, bay leaves and chillies are chopped and this mixture is added to the pan. It is cooked on very low flame for about an hour and is stirred occasionally with a spatula. Once cooked, it can be served with gravy or dry with rice and roti.
It is prepared and eaten with relish in Mithilanchal.
Doka or snail is eaten in almost every house of Mithilanchal. The method of extracting it is a bit laborious, but its taste is considered tastier than mutton. However, the time taken to make it is almost the same. People not only eat this mud-eating species for purity, but its upper shell is also used in worship. Its worship is considered special in the worship of Kul Devi and in festivals like Madhushravani. This species can remain alive in the soil for a month, which is considered a proof of its purity.
