Abstract
This research examines rare and unexplored traditional waste food processing and fermentation methods. Processed waste foods as well as fermented foods represent an important segment of the most commonly consumed foodstuffs and the nutrient suppliers of the living populations across the world. Soibum, hawaijar, ngari, hentak, and yongchak are some of the most commonly consumed processed waste foods and fermented foods among the natives of Manipur. To our knowledge, no proper compilation of traditional methods of waste food processing and the fermentation processes of the meitei-pangal community of Manipur has been carried out yet. In this study, the traditional methods of processing waste foods and fermentation steps of foodstuffs commonly consumed by the Meitei pangal community of Manipur are surveyed and recorded for the first time. The results of the study reveal that six unique and diverse categories and ways of processing waste foods and the fermentation of food products locally known as Yongchak, chakring, ngari, hentak, soibum, and hawaijar were practiced by every family of the meitei-pangal community of Manipur using local stinky beans (Parkia sp.), cooked rice-based products, local fish (Puntius sp.), bamboo shoots (Bambusa sp.), and soybean products. The study will offer a new understanding of the waste food processing and fermentation processes of some of the most commonly consumed foodstuffs by the natives of the northeastern states of India, with numerous health advantages for prospective future drug discoveries and nutraceutical applications.