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Alcoholic drinks from India

Nchiangne (Naga sprouted-rice liquor)nchiangne

Nchiangne is an alcoholic drink made from red rice in Nagaland. A 2018 review of Himalayan fermented foods lists it as similar to zutho, the rice beer of the Mao Naga. No source we can read describes nchiangne's own method or says whether it is distilled, so the steps below are those given for zutho.

Fully documentedAlcoholic drinks

Recipe

No fixed amounts recordedNo recipe or amounts are given for nchiangne itself. The zutho method in the review gives times but no weights.
Red riceThe review says nchiangne is prepared from red rice; no amount is given[khapudang2018]
Khekhrii (sprouted-rice starter), for the similar zuthoNaturally fermented, sun-dried sprouted rice grains used to make zutho; the sources do not say nchiangne uses it[anupma2020][khapudang2018]
WaterBoiling water is mixed into the pounded rice in the zutho method[khapudang2018]
Starterunknown for nchiangne; khekhrii (sprouted rice) for the similar zutho
Start
Drag the bar or press Play
shapes, not to countMouldsAspergillus nigerMucor circinelloidesPenicillium citrinum

What changes: Sprouted rice grains ferment and are sun-dried into a starter

Step 1 of 4
Sprout rice and let the grains ferment naturally, then sun-dry them into khekhrii
Time
Not documented
Temperature
Not documented
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented
Which microbes the steps name, step by step
Moulds
Aspergillus niger
Mucor circinelloides
Penicillium citrinum

Khekhrii is the starter named for zutho, the similar drink. It is made by naturally fermenting sprouted rice grains and drying them in the sun. Output: dry sprouted-rice starter granules.

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

Nchiangne is an alcoholic drink made from red rice in Nagaland. A 2018 review of Himalayan fermented foods lists it as similar to zutho, the rice beer of the Mao Naga. No source we can read describes nchiangne's own method or says whether it is distilled, so the steps below are those given for zutho. Moulds isolated from khekhrii, the starter of the similar zutho (a related product, not nchiangne), mostly Ascomycota (86 %); they included Aspergillus niger, Mucor circinelloides, Penicillium citrinum, P. oxalicum and Cladosporium parahalotolerans does most of the fermenting.

What makes this one different

The review calls nchiangne similar to zutho and says it is made from red rice. It does not give nchiangne's own method, strength or whether it is distilled.

Zutho timings in the review (a related drink, not nchiangne)
Khekhrii powder is added to the cooled rice and left about 6–8 h; the jar then ferments 3–4 days.
Khekhrii measurements (the starter of zutho, not nchiangne)
Five dry khekhrii samples from Kohima had pH 5.6 (5.5–5.9) and moisture 12.8 % (12.3–13.1).

Related ferments

Safety

Aspergillus flavus, a species that can make aflatoxins, was isolated from a sample of khekhrii, the starter of the similar zutho; no toxin tests were reported.

Hazards the sources name: Aspergillus flavus, one strain isolated from a Nagaland sample of khekhrii, the starter of the similar zutho (a species that can make aflatoxins).

History and sources

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

History
The sources we found do not record its history.
  1. [khapudang2018] Khapudang R., Sharma S., Joshi V.K. 2018, Indigenous fermented food products of Eastern and Western Himalayan region, a review, International Journal of Food Fermentation Technology 8(2):119–139paper
  2. [anupma2020] Anupma A., Tamang J.P. 2020, Diversity of filamentous fungi isolated from some amylase and alcohol-producing starters of India, Frontiers in Microbiology 11:905paper
  3. [WP:Zutho] Wikipedia, Zutho (outline only)wiki