Doh Khleh: Pork Salad from Meghalaya

Doh Khleh is a Khasi pork recipe. It is one of the easiest pork recipes from the North Eastern part of India, and it needs literally four ingredients, give or take a couple. I kid you not, because I have seen people mix only three or four ingredients together and call it a day. My version of Doh Khleh, this wonderful Minced Pork Salad dish, contains a few extra ingredients, but the result turned out to be so good that I realised I would be making it this way again and again. And I did.

Doh Khleh Pork Salad
Doh Khleh Pork Salad

The Doh Khleh recipe I used is a combination of two distinct recipes I painstakingly obtained from friends living in Shillong – I have to admit, there are several slightly contradictory theories about the matter, as well as ways to make it, and I took the help of Saurav Gupta, owner of The Whole Hog – Deli and Charcuterie, who answered my queries after he had written a Facebook post about the difference between Doh Khleh, Doh Khlieh, and Wahan Mosdeng (Tripuri pork bharta). Since most of you guys aren’t members of that group, I will put the gist of the matter here, after editing and paraphrasing him slightly:

Saurav Gupta’s Statement on the Difference between Khasi Pork Salad ‘ Doh Khlieh / Doh Khleh ‘ & Tripuri Pork Bharta ‘ Wakbahan Mosedeng ‘

  1. In Khasi ‘ Doh Khlieh ‘, the meat MUST come from the Pig’s Head, including all it’s parts, like ears, tongue, brain, etc., & pig brain is the MAIN ingredient for it’s preparation ‘. In ‘Doh Khleh’, the meat comes from the Pig’s Neck and also parts of Pig’s Head, including it’s brain, is also used.
  2. While preparing Doh Khleh, the ratio of Onion to Meat is about 1:2, but in Doh Khlieh the proportion of Onion is much less. The reason is, in Doh Khlieh, since only pork head is used, the ‘meat’ quantity is less, while in Doh Khleh, meat from the pork’s neck is also mixed with the pork head, thereby increasing the ‘meat’ quantity. So, the quantity of onion is more in Doh Khleh, when compared to Doh Khlieh.
  3. The preparation of ‘Doh Khleh/Khlieh’ varies from household to household in Meghalaya. Many non-tribal inhabitants of Meghalaya do not prefer pig’s head as food. So, when they visit a Khasi house, usually, meat from other parts of a pig is also mixed with head, thereby, increasing the’ meat’ content, and so, increasing the ratio of Onions. Moreover, it is said that non-tribal people often prefer the taste of onion much more than a Khasi/Garo person. (However, this is Mr. Gupta’s personal opinion. I have spoken to some Garo friends of mine, and they LOVE onions. In fact, the recipe here has been taken from one of them).
  4. Onion, coriander, mustard oil and other spices used to be alien concepts in North-East cuisine previously, but, they have gradually become a part. So, though the basic ingredients of Doh Khleh/Khlieh remain the Pork Meat (including Brain), ginger, and chilli, other ingredients, like onion, mustard oil, coriander, and other spices, are optional, but are often added in present day.
  5. In Tripuri ‘Wakbahan Mosedeng‘ or ‘Pork Bharta’, onion is generously used as meats from all parts of a pig ( especially from the Belly ) is used. Moreover, in Tripura, unlike other parts of the North East, the use of onion, coriander or mustard oil and other spices are prevalent in households for many years, due to the close and strong influence of Bengali cuisine, and they are used generously, both by the tribal as well as non-tribal ( Bengali ) population.
Indian minced pork salad
Indian minced pork salad
Now, you may ask me: WHY ARE YOU SO OBSESSED WITH DOH KHLEH?
The thing is, the recipe is literally one of the easiest to make, but its the little things that makes it unique. I used a combination of jowl meat, fat and tongue to make my version of Doh Khleh, and this turned out to be one of the nicest things to be eaten with hot rice.
Doh Khleh Salad ingredients
Doh Khleh Salad ingredients

How to make Doh Khleh, the Minced Pork Salad

Boil 200 gm. pork jowl, brain, and other bits of meat till soft. Use smoked roasted meat if you want, because that adds some serious flavour. However, boiled meat is fine too. In fact, in many Meghalayan household, they completely skip the brain and jowl and use pork belly instead, because its easier to portion (when buying pork from the market, they would buy 3-4 kilos or more at a time and then divide it into parts, which would then go into different dishes). Once the meat is soft, take it off the pan and chop finely. Make sure some fat and skin is chopped too, because it adds to the taste of the dish. In a bowl, take 1 tablespoon chopped garlic, 60 gm. finely chopped onions, 1 teaspoon chopped green chillies (or to your taste – this was the most heat my father can tolerate), and coriander leaves, chopped, to taste. Mix all this with the pork, and then add salt to taste. Some people also add a squeeze of lime juice or a few drops of chilli pickle oil or mustard oil to boost the flavours. Serve on its own, or with hot rice. Doh Khleh seriously tastes better if you let it marinate for 30-40 minutes before eating.

Doh Khleh Khasi Recipe
Doh Khleh Khasi Recipe

Check out my IGTV Video of the recipe. It literally takes 1 minute to mix everything and 5 minutes to assemble it.

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21 Responses

  1. I have been to Meghalaya but I had no idea about this Pork Salad, guess I’ll have to make one more trip to North East in near future.

  2. Reading all through the ingredieants seems likes theres a lot of flavor on this simple dish.

  3. This sounds like an easy and quick dish to make for the days when you don’t really feel like cooking a big meal. Thanks for sharing this!

  4. I know what I’m having for dinner tonight! What yummy ingredients and easy recipe!

  5. It sounds delicious! I’m allergic to pork though, maybe it could be made with chicken?

    1. You can make it chicken easily. Use chicken thigh meat bits to make this – it tastes great with a squeeze of lime and a crack of pepper.

  6. Dear Poorna,

    I just finished making this dish and I putting it in the fridge to cool down. I boiled fresh pork butt (1.5kg), sliced it to bite size pieces. For color, I added red Thai chilies. Salt and pepper as well as a tablespoon of Chinese Hot red oil.

    The taste was good, but I left it in the fridge to chill so we can have it later.

    Thank you for another wonderful recipe.

    1. I think your version will taste fabulous! Try adding a bit of lemon juice in the end if you like tangy food.

      1. We had this dish as a starter for our Sunday night dinner. Indeed lemon juice was added. I squeezed lemon juice into a bowl and each member of my family poured lemon juice to their licking. I did not want the lemon juice to overtake the pork, instead add the tangy flavor. The dish was liked by every member, young and elder. Certainly a keeper. Again, THANK YOU.

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About Me

Hi, I’m Panushwari

Welcome to my blog which is mostly about Food, Travel, Lifestyle and Beauty. I generally review restaurants and hotels in Kolkata and my work as a Restaurant Consultant and Food Critic in Kolkata allows me to maintain this blog as a showcase of my work. I am also a published author and have been a panelist at many events.

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