Akhuni

Akhuni (Nagamese: আখুনি), also known as axone, is a fermented soybean product commonly used in Naga cuisine. Axone is perhaps the most commonly used fermented product of Nagaland and the North Eastern Region of India.

Etymology

The word Axone is from Sümi dialect, and is a combination of two words Axo-ne, Axo means "aroma" or "smell" and the word ne or nhe (similar word "tho") means "deep" or "strong". So it can be literally translated as "deep Smell" or "strong smell".

Consumption

It is prepared year-round from soybeans by people of all tribes, but most notably the Sümi Nagas of Nagaland. Soybeans grow at an altitude of 1,500 m and in rainy conditions, making them well suited for the Naga hills. They are also a protein-rich legume and traditionally protein-sparse diet.

Axone is prepared by rinsing picked soybeans in freshwater, and then boiling them until they are soft, but still whole. The excess water is drained and the soybeans are placed into a pot or degchi and left either out in the sun or next to the fire to let them ferment. This takes three to four days to ferment in summer and around one week in winter.

As with the majority of fermented products in Nagaland, it is considered to be ready when it “smells right”. The soybeans are then placed in a wooden pestle and mashed with a mortar. They are not mashed completely but instead crashed as you would with garlic. A handful is then scooped up and placed in the center of a banana leaf, its edges closed to make a parcel. The package is sold or stored next to the fire and can be used immediately or kept for some weeks, darkening in color each day.

Akhuni fermentation results in proteolysis giving it a distinctive umami taste. Axone is then used in a huge variety of dishes. An example of just two is fire-smoked pork and axone and nula (snails with axone).

In popular culture

A 2019 Bollywood movie titled 'Axone' directed by Nicholas Kharkongor deals with a day in life of a group of friends getting ready for a wedding and cooking Axone dish.

Similar dishes

It is quite similar to Japanese nattō, piak of Arunachal Pradesh, Nepali kinema, tungrymbai of Meghalaya, hawaijaar of Manipur and bekang um of Mizoram.

References

• https://www.fondazioneslowfood.com/en/ark-of-taste-slow-food/axone-fermented-soybeans/
• https://web.archive.org/web/20160409184146/http://nagenvis.nic.in/Database/NagaFood_933.aspx