Meghalaya Mylliem Rice Beer Kyiad Garo

Method

1. 1

   Cook the rice: Wash 2 cups raw rice. Cook with 3 cups water until fully done — soft, individual grains, not sticky. Spread on a clean flat surface and cool to room temperature. The rice must be fully cooled before adding yeast.

2. 2

   Add yeast: Sprinkle dry yeast evenly over the cooled cooked rice. Toss gently with clean hands to distribute the yeast through every grain.

3. 3

   Pack into a fermentation container: Transfer the yeast-mixed rice into a clean, dry, wide-mouthed container with a lid. Pack loosely.

4. 4

   Ferment 2 to 3 days: Cover loosely with a cloth. Leave at room temperature for 2 to 3 days. The rice will smell pleasantly sour and yeasty, and may appear slightly moist from fermentation moisture.

5. 5

   Add cold water: After 2 to 3 days of primary fermentation, add 4 to 6 cups clean cold water to the fermented rice. The amount of water determines the strength — more water makes a lighter drink.

6. 6

   Stir and leave 4 more hours: Stir the water and fermented rice gently. Cover. Leave for 4 more hours at room temperature.

7. 7

   Strain: Pour the mixture through a clean cloth strainer. Press the rice mass firmly to extract all liquid. The strained liquid is the kyiad.

8. 8

   Taste: The kyiad should be mildly sour, slightly sweet, lightly fizzy and faintly alcoholic. If too thin, the fermentation was short — leave longer next time. If too sour, the fermentation was too long.

9. 9

   Chill: Refrigerate for 1 hour before serving.

10. 10

    Serve cold: Pour into cups and serve cold. Kyiad is best consumed within 2 days of straining as it continues to ferment and sour further.

11. 11

    Note: Kyiad is the Khasi rice beer and a similar preparation (chi) is made by the Garo community. Both are prepared for the major tribal festivals of Meghalaya — Ka Shad Suk Mynsiem (Khasi spring dance festival), Wangala (Garo harvest festival) and other community celebrations. The fermented rice beer is offered to guests as a gesture of hospitality and shared communally in bamboo cups. The local starter cultures used in traditional kyiad contain wild microorganisms that produce a more complex flavour than dry yeast approximations.