Oil take it: Cooking with hair oil is a norm in India

 

It’s funny what happens when I have a warm glass of tea in my hand. Suddenly the mind goes into reflective gear. My eyes get narrow as I sit, looking thoughtfully, with a still and focussed gaze. Here was a scene that I had witnessed several times in different settings. 

 

Before me sat a mother oiling her daughter’s tresses. I watched carefully as she dripped a small palmful of oil on to her daughter’s head and slowly massaged it into her scalp. She repeated this twice. With the idea of getting some good country tips, I walked up to her and asked her what oil was she using. She held up her hand for me to smell.

 

A sharp note hit my senses and spelt MUSTARD in capital letters. My head reeled, I thanked her, quaffed my last sip of tea and walked back to the car. Through the rest of the trip, mustard oil contributed a lot to my gastronomic experience of the Northeast as well.

 

Interestingly, in a recent conversation, some friends from the Northeast commented on how they found it strange that some South Indians cooked in coconut oil. “How can you cook in hair oil” was the refrain. The conversation got heated when I added my two penny worth of Northeastern trivia. So much so that the soft canapes we held in our hands turned crisp. Fried in this verbal fryer! By the time the crisp canapes were over, we agreed that in most regions the indigenous oils played equal roles in cuisine and hair care. 

 

Bengal and other Northeasterners eat and massage mustard oil into their scalps as do Punjabis and most North Indians. Keralites, Goans and other coastal regions use coconut oil in a similar fashion. For Central India peanut oil does the trick. And, I wasn’t one bit surprised when I was asked in an Italian spa if I’d like an olive oil massage!