Maach — fish curry — opens the proverb that defines the region’s plate: “Maachh, paan, makhaan — e teen ta aichh Mithila ke jaan” (“fish, betel and fox-nut: these three are the soul of Mithila”). In a land laced with ponds and rivers, freshwater fish such as rohu and catla are everyday food, and famously so even for Maithil Brahmins — an exception to the usual Indian rule, the fish being an emblem of the Darbhanga Raj and a sign of prosperity.
The classic preparation is jhor: pieces of fish fried first in mustard oil, then simmered in a thin gravy sharp with ground mustard, turmeric and green chilli, eaten with rice as maachh-bhaat. No auspicious feast — a wedding, a homecoming — is quite complete without it, and a whole fish is itself counted among the most auspicious of gifts.