Cuisine

Staple food of local people - rice and vegetables
Traditional Oriya meal - generally spicy with a lot of vegetables
Special delicacies include fish, prawn and crab in non-veg and dalma (a mix of vegetables and pulses) and sag (leaf vegetables)
Typical sweetmeats include Chhenapoda, Chhenajhilli, Rasabali (all made of milk) and Pitha (cakes)
'Mahaprasad', the food of the Gods cooked by unique steaming process is available at temples.
Green coconut water, a refreshing natural drink, is widely available.
Indian, Chinese and Continental food available in Hotels & Restaurants.

Rice, both sun dried and par-boiled, is the staple food of the people of Orissa. However, in the urban areas, there is a shift in the eating patterns and people are turning towards chapati (wheat bread), as an alternative to rice. The sun-dried rice is usually cooked at the festive occasions. Oriya people also like to consume pakhal, which is basically cooked rice soaked in water, overnight. Typical desserts consist of Chhenapoda, Rasabali (milk preparation), Chhenajhilli and Pitha (cakes).

Majority of the people of Orissa, a coastal state in India, are non-vegetarian and fish forms an integral part of their traditional cuisine. A distinctive cooking style is followed in the preparation of the dishes. Mouthwatering curries are cooked using different vegetables. Main course consists of rice or chapatti, along with dal, bhaji, bharta (mixed vegetable curry), ambila/sakara (sweet and sour preparation) and dessert. All these eatables are placed on a plate, made from bell metal.

Rice, Breads and Lentils

• Channa Dali (Gram curry)
• Dalma (Mixed lentils)
• Khechedi (Rice and lentils with vegetables)
• Luchi (Deep fried bread)
• Mitha Bhata (Sweetened rice)
• Moong Dali (Mung bean dal, cooked with coconuts)
• Parata (Shallow-fried wheat bread)
• Polao (Cooked Rice)
• Puri (Deep fried whole wheat flour bread)
• Pakhala (Fermented rice)

Main Course Dishes

• Alu Bhaja (Fried potato slices)
• Alu Dum (Potato curry)
• Alu Mattar (Potato and pea curry)
• Alu Phoolghobi Bhaja (Sautéed potato and cauliflower)
• Alu Potala Rasa (Potato and gourd curry)
• Besara (Stir-fried vegetables)
• Charchari (Sauteed mixed vegetables and shrimp)
• Chungdi Malai (Prawn cooked in coconut milk)
• Crab Kalia (Crab curry)
• Dahi Baingana (Deep fried brinjal curry)
• Dahi Maachha (Fried fish)
• Ghanto/Ghanta (Sautéed mixed vegetable)
• Kankara Jhola (Crab meat and potato curry)
• Maachha Jhola (Fish curry)
• Soriso Maacha (Pan fried fish)
• Saaga (Fried green leafy vegetables)
• Santula (Steamed vegetables)

Desserts and Snacks

• Chhena Gaja (Deep fried ricotta cheese soaked in sugar syrup)
• Chhenna Poda (Baked ricotta cheese cake)
• Kalakand (Condensed milk sweet)
• Khaja (Fried dough sprinkled with sugar syrup)
• Kheeri (Rice cooked in condensed milk)
• Malpua (Banana pancake)
• Pitha (Coconut and jaggery sweet)
• Rasmalai (Cottage cheese balls in thickened, sweet milk)
• Rasabali (Ricotta cheese balls soaked in sweetened condensed milk)
• Rasagolla (Cottage cheese balls in sugar syrup)