Puri, famously renowned as one of the Char Dharmas of Hindu religion, offers much to a traveller: spiritual upliftment as well as tasty food to keep one’s spirits high. Puri is situated on the Bay of Bengal, having a pleasant atmosphere all around the year, such that across Puri Beach a lot of restaurants promise to provide some mouth-watering cuisines. Puri offers diverse cuisines to all kinds of travellers: vegetarian, non-vegetarian, seafood-lovers, local food tryouts and still some more. Some of the most delicious food in Puri are:
Abadha
An Abadha Thali is served at the Puri Temple which comprises of all the dishes from the Mahaprashad that is served to Lord Jagannath at the Temple. The thali is priced between INR 100 – 120 and includes most varieties of local cuisine of Puri. One needs to go and have the Abadha that is served at the Temple as well as in Anand Bazaar to experience the local food in Puri at its best.
Best Place to Eat Abadha: Jagannath Temple (Anand Bazaar)
Nirmalya
Besides Sankudi and Sukhila mahaprasad another type of dry mahaprasad is Nirmalya. This is also known as Kaibalya. In spiritual recognition Nirmalya is equally important as Mahaprasad. There is a belief among Hindus that if Nirmalya is given to a person on his death bed, he is certain to find a place for himself in the heaven after his death following atonement of all his sins. Nirmalya is commonly understood as dry-rice i.e. rice dried up in hot sun in Kaibalya Baikuntha.
As laid down in the Skanda Purana things like flowers, sandal paste, garlands, etc. which are treated with reverence on the Lord including the other divine deities seated on Ratnasinmhasan (throne) in the temple are also known as Nirmalya after they are taken out from the deities. It is thus established that any of the divine accompaniments or components that is taken out of the Lord and his divine associates is known as Nirmalya.
Khaja
Khajjaka, plain or sweet mentioned in Manasollasa, was a wheat flour preparation fried in ghee. Khaja is believed to have originated from the eastern parts of the former state of Oudh and the former United Provinces of Agra and Oudh.
This area presently corresponds to eastern districts of Uttar Pradesh and Western districts of Bihar. and is also popular in the neighboring states of West Bengal and Odisha as well as regions like Kutch and Andhra Pradesh. Refined wheat flour with sugar is made into layered dough, with or without dry fruit or other stuffing, and lightly fried in oil to make khaja. It is one of the very famous sweets of Odisha and is related to emotions of all Odia people. It is also offered as an offering in the Jagannath Temple, Puri.
Popularity and Cultural Significance:
Being one of the offerings to Lord Jagannath, Khaja plays a special role in the cultural identity of Puri. Apart from its rich taste, this sweet has high cultural value as a symbol of loyalty and primeval culture.
Dalma
City-special, Dalma became so popular Dr A.P.J. Abdul Kalam added it to the President’s food menu. Dalma, cooked as a mix of lentils and vegetables, tastes surprisingly good. There is a restaurant in Puri named after this famous dish itself, Dalma, located on VIP Road that promises to serve all travellers with what it knows best: local Odia cuisine. One must visit this restaurant to try out the authentic food in Puri.
Khechedi
Twist in the Indian Khichdi, Khicede is a famous Odia dish served at the Puri Temple as a part of the maha bhog made to Lord Jagannath. This dish is prepared from a mix of rice and lentils cooked in pure ghee, such that it is equal parts delicious and healthy. To add flavour to the food, coconut, sugar, and cinnamon, are added to this food in Puri. This dish is served alongside papad and curd to complete a meal for a person.
Ukhuda
Lia (fried paddy) is a prepared food from rice mainly consumed in the region of Odisha, India. The other varieties are Khai (fried paddy) and Ukhuda (fried paddy sweetened by jaggery). It is a form of puffed rice (Rice puffs while roasting it with heated sand) which is added with jaggery syrup. “Kora khai”, a derived food from “khai” is offered to Lingaraja in Lingaraja temple, Bhubaneswar.
Rasabali
Rasābali is a sweet dish from Odisha, India. Rasabali is offered to Baladevjew, and originated in the Baladevjew Temple of Kendrapara. It is one of the Chapana bhoga of Jagannath temple.
It consists of deep fried flattened reddish brown patties of chhena (farmer cheese) that are soaked in thickened, sweetened milk (rabri). Flattening the chhena into palm-sized patties is done in order to allow them to absorb the milk more readily. The thickened milk is also usually lightly seasoned with crushed cardamoms.
Chenna Poda
Chhena poda is a cheese dessert from the Indian state of Odisha. Chhena poda literally means Roasted Cheese in Odia. It is made of well-kneaded homemade fresh cheese chhena, sugar is baked for several hours until it browns. Chhena poda is the only well known Indian dessert whose flavor is predominantly derived from the caramelization of sugar.
Chhena poda is usually made at home during traditional festivals in Odisha, such as Durga Puja. It is also served in small traditional roadside stalls and confectioneries throughout the state along with other delicacies such as rasagolla. Since the mid-1980s, it has gradually found its place in restaurant menus across Odisha. Odisha Milk Federation is investing heavily in mass-producing and popularizing this delicacy, determined not to let this happen again.
Popular Places to Taste It:
The famous Chhena Poda which is a dessert made from cottage cheese and sugar is available from sweet shops in the city of Puri. For those who may wish to try this delicious dish, some ideal places include the food markets close to the Jagannath Temple.
Rabidi
Rabidi is a sweet, condensed-milk-based dish, originating from the Indian subcontinent, made by boiling the milk on low heat for a long time until it becomes dense and changes its color to off-white or pale yellow. Sugar, spices and nuts are added to it to give it flavor. It is chilled and served as dessert. Rabri is the main ingredient in several desserts, such as rasabali, chhena kheeri, and khira sagara. Hathras is famous for Rabri and other sweets prepared from ghee. A similar dish goes by the name Basundi.
Traditional Indian ice cream kulfi served with sweet rabri and rose petal jam gulkand. A fusion food derived from the traditional Rabdi from Indian cuisine addressed as Suvarna Rabdi. Use pumpkin to give it a gold-like or Suvarna shade and garnish with vanilla seeds.
Macha Chenncheda
Another seafood dish, Macha Chenncheda, is famous across the town of Puri because of its aromatic deliciousness that calls to travellers all around the globe. This food in Puri is cooked with fish, vegetables, chana dal and bananas. Nobody could ever think to bring these ingredients together in a single dish, but this Odia dish has done so and oh, how tastefully even. This dish is best served with rice on the side but can also be enjoyed with rotis.
Sea Food
Puri because of its aromatic deliciousness that calls to travellers all around the globe. This food in Puri is cooked with fish, vegetables, chana dal and bananas. Nobody could ever think to bring these ingredients together in a single dish, but this Odia dish has done so and oh, how tastefully even. This dish is best served with rice on the side but can also be enjoyed with rotis.
Seafood is any form of sea life regarded as food by humans, prominently including fish and shellfish. Shellfish include various species of molluscs (e.g. bivalve molluscs such as clams, oysters, and mussels and cephalopods such as octopus and squid), crustaceans (e.g. shrimp, crabs, and lobster), and echinoderms (e.g. sea urchins).
Marine mammals such as cetaceans (whales and dolphins) as well as seals have been eaten as food, though that happens to a lesser extent in modern times. Edible sea plants such as some seaweeds and microalgae are widely eaten as sea vegetables around the world, especially in Asia. In North America, although not generally in the United Kingdom, the term “seafood” is extended to fresh water organisms eaten by humans, so all edible aquatic life may be referred to as “seafood”. For the sake of completeness, this article is inclusive of all edible aquatic life.
Chungdi Malai
Puri’s location on the Bay of Bengal makes it an ideal place for any seafood dish. Chungdi Malai, a delicious prawn dish that has a creamier texture because of the use of coconut milk during its cooking. Spices are then added to this smoother texture to make it a lip-smacking favourite food in Puri. This unique dish is then served with basmati rice, which makes for a satisfying and full-filing meal for one.
Preparation: The hard shells of the prawns are removed and marinated. The prawns are then fried in hot oil along with onion, ginger, garlic, and stirred with turmeric and sugar and salt and coconut milk for a few minutes.
Pakhala Bhata: Fermented Rice Dish
Pakhala Bhata is a traditional Oriya dish that is mostly taken in the hot season, especially during the summer season in Puri. This is a dish prepared from fermented rice and it has become more popular among the locals because when taken, it cools the system.
Ingredients and Variations:
Its main ingredients are rice that has been cooked ready-to-food, water and a pinch of salt. The rice is first rinsed in water and then left to soak the whole night in order to ferment. This Pakhala Bhata recipe also provides choices like adding yogurt, spicy green peppers, sautéed veggies, curd to increase the flavor.
Cultural Significance and When It’s Typically Eaten:
Pakhala bhata is the dish consumed during lunch generally on the hot summer days. The main components of it include rice and yogurt. This is because they find it as an ideal place of reprieve from the hot sun and heat. Further, Pakhala Bhata has a relatively high relevance to Odisha as it is served and associated with the festivity called “Pakhala Dibasa” which is an awareness celebration of this traditional meal.
Unique Beverages
Bela Pana: Wood Apple Drink
Bela Pana is a refreshing drink produced from the wood apple fruit that grows naturally in the region. It is much required or demanded especially during the occasion of Pana Sankranti which is the Odia New Year celebration.
Ingredients and Preparation:
Bela Pana is a cool beverage made from wood apple pulp mixed with water, jaggery, black pepper and cardamom. When the mixture is prepared, it is filtered then consumed as a cold beverage. It can best be described as a gratifying drink that helps to cool you down during the hot summer months.
Cultural Significance:Bela Pana drink is more than just a beverage; it is a symbol of prosperity and good health, often prepared as an offering to the gods during Pana Sankranti.
Palm Toddy: Local Alcoholic Beverage
Neera or Palm Toddy is a popular alcoholic beverage that has been produced from the extracted sap from a palm tree. Due to these factors such as the gentle stimulating effect and the unique sweet and sour flavor profile, it has turned into a favorite drink of many.
Description and Where to Find:
Palm Toddy Puri is a fermented drink produced from the flower spathes of palm trees and is most palatable when freshly prepared. It is very popular amongst many people, especially in the rural settings, and is usually available in most of the toddy shops or bought from the coastal vendors in Puri.
