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Easy Orissa Recipes

1. Dahi Nadia Take a cup of yogurt. Mix in half a handful of grated coconut, a chopped green chili, two pinches of salt and a small bit of chopped ginger. Heat a spoon of oil. Add two pinches of punch phutana ( see sidebar) and fry. Add a pinch of curry leaves. Add to yogurt. Eat mixed with cooked rice.

Orissa: 2600 years ago, Kalinga, as Orissa was then known, was a much feared regional power. It controlled the trade routes in the Bay of Bengal, colonizing parts of Southeast Asia, Cambodia, Java, Sumatra, Bali, Vietnam and Thailand. The mighty Kalinga was conquered in 300 BC by Nanda from neighbouring Maghada (Bihar). After the overthrow of Nandas by Chandragupta Maurya, Kalinga declares independence. Even after Chandragupta creates the largest empire India has seen, his tiny neighbor Kalinga remains unconquered for two generations. Chandra Gupta’s grandson Ashoka wages a bloody war and re-conquers Kalinga at a great cost (sickened by the slaughter, he renounces war forever). A century later, Kalinga rises again under the Jain king Kharavela to conquer almost half of India. Various Hindu dynasties rule Orissa for the next 1500 years. Of these, Yayati 795 AD, who built the Puri temple was the most notable. In 1568, Orissa falls to Moghuls, whose rule lasts 200 years. Marathas rule for 70 years and British for the next 150 years (under whom almost a million starve to death due to gross mismanagement during the 1865 famine). This proud nation, the Sparta of India, feared for almost 1500 years, was decimated in the last 500 years. It is now among the less developed states of India, with many of its people, unaware of their proud warrior heritage, earn a pittance as manual labourers in Indian metros.

Oriya Cuisine :.
It is a little known fact that the Oriya cuisine among the richest cuisines of India.
The east Indian cuisine ( of Bihar, Bengal and Orissa) is characterized by the following :
Staple: Both Rice & flatbreads are consumed.
Meats: Like all coastal regions, fish and other seafood (crab, shrimp) are popular. Chicken and mutton are also favourites.
Typical breakfast : Bread (Luchi, poori, paratha, curry, porridge (rice flakes, suji, sago porridges)
Lunch & Dinner : Rice, Lentils, veggies, meat
Oil : Mustard oil is preferred
Unique Bases: Mustard & poppy seed pastes.
Spices: All Indian spices ( except asafetida) are used. Panch phutana is widely used for flavouring vegetable curries.
Souring agent : Ambula (Dried mangoes is chiefly used in Orissa) & Amchoor are preferred.
Badis : Sun dried spiced lentil paste is fried and used in Oriya cuisine.

Panch Phutana : A 5 spice mix common in east India consisting of 4 measures each of cumin, mustard & fennel mixed with a measure each of fenugreek and kalonji (nigella / onion seeds).

Shopping List:
Yogurt- 1 cup (200 ml),
Grated Coconut, Badi - 1 handful
Green chilies, Potato, Okra, Eggplant, Tomato,
Onion, Spinach - 250 gms
Salt, sugar, mustard, ginger garlic paste, cumin powder, turmeric powder, chili powder , ginger,
coriander leaves, 50 gms each Maida, gram flour, rava - 100 gms each Mung dal, Rice - 500 gms each

Courtesy: www.ramkicooks.blogspot.com

2. Badi Chura (Chura – powder) Microwave half a handful of badi. ( Or deep fry) Crush / blend to a powder. ( Optionally mix in a crushed garlic clove, a chopped green chili and onion). Mix in salt as needed. Fried & ground prawns can also be mixed in. Eat mixed with cooked rice / use as a garnish for curries

3. Aloo Chakata (Chakata : Mashed curries).Take a handful of boiled potatoes. Mix in a pinch of chopped ginger, green chilies, a dash of mustard oil, half a handful of finely chopped onion and a pinch each of salt, cumin powder and chili powder. Used fried/ grilled and mashed veggies and chakata becomes bharta.

4. Bhendi Bhaja (Bhaja : stir-fried curries). Heat four spoons of oil. Add two handful of okra cut into thick slices. Stir and cook for 5 minutes. Mix in a bit of ginger garlic paste, two pinches of salt, chili powder and a pinch of turmeric powder. Stir and cook till dry.

5. Tomato Khatta (Khatta : Sweet & Sour curries) Heat a spoon of oil. Add two pinches of punch phutan and fry. Add a half a handful of chopped onion. Stir and cook for 2 minutes. Add a chopped green chilli. Add a handful of chopped tomato, a pinch of turmeric powder, two pinches of sugar and three pinches of salt. Stir and cook for five minutes. Mix in some water if needed.

6. Saaga. (Saaga : Spinach based curries) Heat a spoon of oil. Add two pinches of punch phutana and fry. Add two dry red chilies and a half a handful of chopped onion. Stir and cook for two minutes. Add half a handful each of chopped potato and eggplant. Sprinkle a handful of water and cook for 3-5 minutes. Add two handfuls of chopped spinach and three pinches of salt. Stir and cook till vegetables are done.

7. Chakuli (Crepes) Take a handful each of maida (refined flour), besan( gram flour) & rava( cream of wheat). Mix in a handful of finely chopped onion, two green chilies, a few pinches of chopped cilantro and three pinches of salt. Mix in water to make a thick, soupy batter. Pour on a hot, non stick skillet and spread into a thin round. Pour some oil around it. Cook both sides.

8. Badi Besara (Besara : Mustard paste based curries) Heat a spoon of oil. Add two pinches of punch phutan and fry. Add two crushed garlic cloves, two chopped tomatoes, a chopped green chili, a pinch of turmeric and three pinches of salt. Stir and cook for 5 minutes. Add a cup of water. Mix in four pinches of mustard powder in a spoon of water. Add half a handful of fried badis. Cook for a minute. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves.

9. Pakhala Bhata (Bhat : Rice)Take four handfuls of cooked rice. Cover with water. Let rest overnight. Mix in half a cup (100 ml) of yogurt, two pinches each of salt, cumin powder and chopped coriander leaves. Serve with pickle/ curry. The water in which rice has been soaked (turani) is a nutritious, refreshing (and mildly alchoholic !) drink. It can be drunk straight, or drunk mixed with a pinch of salt and some yogurt.In Bengal it is called Panta Bhat.

10. Dalma (Dalma : Lentil – vegetable curry) In a pressure cooker with the lid open, heat a spoon of oil. Add two pinches of panch phutana. Add a handful of chopped mixed vegetables (potato, squash, eggplant, raw banana). Add half a handful of mung dal, a bit of ginger garlic paste, a pinch each of turmeric powder, sugar, two pinches each of cumin powder, chili powder & 3 pinches of salt. Add a cup ( 200 ml) of water. Close cooker and pressure cook for three whistles. (Can use tuvar dal, chana dal, horse gram or a mix of dals)