Above: The Konark Sun Temple
What makes this state special? Ummm, where do I start.... A history that dates back to primitive times and a unique culture celebrated for centuries. The finesse and grandeur of its architecture exhibited in its temples that the Aryans left behind. Every form of visual and performing arts, be it cloth painting, rock painting, sand art, the Odissi dance form. A diverse cultural microcosm, Orissa marked the assimilation of cultures of both Aryans and Dravidians in the days of yore. All this and way more makes this state stand true to being called the soul of India.
From the top, in clock-wise sequence: Cloth painting; Brass and Dhokra work (Dhokra is a casting method that combines metallurgical skills with wax techniques. It is a bell metal tribal craft that uses an alloy of tin and copper or brass and zinc); Buddhist rock carvings at Ratnagiri
History always piques their interest (their=my girls), and architecture gets me going! So I started with raw pre-historic history, and moved on through the architectural brilliance that this state represents,
3.6 billion year old rocks. Nearly as old as our planet.... or thereabouts. Zircon containing granite rock formations were found in the Keonjhar district of Odisha, evidenced to be the second oldest rock formation in the world after the Jack Hills in Australia.
The Konark temple, an architectural marvel. A UNESCO World Heritage site, this temple is famous for its unique architecture, geometrical patterns and carved wheels used to serve as sun dials. Built in the 13th century in the form of a mammoth chariot pulled by 7 horses, the platform of Konark is engraved with 24 wheels of the chariot. The numbers 7 and 24 hold a lot of significance... 7 horses represent the 7 days of the week, or the 7 components of white light, the periodic table has elements in the groups of 7, an octave as 7 musical notes, and so on. And then, the 24 fortnights in a year and also the 24 hours of the day, something that Ashok Chakra in the centre of the Indian flag also represents. Crazy stuff right :D?
Home to Puri, one of the 4 key pilgrimage sites for hindus. One of the most sacred pilgrimage sites for Hindus, Puri also known as Jagannath Puri, is believed to be the final resting place of Lord Vishnu.
An odd, yet endearing mail service. Odisha police pigeon service started on an experimental basis in 1946 to deliver messages to remote areas of the state. This form of communication was used until as recently as 2008!
The disappearing beach. The Chandipur Beach of Balasore is famously nicknamed the 'hide and seek beach'. This is because during low tide, the water recedes up to 5 km every day only to return during the high tides. Rare and astonishing but true.
Demographic diversity like none other. There are about 62 different tribes in Odisha alone, each with their own set of dressing, tradition and languages. The cultural diversity of the tribes is huge, and this has been highlighted in mainstream media in recent years.
And then the cuisine... simple, yet yummy to boot! We decided to avoid dessert - it was a strange choice, given we are HUGE on dessert! And then we debated... who were we kidding!! Dessert was in :D. But we also did ourselves justice with this delicious savory menu, and were so full after dinner that the very thought of dessert would have been blasphemy! Here goes:
We started with Kanchaa Kadali Bada (raw banana cutlets from Odissi cuisine, these are subtly spicy and an apt replacement for fritters during tea times) and Gobi in Kasundi Paste (an appetizer, an accompaniment, a simple cauliflower dish doused in a mustard relish) as appetizers,
Followed by the main course that included Simba Rai (an authentic recipe with broad beans or snap peas, in a base of a tangy mustard paste), Bhindi Bhaja (a popular summer preparation, this crispy okra delight hails from the states of Odisha and West Bengal), Macha Besara (a traditional fish recipe from Odisha, made in a mustard-tomato based gravy) and Odiya Mutton Curry (this delish mutton curry is cooked low and slow with sweet, caramelised onions, a few spices, and homemade garam masala), served with a side of Dahi Baigan (a sour yogurt based accompaniment, also known as khatta) and white rice!
And then, Chhena Poda for dessert (a paneer cake, the favorite sweet of lord jagannath, the presiding deity of the Puri Jagannath temple in Odisha)
Kanchaa Kadali Bada
What you'll need:
6 green bananas, boiled for ~15 mins; 2 medium sized potatoes, boiled; 1 can of boiled beets (this is not a typical add here, but I did coz I love the color and the taste!!)
1 tblsp ginger garlic paste; 3 green chillies, finely chopped; 1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
11/2 tsp coriander pd; 1 tsp salt; 1/2 tsp red chilli pd; 1 tsp garam masala; 1 tsp anardaana (dried pomegranate seeds)
3-4 tblsp oil
Making these badas was fairly easy. Start with mixing all the ingredients together - mixing with your hands works the best! so mix and mush the ingredients together, except for the oil coz that will be used for shallow frying the badas on the pan. Once the bada mix is ready, take a portion of the mix to make a small-ish golf ball, form the ball, and then gently pat it down to a disc shape in the palm of your hand. Repeat this step for the rest of the mix as well. Next, heat the oil in a flat pan, and place the discs on the pan. Cook until they get a crispy crust exterior, about 5-6 minutes on each side, and once done, place them on paper towels so that any excess oil is absorbed by the paper towel. Serve these beauties with a dash of chaat masala and green coriander chutney on the side!
Gobi in Kasundi Paste
What you'll need:
1 whole cauliflower, broken into florets
For the marinade: 1 tblsp coriander seeds; 1 tsp poppy seeds; 1tblsp mustard seeds; 3 green chillies, coarsely chopped; 1 tsp turmeric pd; 1/2 tsp red chilli pd; 11/2 tsp salt
3+1 tblsp mustard oil; 1/4 tsp asafoetida pd; 1 red onion, thinly sliced
Wash the cauliflower florets, and boil a pot of water. Once the water is boiling, drop the florets in and boil these for about 4-5 minutes - you just want to get them slightly tender but not droopy. Drain the water, and pat the florets dry with paper towels.
Next, run the ingredients of the marinate in a blender with a 1/2 cup of water to make a thick paste. Coat the florets with this paste, making sure its evenly coated along the floret crevices. Toss the florets, with 3 tblsp of mustard oil, into your air fryer, and let it rip @400F for about 20 minutes. In the meantime, heat the remaining mustard oil and once heated, add in the asafoetida pd and the onions. Saute the onions for 3-4 minutes until they turn transluscent, and then add in the air-fried cauliflower. Cook for a few minutes on medium heat and serve it up as an appetizer or along with white rice... I had used this as an app, along with wings on a Super Bowl evening... super duper hit!
Simba Rai
What you'll need:
1 lb snow peas; 2-3 red potatoes, wedges
3 tblsp oil; 1 tblsp panch phoran; 2 dry red chillies
1 onion, chopped; 3-4 garlic cloves, chopped; 1” ginger, peeled and chopped
1 tsp turmeric; 1/2 tsp red chilli pd; 1 tsp coriander pd; 11/2 tsp salt
Garlic toast on the side (TOTALLY optional!!)
Heat the oil and add in the whole spices - the panch phoran and the dry red chillies. Sauté these using a spatula for a couple minutes and then add in the ginger, garlic and onions… sauté until the onions turn translucent. Then drop in the potatoes and cook these on medium - high heat so they get a crusty exterior. And then, add in the snow peas (you want to remove the ends of the snow peas, and remove the “thread” that holds the two sides of each snow pea together :)). Cook covered, for 10-12 mins until the potatoes are cooked. The snow peas can have a bit of a crunch - you can cook these some more if you prefer for sure!
Bhindi Bhaja
What you'll need:
2 lbs okra, heads and tails chopped off, but whole otherwise (and NOT frozen); 3 tblsp mustard oil
1 tblsp mustard oil; 1 tsp panch phoran; 1 large red onion, thinly sliced; 1” ginger, chopped; 3 green chillies, chopped; some sun dried tomatoes, asp optional coz we don’t use sun dried tomatoes (typically) in Odisha :)
2 tsp salt; 1 tsp turmeric pd; 1 tsp coriander pd
The air-fryer reigns supreme. Again. So after getting the okra ready, I tossed these with the 3 tblsp of mustard oil, and air fried @390F for 20 minutes, in two batches. Basically, you want to get rid of the pectin like stuff in okra and make them medium crispy, and ready for sautéing with the tempering. While the okra is getting air-fried, heat the remaining oil in a pan, drop in the panch phoran and let it start sizzling. Then add in the ginger, green chillies and onions and sauté until the onions are lightly browned. Then add in the powdered spices and sauté some more, 2-3 minutes. Finally add in the okra and the sun-dried tomatoes, toss gently so you don’t create a mushy mess of the okra, and let it cook on medium heat, covered, for 10-12 minutes. Serve hot or at room temperature… I love it either ways!
Macha Besara
What you'll need:
2 lbs fresh cod fillets, cut into 2"x2" pieces marinated in 1 tsp turmeric pd and 1 tsp red chilli pd
Mustard oil for frying (3-4 tblsp); 1 tsp mustard seeds; 2 sprig curry leaves; 3 dry red chillies; 1 tsp coriander seeds
1 red onion, sliced; 1 tsp garlic paste; 1 tomato, diced; 1/2 tsp tamarind paste
11/2 tsp salt; 1 tsp coriander pd; 1/2 tsp turmeric pd
Let the fish marinate for about an hour in the fridge... you don't want fish sitting out on the kitchen counter if you can help it! For the sake of the fish and yourself! Heat the mustard oil, and shallow fry the fish on high heat until browned and seared on all sides. Remove the fish and place on paper towels to absorb any excess oil.
Then, in the same pan, heat the remaining oil, and add in the mustard seeds, coriander seeds, red chillies and curry leaves. Once these start spluttering, add in the onions and saute until golden brown. Add in the garlic paste and tomato, and after a couple minutes, the dry powdered spices. Also add in a cup of water (or more - depends on how much gravy you'd like!) Blend the spices paste well with the water and then add in the tamarind paste. Do make sure you mix it into the gravy well so the tangy flavor is evenly spread across the board. Finally add in the fried fish pieces... cook covered for 7-8 minutes, and serve piping hot on a bed of white rice!
Dahi Baigan
What you'll need:
1 medium sized eggplant, sliced into 1cm thick cross-sectional slices
For the marinade: 1 tsp turmeric pd; 1/2 tsp red chilli pd; 1 tsp cumin pd
11/2 tsp salt; 2-3 tblsp mustard oil
11/2 cup yogurt; 1 tblsp sugar; 1/2 tsp black salt; 2 tblsp fresh cilantro, chopped
1 tblsp mustard oil for tempering; 1 tblsp mustard seeds; 2 dry red chillies
Marinate the sliced eggplant with turmeric, red chilli and cumin pd for about 30 minutes. Then toss the marinated eggplant with the mustard oil and salt until the marinade is evenly coated on the slices. Set the air fryer to 400F and air fry the eggplant for 20 minutes.
While that's happening, prepare the yogurt base with sugar and black salt. You can add a cup of cold water to the yogurt to create the thin consistency - you don't want this too thick coz you want the eggplant to be able to absorb some of the yogurt for the tangy flavor. Leave the cilantro for the garnish!
Finally the tempering. Heat the remaining mustard oil, and add the mustard seeds and dry red chillies to it. let these crackle for a couple minutes and then toss in the air-fried eggplant. Let the eggplant cook for 3-4 minutes more with the tempering and take them off the flame. Once these have cooled to room temperature, pour the yogurt on top. Your dahi baigan is ready to be devoured! Garnish with cilantro and slurp away...
Odiya Mutton Curry
What you'll need:
3 lbs goat meat, bone in, shoulder cut into 2"x2" pieces
3 tblsp mustard oil; 2 bay leaves; 3-4 cardamom pods; 4-5 cloves; 1 tblsp panch phoran; 6-7 black peppercorns; 1" stick of cinnamon
2 large red onions, thinly sliced; 2 tblsp ginger garlic paste; 6-7 green chillies, finely chopped; 2 roma tomatoes, diced; 1 tblsp kasoori methi (dried fenugreek leaves)
1 tblsp garam masala; 2 tsp salt; 1 tsp turmeric pd; 1 tsp red chilli pd; 1 tblsp coriander pd; 1 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
Clean the goat meat, and pat dry with paper towels. Heat the mustard oil and once heated, add in the whole spices and lets these roast in the oil until these start letting off the flavors and aroma. Then add in the onions and green chillies and saute on medium high heat until the onions are lightly caramelized. Follow up with ginger garlic paste and the diced tomatoes and saute these while mixing with the spices until the raw garlic smell has disappeared, the tomatoes have disintegrated completely and oil is starting to separate from the gravy mix. Now add in the mutton pieces and roast these for 3-4 minutes, mixing well with the gravy... you want to lightly sear the meat before you add on the pressure so the meat retains the body and juices. Pressure cook the mutton for 40 minutes. Let the pressure release naturally... the mutton will be cooked through, and will melt in your mouth... super yummy with plain white rice or any indian bread!
Chhena Poda
What you'll need:
250g paneer (cottage cheese); 1/2 cup sugar or jaggery
1/2 tsp cardamom pd; 1/2 tblsp rice flour; raisins and cashews (optional)
2 tsp ghee (clarified butter) for lining the baking tray
Line a baking pan with ghee on all sides, and preheat the oven to 350F for 15 minutes. In a bowl, crumble the fresh paneer, add in the sugar and mix the sugar in with the paneer with your hands. Continue to mash and knead the paneer like you would knead dough.... remember that the mixture has to become loose, light and with a cake batter like consistency. The more light and softer the consistency, the better it's going to taste.
Note: I added a couple tblsp of milk coz the mixture was looking a wee bit dry.
Once you get a cake batter like consistency in the paneer mixture, add the cardamom pd and rice flour, and I added in a few cashews and raisins. Pour the mix in the prepared pan - shake the pan gently so the mixture spreads evenly. Level the top with a spatula. Bake for 35-40 minutes until the top crust gets this delish dark golden color. Remove from the oven once done and let the cake cool completely in the pan.
Then remove it. Slice it. Eat it. Enjoy it. And repeat.
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