The Odisha cuisine is a lot about seafood because only 6 percent of the population is vegetarian. Fish, crabs and shrimp preparations are among the favourite food dishes. The general tendency is to use mild flavours with just a touch of spices. The consumption of chicken and mutton is occasional. While the use of mustard oil is common, ghee is preferred during festivals. The use of pastes of garlic and onion is common in curries. Panch phutana, made of cumin, mustard, fennel, fenugreek and kalonji, tempers vegetables and dals, while garam masala and turmeric are used for non-vegetarian curries. Pakhala, prepared from fermented rice, water, and yogurt, is popular in the summer. Sweets are a must for festivals.

• Khichdi:

This popular dish is made of rice and lentils cooked together in ghee with various flavouring agents and salt. It is offered as Prasad at the Jagannath Temple in Puri.

Khichdi – Img Src: foodnspice.com

• Prawn Malai Curry:

This curry is tasty and mild and the simple recipe gets its cream from coconut milk. It is popular both in Odisha and in Bengal and is usually served with basmati rice.

Prawn Malai Curry – Img Src: Google

• Chicken in Silky Spinach Curry:

In chicken in silky spinach curry or murg saagwala, chicken pieces are cooked in mildly-spiced spinach gravy. This is a nutritious dish with tremendous taste. The other ingredients include cooking oil, peppercorns, cloves, cardamom, onions, garlic, ginger, coriander powder, cumin powder, garam masala, chopped tomatoes, salt and butter.

Chicken in Silky Spinach Curry – Img Src: Youtube

• Macher Kalia with Aloo:

The basic ingredients are murrel fish and green mango. Its other ingredients include turmeric, red chillies, green chillies, oil, garlic, ginger, cumin seeds, coriander seeds, onion, cinnamon, bay leaf, yogurt, and salt. A paste of onion, ginger, garlic, cumin seeds, chillies and bay leaves is made. Fish is fried in oil and then rice is fried and potatoes are added and fried. Then paste and water are added and brought to boil. To this, fish is added, cooked well and cardamom and cinnamon powder are added. It is served hot with rice or roti.

Macher Kalia with Aloo -Img Src: Google

• Dalma:

Dalma is a preparation of various vegetables and daals. The vegetables include papita, potato, brinjal, drumstick, arbi, beans, raw banana, pumpkin and tomato, while the daal is pigeon pea. The other ingredients are onion, mustard seed, cumin seed, turmeric powder, bay leaf, dry chilli, oil, and salt.

Dalma – Img Src: www.rita-bose-cooking.com

• Bhindi Bhaja:

The ingredients for this vegetable are ladies finger, tomato, onion, curry leaves, green chili, garlic, cloves, turmeric powder, mustard seeds, aniseed, urad dal, asafoetida, oil, and salt. Washed vegetables are cut, onion sliced and green chillies slit. To the hot oil in a pan are added asafoetida and garlic, mustard seed, aniseeds, and urad dal. When cooked, onion, green chilli and curry leaves are added. And then are added tomato, ladies finger pieces, turmeric powder and salt. They are cooked well and served hot with rice or roti.

Bhendi Bhaja – Img Src: www.fooduel.com

• Chhena Jalebi:

This sweet dish is the traditional coastal Odisha preparation. It is one of the many chhena-based sweet preparations. Fresh chhena is kneaded, rolled into jalebis and deep fried. They are soaked into sugar syrup and served hot or chilled.

Chhena Jalebi – Img Src: www.ahomemakersdiary.com

• Rasmalai:

Rasmalai is usually served after a meal. It consists of yellowish flat paneer balls soaked in malai and sugar syrup. It is flavoured with cardamom.

Rasmalai – Img Src: Flickr

• Rasabali:

The ingredients include mashed paneer, baking soda, sooji, maida, sugar, chhenna, milk, milk powder, saffron strands, cardamom powder, oil and sliced almonds. Mashed paneer, suji, maida, soda, cardamom powder and sugar are made into dough. Small balls are prepared of the dough and milk is boiled with milk powder.  Cardamom, sugar and saffron strands are added and the mixture is boiled together. Chhena balls are fried in oil to golden brown and are put in the boiling milk. This is served chilled with garnishing of almonds and cashew nuts.

Rasabali – Img Src: www.akilaskitchen.com