Bhubaneswar travel guide

Dalma

Odisha's signature vegetable-lentil dish—toor dal cooked with raw papaya, raw banana, potato, yam and spiced with cumin, dry red chili and turmeric; the state's daily comfort food; no Odia wedding or festival meal is complete without dalma; simple and deeply satisfying

Chenna poda

Same as Chhena poda—Odisha's caramelized baked chena cheesecake; the alternate spelling reflects the Odia language variation; log-fire baking creates a smoke-caramelized exterior that no oven can replicate; buy from sweet shops near Puri's Jagannath temple

Chhena gaja

Puri and coastal Odisha's sweet—fried chena (cottage cheese) fritters soaked in sugar syrup; different from Bengal's chum chum by their square shape and the Odisha-specific cardamom quantity; available from Puri's sweet shops on Grand Road near the Jagannath temple

Dahi bara

Odishas festival snack—fermented and deep-fried urad dal patties soaked in sweetened yogurt; served during Rath Yatra and Diwali; the Odia version is sweeter than Delhi's dahi bhalla and the yogurt is thicker; a street food tradition going back several centuries

Santula

Odisha's deeply nourishing vegetable preparation—brinjal, potato, tomato and greens boiled and then stir-fried with mustard, garlic, cumin and dried chili in mustard oil; specific to Odisha and unavailable elsewhere; the combination of boiling then frying is an Odia technique

Macha besara (fish)

Odishas mustard fish preparation—fish cooked in a thick paste of mustard seeds, garlic, green chili and turmeric; similar to Bengali mustard fish but drier and with more garlic; a state identity dish specific to the Odia fishing community along the Bay of Bengal coast