Odisha Cuisine & Food

Odia food is light on oil and rich in rice, lentils, vegetables and fish, shaped by the coast, the farming year and the kitchens of the Jagannath Temple. Everyday favourites include pakhala (fermented rice water, eaten in summer), dalma (lentils cooked with vegetables) and machha besara (fish in mustard sauce). Odisha's sweets are famous too: chhena poda, the baked cottage-cheese dessert from Nayagarh, and the Odisha rasagola, which received a GI tag in 2019.

This category covers the dishes you should try, the food days the state celebrates (Pakhala Divas on 20 March and Rasagola Dibasa during Rath Yatra) and where to eat in Bhubaneswar.