Bread Pizza - Nothing oriya about it!!!

Cooking Time Required: 5 mins
Cost of preparation: 15-20 rupees

Ingredients: Bread (4 slices), Tomato ( 1 no., medium), Capsicum (1 no., medium), onion (1 small), garlic (1-2 pods), cheese (2 cubes), pepper powder( 1 tsp), salt to taste.

Preparation: Cut the tomato, capsicum, and onion into thin slices. The garlic should be minced into flakes.

Cooking: Heat a pan. Layer the tomato, capsicum and onion over the bread slices. Grate the cheese cubes over it. Add pepper, garlic flakes and salt to taste. Place the bread on the pan and cover with a lid. Wait for 2 mins and remove pan from stove. Keep it covered for about 2-3 mins.
Eat it hot with tomato/tabasco/mustard sauce.


Tips: For those who are not very inclined towards onion and garlic, shredded cabbage can be used as an ideal substitute.

Carrot Vermicelli Kheer

Cooking Time Required: 30-40 min
Cost of preparation: 50-60 rupees


Ingredients: Carrot ( 200 gm or 2 nos), vermicelli (1/2 cup), milk (1/2 ltr), milkmaid (condensed milk, 1 cup), ghee (3 tsp), raisins, kaju , sugar to taste.

Preparation: Grate the carrot and keep aside. Roast the vermicelli in a pan using very little ghee. Also fry the kajus to a golden shade.


Cooking: Heat a deep vessel. Add the ghee followed by the grated carrot. Fry the carrot for about 5 mins. Add milk, and bring to a boil. Allow to cook slowly for 15 mins. Add raisins, kaju and milkmaid. Boil for another 5 mins and add sugar (according to taste).

Tasty kheer is ready to eat.

Chicken Kosha

Cooking Time Required: 1 hour
Cost of preparation: 50-60 rupees

Ingredients: Chicken pieces (250 gm), onion ( 1 large), tomato puree ( 2 tsp), green chilli (1 no.), lemon ( one half), ginger garlic paste ( 1 tbs), coriander powder ( 1/2 tsp), cumin powder (1/2 tsp), chilli powder (1/2 tsp), fennel seeds (1/2 tsp), soya sauce (1/2 tsp), garam masala (1/3 tsp), turmeric , oil (5-6 tsp), salt to taste.

Preparation: Wash the chicken pieces. Add turmeric, lemon juice and salt. Allow to marinate for 30 mins. Cut the onion into two halves. Grate one half and mince the other half into fine pieces.

Heat oil in a kadai. when hot, add fennel seeds . Then add the grated onion . Fry for about 2 mins. Add the finely cut onion and green chilli pieces, followed by the ginger garlic paste after another 2 mins. Fry for about 5 mins. Add tomato puree, coriander powder, cumin powder and chilli powder. Add the marianated chicken after 1-2 mins. Cover with a lid and cook till the chicken softens. Then add the soya sauce and garam masala. Mix thouroughly and remove from fire. Keep covered for about 5 mins. Enjoy with hot rotis.


Tips: For those who are forever looking for short-cuts, the grated onion, ginger garlic paste and tomato puree can be substituted with Maggie Bhuna Masala.



Broiler Chicken- الفروج المشوي

Sunday Fish Dhamaka

Cooking Time Required: 2 hours
Cost of Preparation: 150 - 200 rupees

Ingredients: Pomfret (2 nos, medium), Rohu ( 200 gm), fish eggs (100 gm), onion (1 small), green chillies ( 2 nos), rice (3 tsp), coriander powder ( 2 tsp ), cumin powder (2 tsp), red chilli powder (2 tsp), turmeric powder (1 tsp), oil (suffient for frying), salt to taste.

Preparation: Wash the fish and fish eggs separately. Add turmeric, cumin powder, coriander powder, chilli powder and salt to the fish. Keep aside for 5-10 mins. Soak the rice overnite and grind into a fine paste. Add to the fish eggs along with the cumin, coriander, chilli powder, turmeric and salt.

Heat a flat pan. Add 5-6 tsp oil. When it starts smoking, add the pomfret and rohu pieces. Fry on both sides till the fish turns slightly reddish. Remove from pan and place on tissue paper to absorb excess oil.

Heat a kadai (deep vessel). Add sufficient oil for deep frying. when the oil becomes hot, add blobs(pakodas) of the fish egg mixture. Fry the blobs (pakodas) till they turn reddish brown. Remove from oil and place on tissue paper.

Amba Katha ( Mango syrup dish )

Cooking time required: 20-25 mins
Cost of preparation: 15-20 rupees

Ingredients: Raw mango (2 nos), curry leaves (4-5 nos), red chilli powder (1/2 tsp), turmeric powder (1/5 tsp), mustard-fennel-coriander seeds (1/3 tsp), oil ( 2 tsp), sugar, salt to taste.

Cooking: Peel and cut the mangoes into thin slices along the length. Heat 1 tsp of oil in a pan, add the turmeric, salt, and mango slices. Stir for about 5 mins. Then add sugar and 2-3 cups of water. Boil till the water reduces to half and the mixture gets a syrupy texture. Remove from fire.

Heat the remaining oil in a pan. When it becomes hot, add the mustard, fennel and coriander seeds. Then add curry leaves and red chillies. Fry till the red chillis become slightly dark. Then add to the mango syrup.

An excellent side dish with any non-veg meal.

Background: Sunday lunches are usually the highlight of the week for every oriya home (well almost..). Elaborate meals, visits from relatives and loads of gossip are some of the things which make the day rather special. The next few posts will be featuring Sunday specials which form the mainstay of my childhood memories.

Radish(mooli) coconut raita

Cooking time required: 10-15 mins
Cost of preparation: 10-20 rupees

Ingredients: Radish(mooli) ( 1 large), freshly grated coconut ( 1 cup), curd (3/4 th cup), sugar ( 1-2 tsp), coriander seeds (1 tsp), mustard seeds (1/4 tsp), red chillies (1-2 nos), curry leaves (5-6 nos), oil (1 tsp), salt to taste.

Cooking: Grate the radish and transfer to a mixing bowl. Add the grated coconut, curd, sugar and salt. Mix well and keep aside.
Heat the oil in a pan, when smoking add the spices (red chilli, coriander seeds and mustard seeds) and a few curry leaves (curry leaf flavour should not dominate the dish). Pour the spluttering mix into the mixing bowl and mix.

Serves as a excellent side dish for any vegetarian meal (personally, i prefer not to have radish with any non-vegetarian dish. Not a very good idea to have two dominant flavours fight it out among themselves).

This dish is usually served with the prasad(abadha) at the Puri Jaganath Temple.

Besan Tarkari ( moong dal preparation )

Cooking Time required: 1.5 hours
Cost of preparation: 40-50 rupees


Ingredients: Moong dal (250 gm), potato (1 medium), onion (1 large), coriander seeds(1-2 tsp), cumin seeds (1 tsp), garlic (2-3 pods), red chilli (1 no.), cinnamon stick (1/2 inch long), green chilli (1-2 nos), methi(1/5 tsp), mustard seeds(1/5 tsp), turmeric powder, oil ( 6-7 tsp), salt to taste.

Preparation: Wash and soak the moong dal overnite. Grind the soaked dal into a coarse paste. Separately grind the coriander seed, cumin seeds, red chilli, cinnamon, garlic and onion into a fine paste.

Cooking: Heat a non-stick tawa (flat pan) . Pour 1/4th of the moong dal paste and spread into a thick layer (slightly thicker than a oothapam). Spinkle oil from all sides. Allow it to cook on one side. Then toss and allow the other side to cook till golden brown. Repeat the process with the remaining moong dal paste.Cut the moong dal dosa into small squares (1.5 inch X 1.5 inch).

Heat about 2 tsp oil in a deep vessel. Add the green chillies, methi and mustard seeds. When the seeds start spluttering, add turmeric powder and the ground masalas . Cook till the paste turns slightly darker, then add the potato pieces. Fry for about 5 mins and add 4-5 cups water. Bring to a boil and add the moong pieces.
Cook till the moong pieces become very soft. Remove from fire and serve with rice or rotis.

Chicken pakoda (Orissa preparation)

Cooking Time Required: 1 hour ( marination time 30 mins)
Cost of preparation: 60-80 rupees

Ingredients: Chicken (boneless, 250 gms), egg white ( 1 no.), cornflour (3-4 tsp), soya sauce (1/2 tsp), ginger-garlic paste( 1 tsp), vinegar (1/2 tsp), tomato sauce ( 1 tsp), chilli powder or flakes, turmeric ( 1 pinch), coriander powder ( 1/2 tsp), cumin powder (1/2 tsp), salt , oil for frying.

Marination: Cut the boneless chicken into inch sized cubes. Put in a bowl, add all the other ingredients , mix well and keep aside for 1/2 hour.


Preparation: Heat the oil in a deep vessel. When smoking, add the chicken pieces and fry till reddish brown. Garnish with chopped onions, tomato sauce and chilli sauce.

Sprouts chaat

Cooking Time Required: 5-1o mins
Cost of preparation: 10-15 rupees

Ingredients: Green moong( 50 gm), bengal gram ( 30 gm), lemon (1 nos), cucumber (half, medium size) onion (1 no., small), tomato (1 no, large), mint (pudina leaves), green chilli ( 1 no.), black salt ( to taste), pepper powder ( 1/2 tsp), cumin-chilli powder (1/4 tsp), 1 tsp olive oil.


Preparation: Soak the green moong and bengal gram overnite. Wash in the morning and keep in a germinator. If the germinator is not available, keep the pulses in a normal kitchen colander(used for draining excess water) or put in a muslin cloth and hang it( my mon still uses this method ) . Basically, the germinating vessel should be such that it allows free circulation of air.

Allow for 10-12 hours of germination time( this will vary according to the time of the year, i.e., germination is much faster during the hot summer months.


Cooking: Heat the olive oil in a pan. Add the pulses, and stir fry for about 4-5 mins. Mince the tomato, cucumber, chilli, mint leaves and onion into very small pieces. Transfer all the ingredients to a mixing bowl, add the black salt, lemon juice, pepper powder, cumin-chilli powder. Mix well and you have a healthy snack time option.

Alternately, instead of stir-frying the pulses in olive oil, the oil can be directly added to the mixing bowl.

Aloo Baingan Bharta

Cooking Time Required: 20-25 mins
Cost of preparation: 20-30 Rupees

Ingredients: Brinjal ( 1-2 large), potato (1 medium), tomato ( 1 no, medium), green peas (fresh or frozen), onion (1 large), garlic(2-3 pods), ginger (1/2 inch), green chillies (2 nos), cumin(jeera) powder(1/2 tsp), chilli powder (1/2 tsp, optional), mustard seeds(1/4 tsp), cumin seeds (1/3 tsp), coriander seeds (1/2 tsp), turmeric (1/2 tsp), oil (3-4 tsp), sugar (1/2 tsp), salt to taste.

Cooking: Boil the potato and keep aside. Roast the brinjal on low flame till it softens. Remove from fire, keep on a plate and cover with a vessel. This will help cook the brinjal completely. Remove the vessel after 5-10 mins, peel the brinjal and mash it. Also peel the potato and dice it into cubes. Cut the onion into fine rings, the ginger and tomato should be cut into small pieces.
Heat the oil in a Kadai(deep pan). When smoking, add the garlic pods. Fry till the garlic turns slightly brown. Remove the garlic, and add sugar(for a reddish color). Add mustard, cumin and coriander seeds. Also add the ginger pieces and green chillies. Fry for about 2 mins, then add onion. When the onion turns slightly red, add the turmeric and potato pieces. Fry for about 4-5 mins, then add tomato. Add the mashed brinjal, green peas, chilli powder and cumin powder after 2 mins. Cook on medium flame for 5-6 mins. Remove from fire , garnish with coriander leaves and serve with roti or rice.


Tips: If you are suffering from hyperacidity, boil the brinjal instead of roasting it. Adding pudina leaves to the garnish not only adds a different flavour but also helps alleviate acidity .

Tips for making mustard paste

Grind the dry mustard seeds into a coarse powder in a grinder/mixer. Then add water and grind again. The mustard paste will be much more smoother.

Badi jholo - Balls made from rice and pulses cooked in a mustard gravy

Cooking time: 10-15 mins
Cost of preparation: 10-15 rupees

Ingredients: Badi (the pumpkin(pani kakharu) variety, 15-20 nos), green chillies (1-2nos), mustard seeds (4-5 tsp), garlic pods (6-7 nos), mustard oil(3-4 tsp) salt to taste.


Pre-cooking: Keep aside 2 garlic pods and 1/4 tsp mustard seeds. Grind the rest into a fine paste. Slightly pound the garlic pods .Cut the green chillies.

Preparation: Heat 3 tsp oil in a pan. Fry the Badi till it becomes slightly golden and keep aside. Add 1 tsp oil to a kadai (deep vessel). When hot add the mustard seeds, pounded garlic pods and chillies. Then add the mustard paste and hot water (2-3 cups). Boil for about 5 mins.
Add the fried Badi and cook for another 2 mins. Take off the fire. Serve hot.

Drumstick potato vadi curry ( chuien aloo badi )

Cooking time required: 20-30 mins
Cost of cooking: 30-40 rupees

Ingredients: Drumsticks ( 4 nos), potato ( 1 large), tomato ( 1 medium ), onion ( 1 large, optional ), garlic pods (5-6 nos), mustard seeds ( 3-4 tsp), turmeric powder (1/2 tsp), Badi (sun dried balls made from rice and dal paste), red chilli (1-2 nos), oil (2-3 tsp), salt to taste.

Preparation: Cut drumsticks into 2-3 inch long pieces. Also cut the potato and onion into medium sized chunks. The tomato should be finely cut . Grind the mustard seeds along with garlic pods into a fine paste.

Cooking: Heat oil in pan. Add turmeric, potato and onion pieces. Fry till the potatoes are half cooked . Then add the drumstick and tomato pieces. Fry for 2 more mins. Add the mustard paste and hot water (2-3 cups). Add salt to taste and cover the pan. Cook on medium flame for about 5-10 mins.
Fry the badi separately . Add to the curry just before removing from the fire. Serve hot with rice.


Tips: The traditional oriya recipe substitutes potato with Colocasia( also called saaru in oriya ).

Mango chutney

Cooking time : 10-15 mins
Cost of preparation: 10 -15 Rupees

Ingredients: Mangoes ( 1-2 nos, slightly ripened), 1 onion( medium to large depending on the number of mangoes), coriander seeds (2-3 spoons), jaggery (1-2 big chunks, according to taste), salt to taste, 1 tsp oil.

Preparation: Grate the onion and mango . Roast coriander seeds(without oil) and grind into coarse powder.
Heat oil in a pan, add the grated onion and mango. Cook for about 5 mins. Then add coriander powder, salt and jaggery. Keep on fire for about 5 mins. Remove and serve with rice.

Green pumpkin curry - oriya preparation

Cooking time : 30 mins
Cost of preparation: 50 rupees

Ingredients: Green pumpkin( 250 gm), tomato (2 medium sized), garlic pods (lagre,5-6 pieces), green chillies(2-3 nos.), mustard seeds (4-5 tsp), cumin seeds( 1/2 tsp), sunflower oil (3 tsp), mustard oil (1 tsp), coriander leaves, turmeric powder, salt to taste.

Preparation: Discard the outer rind of green pumpkin and cut into small pieces. Grind the mustard seeds and garlic pods into a smooth paste.

Cooking : Heat the sunflower oil in a pan. When smoking, add turmeric, cumin and mustard seeds. Add the green pumpkin pieces to the spluttering seeds and cook for about 4-5 mins. Remove from fire.
Put the half cooked cucumber pieces into a pressure cooker, add the diced tomato pieces, green chillies, mustard-garlic paste, mustard oil, coriander leaves and salt. Close lid, put on fire and allow for one whistle. Remove from fire and serve hot.

Dahi pakhala - an authentic rice preparation from orissa

Cooking Time Required : 20 Mins
Cost of preparation : 20-30 Rupees

Ingredients: Par boiled rice ( 1/2 kg ), curd (200 ml), onion ( 1 medium, diced ), green chilli (2-3 nos), curry leaves, coriander leaves,cumin seeds (1-2 tsp), salt to taste.

Preparation: Wash rice thoroughly (3-4 times) . Boil water in a vessel. Add washed rice and cook till soft( keep it slightly more soft than regular rice ). Drain off excess water. Add sufficient fresh water to completely cover the rice and allow to stand for 2-3 hours.
Add diced onion, green chilli, curd and salt to the rice. Heat oil in a pan. When it starts smoking, add cumin seeds and curry leaves. Pour the contents over the rice and garnish with coriander leaves. Eat with roasted papad, spinach bhaji or fried ladies finger.

Optional seasoning: Freshly grated coconut.

Makes for an excellent meal during the hot summer months.

Chicken curry - oriya preparation

Cooking time required: 1 hour (approx)Cost of preparation: Approx. 200-250 rupees
Ingredients: Chicken pieces(600 gm), Potato (1 large), Onion( 1 large), tomato( 1 medium), ginger garlic paste (1 tbs), cumin seeds (1/2 tsp), sunflower/rice bran oil ( 4 tps), mustard oil(1tsp), coriander powder( 1tsp), chilli powder (1/2 tsp), cumin powder (1/2 tsp)turmeric (1 tsp ), green chilli (2 nos), garam masala( 1 stick cinnamon, 2 pods small cardamon), sugar(1/2 tsp), salt ( to taste ).
Pre-cooking: Marinate chicken pieces with turmeric, salt and mustard oil. Set aside for 1 hour. Grate half the onion and cut the rest into small pieces. Puree/dice the tomato . Cut the potato into 4 pieces along its length, deep fry and keep aside.
Cooking: Heat oil in a deep vessel. When smoking add 1/2 tsp sugar and a pinch of turmeric( for adding color). Add the cumin seeds. When the seeds start spluttering, add chilli and onion(grated & pieces). Cook for about 3 mins. Add the ginger garlic paste and salt. Fry the paste for about 3-4 mins. Then add tomato, coriander powder, chilli powder, cumin powder. Cook fo about 2 mins. Add the marinated chicken pieces and cook for 4-5 mins. Put the contents in a pressure cooker, add potato pieces, 1-2 cups hot/warm water and allow for 1-2 whistles.
Take off the fire and allow steam to settle down. Open lid , add garam masala and mix thoughly.Close lid and keep aside for 2-3 mins.
Serve with par-boiled rice and papad.

Dalma - dal cooked with vegetables

Cooking time required: 20-25 mins (approx)Cost of preparation: Approx. 25-35 rupees
Ingredients: Dal (200 gms), vegetables ( beans(4-5 nos), green banana( half ), raw papaya(100 gm), tomato ( 1nos), potato ( 1 small ), drumsticks (2-3 nos ), green chilli ( 1 no.), cumin seeds (1 tsp), saunf (1 tsp), ghee (2-3 tsp), cumin-chilli powder (1/2 tsp), turmeric powder(1/2 tsp), salt, coriander leaves.

Preparation : Wash the dal and put in a pressure cooker. Add sufficient water cover dal and stand about 2-3 inches above it. Wash and cut vegetable into medium sized pieces . Keep the drumsticks aside and add rest of the vegetables to dal. Add turmeric powder and salt, and close the lid. Cook on medium flame.Allow for 2 whistles. Remove from fire and keep aside for 5-6 mins. Open lid, add the drumstick pieces and close lid. Put on stove for 3-4 mins on high flame. Remove from fire and keep aside.
Heat ghee in a pan. Add cumin and saunf seeds. Pour the spluttering seeds over the cooked dal. Add chilli-cumin powder and mix. Garnish with coriander leaves.


Dalma Chakuli(Dosa)

For preparing chilli-cumin powder : Heat a iron pan, put whole red chiilies and cumin seeds. Roast till the chillies darken a little. Remove from pan, and grind into a coarse powder. Store in a airtight jar and use within 1 month.