Pakhala

Pakhala is a traditional Odia dish made of cooked rice that is washed or lightly fermented in water. Popular in Odisha, it is also eaten across eastern India and in parts of the subcontinent, where it appears under several local names.

History

It is not known when pakhala first entered the daily diet of eastern India, but it appears in the recipe of the Jagannath Temple in Puri, dating from around the 10th century, which means the dish was already established by then.

Its name has been linked to the Pali word pakhāḷitā and to other roots, although the etymology is not settled. Over time several variants emerged depending on preparation: fresh pakhala, the overnight fermented version, and versions with curd, ginger, ghee or jasmine flowers.

The dish spread along the eastern coast and neighbouring areas, and today it has local names in Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Assam, Bengal, Bangladesh, Gujarat, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Kerala.

Culture

In Odisha pakhala is eaten mostly in summer, at midday, valued for its cooling quality. It is served with roasted or fried vegetables such as potato, brinjal and badi chura, and with fried fish. Since 2011, 20 March has been marked as Pakhala Dibasa, promoted by the community itself, and the Odia diaspora holds its celebration on 13 July, when the weather abroad suits a cold rice dish better.

Trivia