Pakhala

Pakhaḷa
Garama (hot) pakhaḷa , Jira (cumin) Pakhaḷa, Basi (stale) pakhaḷa
Pakhaḷa seasoned with Curry leaves, cumin and fried chillies along with Alu-Potala bhaja and Badi bhaja
Place of origin:
India
Region or state:
Orissa
Serving temperature:
Hot and cold
Main ingredient(s):
Cooked rice
Recipes at Wikibooks:
Pakhaḷa
Media at Wikimedia Commons:
Pakhaḷa

Pakhaḷa with curd,lemon and sauted in cumin

Dahi pakhala (Curd pakhala)

Pakhaḷa (Oriya: ପଖାଳ, Devnagari:पखाळ) is an Oriya term for an Indian food consisting of cooked rice washed or little fermented in water. The liquid part is known as Toraṇi.^[1] It is popular in Orissa, Bengal, Assam, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh. The Bengali name for this dish is Panta Bhat. Eating pakhal has been recommended to prevent heat stroke in hot weather. A traditional Oriya dish, it is also prepared with rice, curd, cucumber, Cumin seeds, fried onions and mint leaves. It is popularly served with roasted vegetables—such as potato, brinjal, badi or saga bhaja—or fried fish.

Etymology

The term Pakhaḷa is derived from Pali word pakhaḷita (Oriya: ପଖାଳିବା) as well as Sanskrit word Prakshāḷaṇa (Sanskrit:प्रक्षाळन) which means washed/to wash and it is made by cooling the rice by adding water and keeping the cooked rice in water and curd. The word Pakhaḷa was used in the poems of Arjuna Dasa in his literary work Kaḷpalata (1520-1530 AD).^[2]

History

It is unknown when "Pakhaḷa" was first included in the daily diet of Eastern India, but it was included in the recipe of Lord Jagannath Temple of Puri during circa. 10. Pakhaḷa is eaten in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent (including Nepal, Bangladesh and some parts of Myanmar). Rice being the most cultivated agricultural product is the predominant cause of most of the people to have rice as a staple food.^[2]

Classifications

• Jeera Pakhaḷa

Jeera Pakhaḷa is made by adding fried cumin with curry leaves with Pakhaḷa.^[3][4][5]

• Dahi Pakhaḷa

This is made by adding Curd with pakhaḷa.^[6] Badi Chura is taken as a side dish with Pakhala.

• Garama Pakhaḷa (Hot Pakhaḷa)

This is generally made by adding water instantly after making rice or with warm rice.

• Basi pakhaḷa (Basi in Oriya means "stale")

This is made by fermenting rice by adding water which is generally kept overnight and eaten in the next day.

Recipe

• Cook rice and allow it to cool (do not freeze).
• Fry some cumin seed and grind it to fine powder.
• Add curd and fried cumin seed powder, coriander leaves and salt to taste.
• Serve it with fish fry and spinach.

Traditional way of preparing Pakhaḷa: Pakhaḷa is slightly fermented rice. people cook rice and add water to it along with little bit of old pakhal (something like making curd using milk and old curd). Pakhaḷa tastes best when served after 8 to 12 hrs after preparation. Generally boiled potato and other fried vegetables or fried fish is served with pakhaḷa. Modern day variation is to add curd instead of fermenting it.

References

External links

• A debate on Oriya Pakhaḷa
• Pakhaḷa bhata

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