C for Chhena Poda from Orissa

C for Chhena Poda from Orissa

As with the other two letter, there are many cuisines from different parts of India starting with C as well. The first to come to mind is the Chhole Bhature from North India.Its one of the most common breakfast in the northern states and Delhi. 

Another common Dish is the Chilla. Though it traces its origin from central India, it is made across the country. Its basically a pancake made from different flour mixed with finely chopped vegetables as per taste. The variety ranges from as simple as rice floor chilla , Besan chilla, rava mixed chilla to stuffed chillas. 

Chana Madra & Chookh are also special dishes and belong to the hill state HP. Tripura has its own special Chakhwi. Churma Ladoo from Rajasthan is also mouth watering and commonly made. And there are the enormous sweet dishes made from Chhena (fresh cottage cheese) like the Chhena Paise, Chhena Murki, Variety of Chhena Sweets, Ras malai and what nots. 

Continuing with this, here I would like to talk about Chhena Poda a special delicacy made in Orissa and is believed to be one of the most favoured delicacy of Lord Jagannath at Puri. Chhena Poda is caramalised cake made of mixture of Chhena with sugar , cashew nuts , raisins & rava.

Ingredients : 

Fresh Chhena (Cottage Cheese) 0 250gm, Powder Sugar - 4 tbsp, Rava - 2 tbsp, Ghee -2 tbsp, Cardmom powder - 1/2 tsp, Milk -4 tbsp, Few Broken Cashews, Few Raisins 

Recipe :

1. Take fresh Chhena / Cottage Cheese /Fresh Paneer and mash it well with your hands. Add powdered sugar and cardamom powder and mix. Add sooji/rava, ghee and milk and mix till everything incorporates well.

2. Add roasted broken pieces of cashews and few raisins to it and mix well. Keep it aside.

3. Now grease a baking pan with1 tbsp ghee and add 4 tbsp sugar spread evenly on the base. Heat the pan on the gas till the sugar caramelizes. 

4. Pour the mixture over the caramelized sugar and spread evenly.

5. Preheat the oven, put the baking tray with mix and bake at 180 deg C for 40-50 min or till the toothpick inserted comes out clean when you check.

6. Cool, take out from tray , cut and serve as dessert or snacks.

Aditya Sinha
03.04.2020

Ras Pua

Lets talk about some Sweet dish today. I'll again move to Bihar for this and talk about one form of Pua which is normally made on the occasion of Holi. Pua, Ras Pua and Mal Pua are normally three variants of this. I'll talk about Ras Pua, the one that I relish, today.

Ingredients :Maida (Fine flour) : 250 gm
Milk : 100 gm.
Sugar : 250 gm.
Saunf (Aniseed) coarse: 5 gm
Coconut : 100gm (coarsely chopped)
Date : 50 gm ( coarsely chopped)
Baking Powder 

Refined Oil: For Deep Frying

Preparation of Batter:Prepare batter in a deep bowl. Take Maida ina  deep bowl add a pinch of baking powder. Add Milk slowly to the maida and keep stirring. Afer the milk is finished add water slowly and keep stirring in one direction. Till a thick free flow batter is prepared. Take care that no lumps are formed.  Add aniseed , coarsely chopped coconut and date. Mix again . The batter is ready.

Preparation of Sugar Syrup:Dissolve 250 gm of sugar in 500 ml of water by stirring. Then put it on flame and keep heating till 
the water is reduced to half and a two thread syrup is prepared. 

Frying of Pua :Pre heat the refined oil / Pure Ghee in a deep base frying pan. Pour small quantities of batter in heated oil through a serving spoon or a small bowl. See that it spreads slowly and remains intact to form a shape of round puri. (Note : if it spreads and becomes too thin, reduce the flame of the oil, or if it does not spreads at all , instead settles down, make the oil a little more heated.) Fry it till the edges are pink and crispy.

Remove it from Oil and dip in the Sugar Syrup for two minutes. Remove from the syrup . 
Spray some Rose water on it. Serve hot.

Alternate Serve:Alternatively it can be seved cold with Rabri .

Taste it and tell me if you liked or not.