Jagannath Puri and other Odisha temples: cuisine
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Lord Jagannath Temple in Odisha: Cuisine
The 11th century Lord Jagannath Temple in Puri is one of the ‘char dhams’ of India. The temple has a beautiful sacred sight of Lord Jagannath’s statue, along with those of his siblings Subhadra and Balabhadra. Everyday, the temple deities are offered ‘bhoga’ (food offered to God) six times. It is said that the temple’s kitchen is the largest in the world, with a total 56 varieties of naivedhyas or prasada, cooked daily.
The food cooked here is pure vegetarian and is prepared without onion and garlic. Also, it is mandated that the food be cooked only in earthen pots and vessels placed on top of each other. An interesting fact is that the vessel placed on top is cooked first and the one at the bottom in the end.
The temple is famous for offering food in a pot known as KothoBhoga or Abadha. Also, Khua, which is cooked by boiling pure milk on low temperature for many hours to make it a soft custard; grated sweetened coconut, coconut water, Khai (a dish made up of fresh milk, cheese and sugar) are used as prasada. Besides this the deity is offered a morning meal known as SakalaDhupa. This is then followed with BhogaMandapaBhoga – a supplementary to breakfast – and then a mid-day meal called MadhyannaDhupa.
Odisha temple food in 2024
Ashok Pradhan & Hemanta Pradhan, TNN, Dec 22, 2024: The Times of India
The rest of India is ordering tacos on Zomato and Swiggy, but Bhubaneswar can’t get enough of temple food. The pot of prasad has grown so large that Odisha’s capital city has a food aggregator delivering preparations made and sold by temples. And, for the following it has acquired, temple food is as much a mainstream dining choice as a bowl of ramen or burrito at a restaurant.
Om Prakash Jena, a student who lives on rent, is among the young people who swear by temple food. “I don’t cook at home on special days. I prefer the temple food at Patia Jagannath Temple,” he said. Reena Mahakur, a homemaker, said that on her daughter’s birthday, the family celebrated “with temple prasad, alongside the customary birthday cake”.
One of the early starters was the 13th-century Ananta Basudev Temple, in Bhubaneswar’s Old Town. On any given day, this temple serves 5,000 meals. The aroma of ghee-laden khichdi and a stew of dal and vegetables, locally called dalma, fills its corridors.
“We recently sent our prasad to the President of India,” said Biranchi Pati, secretary of the temple’s Brahman Nijog committee. “The President expressed high regard for our prasad,” Pati added with pride.
Odisha’s temples have several categories of priests and servitors. They make up different temple committees that focus on specific tasks. Servitors like Biranchi Pati focus on the rituals, which is the task of the Brahman Nijog committee. Each temple has a separate committee of priests that looks into the preparing of savouries. They are the Mahasuaras. There is a separate committee — Badu Nijog — that focuses on desserts, or pitha, that is offered to the deities.
Making food for the gods was always serious business in Odisha’s temples. The same expertise has helped them now diversify and open up to delivery orders.
The Spread
The prasad menu is usually elaborate. There is always rice, or anna, that is served with a dal, or lentils. Depending on the day’s menu, there could be more than one curry. It could be a pointed gourd curry, called potal khurma, or yogurt and eggplant, called dahi baigana.
Temples also tend to include a tart item, called khata. For those with a sweet tooth there is, of course, dessert. The 11th-century Lingaraj Temple, Bhubaneswar’s largest, prepares prasad for approximately 1,000 visitors daily. The secretary of Badu Nijog at this Shiva shrine, Kamalakanta Badu, said that on special days, they make more prasad as the demand is higher.
“Mahasuaras sell this mahaprasad to people inside the complex,” he said. Paying Rs 100 gets a devotee a meal of rice, dal, spinach (saaga), two curries — mahura, which is prepared with a mix of local veggies, and besara, which has mustard paste as one of the main spices — and other items. At the Shani Temple, opposite Utkal University, “the price of a special prasad ranges from Rs 100 to Rs 120,” said V Giri, a member of the Shanischar Mahadev Temple Trust. It has anna, dalma, khata, khiri (thickened and sweetened milk), besara and saaga. Paneer and pulao, too, are included among special dishes.
The food, all vegetarian, has enough variety to cater to diverse palates. The preparations have no onion and garlic, which is typical of traditional temple cooking.
“I love the taste of temple food. That’s why I come here. Besides, the food is not oily or spicy. It also fits my budget,” said Manoranjan Palai, a student.
The Scale
At Ananta Basudev Temple alone, around 350 people are employed in food preparation and service. The extended beneficiaries are local farmers who supply fresh produce and potters who provide the traditional earthenware used for serving.
“The demand grows exponentially during festivals and on special days,” said a temple administrator. Ananta Basudev has 25 counters where people can place orders in person or by calling in. There’s no delivery service, but arrangements can be made for bulk orders through hired vehicles.
With a daily average of 20,000 meals, prasad sales in Bhubaneswar are worth more than Rs 10 lakh per day and growing, market sources estimate.
One of the attractions of temple food is its affordability. At the Kali Mandir near Rajdhani College, a complete meal costs Rs 70. At KIIT Jagannath Temple, a meal costs only Rs 30. At a regular restaurant that has seating, a meal will cost a lot more. For students and young professionals, the prasad is a budget-friendly option.
“I order from Iskcon temple at least once a week,” said Vivek Sahoo, who takes coaching classes for job interviews.
The Delivery
Temples have adapted to cater to the demand. KIIT Jagannath Temple now has a large dining hall with seating. Some temples also offer packaging services for takeaway. And some of them have also started accepting advance bookings for special days.
“We ordered temple food for my grandson’s birthday,” said Chandrika Pattanayak, a resident of Mancheswar. “We also frequently order during festivals. The purity and taste are unmatched,” she said. Jumping onto the bandwagon are food aggregators like Moaahar — it translates to ‘my food’ — which specialises in delivering temple food that’s booked online. “One has to order online before 11 am as temple food is not prepared round the clock,” a representative of Moaahar said. The online platform delivers food from about a dozen temples in Bhubaneswar. Dr Rajesh Kumar, a nutritionist, said the popularity of temple food is a reflection of health consciousness among people. “Temple food is healthy, less spicy and hygienic,” he said. “It doesn’t contain artificial preservatives and uses traditional cooking methods, which make it a healthier alternative to restaurant food.”
The Tradition
About 100 temples in Bhubaneswar now sell food regularly. This is not only helping preserve traditional Odia recipes but also introducing them to a newer generation and clientele, including visitors from outside the state. “I cannot forget the taste of this temple prasad. It’s unique and delicious,” Ojaswi Ray, a class 9 student from Delhi, said of the food at Ananta Basudev Temple.
Temple management committees like the attention their food is getting, but they are also aware of the pressures that come when demand grows. “The challenge is to maintain the traditional essence while catering to growing numbers,” a temple committee member said. “We’re seeing interest from food delivery platforms, but we need to carefully consider how to adapt without compromising our sacred traditions.” Another temple administrator said that it “isn’t just about food but also about maintaining a connection with our roots while feeding thousands of people daily with dignity and devotion”.
See also
International Puri Beach Festival
Jagannath Puri: temple cuisine
Puri, the pilgrimage (main page)
