The Sun temple in Konarak, the Rajarani temple in Bhubaneshwar, Udaygiri, Khandagiri are places that remain thickly crowded with tourists almost in every season. Handicrafts and paintings are also important features of Orissa and are popular across the world. But apart from all these, culinary culture of Orissa is also a very important part of its profile.
Though culinary culture of Orissa have never been highlighted as such, it is one of the greatest in the country. Speaking about culinary culture of Orissa it must be mentioned here that a lot of popular delicacies in the eastern part of India originated from Orissa. The rasagolla, which is one of the most popular sweets in Bengal originated from Orissa too. In early days the popularity of Oriya Brahmin cooks was so huge that rich families in Bengal and Bihar used to appoint them in their kitchens and that is the reason why most of the food items that originated in Orissa are considered to be items of its neighboring states.
Speaking about culinary culture of Orissa one must mention the names of the common food items and the ways those are eaten in the state. Being the major major food crop, rice is the main staple diet of the people of the state. Rice is generally eaten with variety of vegetable preparations among which, bringal is the most favorite. 'Panch-phutana' a mixture of fennel, fenugreek, black cumin and cumin is a mandatory item used for preparing vegetables and dals (lentils). As the region is hot compared to other parts of Eastern India, curd is a very common item served with meals. Besides, coconut milk, brinjals and pumpkins cooked in curds are also popular delicacies of Orissa.
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