It' almost about to be a thing of the past
Podo Pitha ( ପୋଡ ପିଠା ) is a pancake and is considered as one of our signature dishes belonging to my place. It's made on the special occasion of the Raja Festival - a three day long special festival to celebrate femininity. The traditional way of making this pancake is almost extinct in the modern generation because it uses Chulah, a traditional old way of cooking with wood. And on top of that, this dish needs charcoal and dried cow-dung (or similar alternatives) as fuel - that is the reason its almost about to be a thing of the past. Though it can be prepared with a pressure cooker and the gas or using an oven, you will definitely be deprived of the unique flavor and taste, if it were made in a traditional way. Luckily we still have preserved the Chulah at our native place where I have come and Mom made all the arrangements to make this special pancake. She definitely has that magic touch and anything she prepares is amazing and tasty.
Coming to the ingredients, the batter is not very different and is a regular batter made out of rice, black gram, soaked for 4-5 hours and then grinding it - the only thing to remember is that the rice batter should be a bit coarse unlike the batter of black gram, which can be fine. The mix them well and then add coconut slices, sugar and salt. If you do not want it sweet, then you can even add only salt for your taste - that's what Mom did - she did not add sugar.
Modern people use baking powder, but we rely on the batter's self-fermentation by keeping it for 4-5 hours more, and then whisking it fast by hand - your hands have better bacteria :). If you are a coconut fan, then you can also add grated coconut. Some people even add a roasted and caramelized version of grated coconut. To make it more tasty, people even add cashew nuts. Some ginger fans add chopped ginger and some flavor fans add cardamom, but ours was a fully traditional simple version. And one more thing, people add some sort of oil or ghee while baking it in cooker or oven, but Mom used just the banana leaves without anything on them, as you can see in these pictures and video.
She is ultimate - she knows the perfect set up, for a moment I was scared, if the fire would burn everything to charcoals, but she was very confident about the amount of fire and time - something that cannot be taught.
If you are wondering what this pancake has to do with this special festival to celebrate femininity, then the interesting nourishing aspect of this pancake is that it can easily be preserved for the entire three day period without losing its taste. And it can be easily cooked as well, as you see. Our ancestors were very wise, isn't it ? The ladies must have thought to cook it once before the festival, and then the men take charge if more needed, huh !! By the way, this pancake is favorite of our living God of the Universe - Lord Jagannath - served when he returns home from the Car festival. There is a whole different story behind that, but I must say, that the Poda Pitha made for the Lord is a very specialized unique version.
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