Course Dessert Place of origin Bangladesh, India Serving temperature Hot or Cold | Type of dish Snack Main ingredients Rice flour or Wheat flour | |
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Region or state Everywhere in Odisha, Bihar, Assam, West Bengal, Bangladesh Region Bangladesh, Odisha, Assam, Bengal Similar Mitha dahi, Dessert, Sandesh, Kheer, Jaggery | ||
Chawal ka pitha namkeen pitha fara recipe how to make chawal ka pitha in hindi
Pitha (Odia: ପିଠା, Assamese: পিঠা, Bengali: পিঠা piṭha), (Sanskrit: पिष्टा, अपूप) or fita (Sylheti) is a type of rice cake from the eastern regions of the Indian subcontinent; common in Bangladesh and India, especially the eastern states of Odisha, Assam, West Bengal, Jharkhand, Bihar and the northeastern region of India. Pithas are typically made of rice flour, although there are some types of pitha made of wheat flour. Less common types of pitha are made of palm or ol (a local root vegetable).
Contents
- Chawal ka pitha namkeen pitha fara recipe how to make chawal ka pitha in hindi
- Patishapta pitha recipe bengali sweet dish dessert winter special dish
- Preparation
- Regional variation
- In Odisha
- In Bihar
- In Bangladesh and West Bengal
- In Assam
- References
Patishapta pitha recipe bengali sweet dish dessert winter special dish
Preparation
Pithas are primarily made from a batter of rice flour or wheat flour, which is shaped and optionally filled with sweet or savory ingredients. When filled, the pitha's pouch is called a khol (literally "container") and the fillings are called pur.
For stuffed vegetable pithas, ingredients such as cauliflower, cabbage, radish, or potato are usually fried, baked, or steamed, and then mashed, cooled, and formed into small balls to stuff into the pithas.
Sweet pithas typically contain sugar, jaggery, date juice, or palm syrup, and can be filled with grated coconut, cashews, pistachios, sweetened vegetables, or fruits. Sweet pithas are also often flavored using cardamom or camphor.
Depending on the type of pitha being prepared, pithas can be fried in oil or ghee, slow-roasted over a fire, steamed, or baked and rolled over a hot plate.
Pithas are often eaten during breakfast and as a snack with (often with tea), although there are many sweet varieties that are reserved for desserts or holidays.
Regional variation
Pithas vary considerably across the regions of the eastern Indian Subcontinent.
In Odisha
In Odisha, Pithas (Odia: ପିଠା) are special delicacies in an Odia home. On traditional festivals sweet pithas form a part of the celebrations. Even pithas are also routinely prepared and served in Oriya homes in normal days. The pitha may be broadly put in the category cakes. Some Oriya pithas include the following:
In Bihar
Pitha (Devanagari : पिट्ठा ) is also the part of Bihari cuisine particularly in Mithila region of Bihar. Mainly the rice flour pitha is popular in Bihar and two varieties of stuffed(sweet or salty stuffing) or unstuffed pitha are consumed.
In Bangladesh and West Bengal
While some pitha can be made at any time of the year in Bengal (Bangladesh and Indian West Bengal), there are special pitha strongly associated with harvest festivals such as Nabanna (Bengali: নবান্ন nôbanno, literally "new rice" or "new food") and the Poush parbon or Makar Sankranti, celebrated on January 14 every year. Pitha are usually made with rice flour, milk, coconut and jaggery. It is often served with sweet syrups such as date tree molasses (Bengali: খেজুরের গুড় khejurer guṛ). Some of the most common pitha found in Bengal (both in Bangladesh and West Bengal) include the following:
Nokshi pitha
In Assam
In Assam, pitha is a special class of rice preparation generally made only on special occasions like Bihu. Assamese pithas are often made from bora saul, a special kind of glutinous rice, or xaali saul, or sun-dried rice. Some pithas commonly found in Assam include the following: