Pakhala Bhata
Cooked rice soaked overnight in water until lightly fermented, eaten chilled with buttermilk in Odisha's blazing summers.
- Prep
- 10 min
- Cook
- 20 min
- Total
- 30 min
- Servings
- 4
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Calories
- 180 kcal
Equipment
- •Earthen pot
Nutrition
Per serving, approximate
- Calories
- 180 kcal
- fat
- 3 g
- carbs
- 34 g
- fibre
- 1 g
- protein
- 4 g
- calories
- 180 kcal
Instructions
- 1
Put the cooked rice into an earthen or steel pot.
- 2
Pour in enough water to completely cover the rice.
- 3
Cover the pot and leave it at room temperature overnight to ferment lightly.
- 4
The next day, mash the rice slightly. Mix it into the fermented water.
- 5
Stir in whisked curd (yoghurt) and salt to balance the sour taste.
- 6
If making a tadka (spices sizzled in oil), heat a little oil. Let mustard seeds, curry leaves and green chilli sizzle.
- 7
Pour the spiced oil over the pakhala (fermented rice). Sprinkle roasted cumin on top.
- 8
Serve the dish cold with a selection of side dishes.
Chef's tips
A good pakhala should smell mildly sour, not sharp. Twelve hours of fermentation in a warm kitchen is usually enough. Use an earthen pot for the most authentic flavour.
Ingredient substitutions
- earthen pot → steel or glass container
Storage
Keep refrigerated after fermentation and consume within a day.
Reheating
Not reheated; always served cold or at room temperature.
Common mistakes to avoid
- •Leaving the rice to ferment too long until it turns unpleasantly sour.
- •Serving the dish warm instead of well chilled.
Serving suggestions
Cooked Pakhala Bhata?
Sign in to save this recipe to a collection. Bookmarking works without an account — it stays on this device.
Sign in for collectionsSimilar recipes
Dishes with the same spirit, spice level and course.
More from Odisha
Cooking that shares the same kitchen and pantry.
Recipes using similar ingredients
Use what you already bought for this recipe.
