In the annals of Indian food history, Odia cuisine has been almost criminally overlooked. In this rich, colourful cookbook chock-full of classic recipes from Odisha, culinary expert and entrepreneur Debasish Patanaik sets out to remedy this omission.

In this book, a host of food writers, chefs, and other experts have collected recipes for fifty iconic dishes of the state, encompassing everything from the classic to the experimental, street food to temple cuisine, everyday meals to festive feasts.

Here, you will learn how to make Pakhaala, a simple fermented rice dish served as comfort food during the scorching summers; Podaa Maansa, a rich traditional tribal dish starring mutton roasted over a coal fire; the wholesome Dalma, made with boiled lentils and vegetables; the steamed Enduri Pithaa made from a lightly fermented batter of rice and black gram spread on turmeric leaves, to name just a few.

Apart from the dishes themselves, this book will also introduce the reader to little-known spices and ingredients, such as Pancha Phutana consisting of whole mustard seeds, cumin, nigella, fennel, and fenugreek; and Aambula, or baby mangoes, peeled, rubbed with rock salt, and left to dry in the sun before being stored for years. Odia Byanjana makes the wealth of Odia cuisine accessible to all—foodies, home cooks, and chefs, across the country.