Ofcourse Bhatta Payasa..or ‘Choulo khiri” as it is known in Orissa is indeed the oldest Rice Pudding of the world…. but to question it being a 2000years old recipie just because the Shri Jagannatha Temple at Puri is only a 1000 years old is not a fair…rather just a sceptical comment. The Jagannatha Cult had been there atleast an eon earlier than the actual temple… The concept of universal brotherhood comes from the Jagannatha Cult which has it’s origins in the Sabara traditions ( read loosely as the ancient dwellers/tribals of Orissa) This is most visually corraborated by the unique and peculiar form of the presiding deities.

Khiri has been prepared for over 2000 years.. and the presnet temple is the latest among a string of temples built over the same spot on the Nilagiri.. the ‘Blue hillock’ many a times…

Yes many a times it hurts to see the ‘Mahaprasad’ (as the offerings yto the Lord Jagannath are called) being thrown away as they would be ‘old’ to be even served for the next meal… and instead could be distributed to the abject poor beggers who line outside the temple…. but do tell me …. all those self proclaimed “humanitarian vangaurds”, how often have u shared your equal share of aplle pie with the lesser privilaged?… How often does the US of A throw millions of tons of wheat into the pacific instead of giving it away to malnutrioned powerless refugees in strive worn Africa? …….

The discussion must remain in the peripheries of the origins of a Recipie and not deride an Institution which gave the world not just this faboulous dessert butmany many more.. like the Rossogolla….. the Kheera Sagar….and Rasamali.

Would be unfair on my part not to congratulate you for the blog and the oh so mouth watering pictures…..

Should get home and ask my granny to make this for me…..She makes it soooo delecious you could gorge on it till u fall sick!

A little snippet:

The best Khiri is made in a temple about 25 -30 kilometers away from the Temple at Puri.. at a place called “Alaranath”. When the presiding deities of Puri are down with a cold and hence do not meet any devotees and the Sanctum Sanctorium of the temple is closed….. One can receive the same grace of the Lord Jagannath and more during those 15 days from the shrine of ‘Alaranath’…During those 15 days… the special offering to the Lord Alaranath is Bhata Paayasa or Khiri… you could buy it for different nominal denominations.. Served in earthen bowls.. thsi si absolutle divine…May sound odd but the hint of flavour of the burth earth in your pudding is truely to die for!!!…

Chandan

I assume that edible camphor is treated by heating in some solvent that distills that essential oil off, leaving traces of the toxic flavors still in the bulk of the dross, but not enough to be harsh.

now I wonder this, what form was the buddhists consuming for meditation purposes,
and, is there a medicinal camphor product that is different than the edible?

thanks for a great article on rice pudding, most informative, and some nice photographic work as well.
I would probably add some coconut milk to the recipe.

I will try the recipe soon, but now I have to find some edible camphor that isnt so spent!

no idea abut what buddhists consume. edible camphor i used in a very small part of south india, just for flavouring. the camphor used for religious rituals is quite distinct chemically, i think. – b.

I love camphors smell, and it is just an interesting substance beyond the smell, a solid that sitting in the open will evaporate much like water, only to crystallize somewhere else if the conditions are right.

I have also had interest in the claims of the camphor eaters that camphor is an intoxicating substance. certian authors claim that camphor was consumed by some for meditation/psychoative purposes.

today I saw an edible camphor package at a local indian restaraunt, and decided to try some.

I opened it up, and there was absolutely no smell. I thought perhaps some chemical conversion is done on camphor to render it less toxic. tasting a small amount I was suprised, it has the consistency of dried pitch, with absolutely no flavor, it also is very dry, so dry it stuck to my tongue initially as the camphor chunk sucked all the avialable moisture off of my tounge and was firmly sucking to the tongue surface.
there absolutely seemd to be a stimulant effect of eating such a small amount of camphor, but I wonder, what is the point?
there is no aromatic component to the edible camphor, I would get more camphor taste by smelling incense camphor and eating rice pudding within 2-3 feet of the camphor.

should there be some smell or taste with edible camphor, if so, perhaps the edible camphor packaged by a US spice maker was just old?

if edible camphor has no real taste, what component does edible camphor add to a dish?

is edible camphor what remains when essential oils are distilled off?

the edible camphor rocks have a bluish, moonstone opaqueness to them, and are shiny, and hard.

fresh camphor is somewhat soft, and can be somewhat clearish, and breaks off into granular peices, edible camphor is much harder and seemed to be a completely different substance from what I know as camphor.

just old, i guess. camphor lends a slightly bitter aromatic ‘edge’ to the dish. i personally don’t care for it.