Chena Poda - Emotion of Odisha

Chena Poda is a very popular and loved sweet of Odisha and is one of the sweets offered as Mahaprasad to Lord Jagannath. 

Chenapoda originated in the Odia town of Nayagarh in the first half of the twentieth century.

For me, it's always in my to-have list whenever I visit my hometown. And all the Odias can relate to this. Chena Poda is not just a sweet dish, it is an emotion served on a plate.  

Though these days it has become a bit popular with non-odias as well, thanks to the food bloggers out there and the food channels 😊 We now get it in few cities outside Odisha as well, where we have a good population of Odia people staying away from their home for living.

One can find this sweet nearly in every sweet shop in the state. One thing I would like to say about this is , it proves that simplicity lasts longer.

This is the first time I made this and it tastes great and also looked great. It is basically a mix of semolina, sugar and Paneer and is slow cooked till it gets the burnt flavour. 

Quick recipe:

• Curdle 2ltrs of milk and get the Chena. Reserve some chena water.
• Mash the Chena for some time.
• Add around 3/4 th cup of sugar. Adjust the sweetness according to your taste.
• Add the Chena water and mix it well to make a thick batter.
• Add 4 tablespoons of semolina and mix well.
• Add a spoon of Ghee to the batter while mixing.
• Add the chena water if needed.
• Add cardamom powder and dry fruits to it.
• Grease a cake tin well with ghee and transfer the batter to it.
• Bake it in oven or a kadhai ( with salt base) till it gets cooked and edges are browned.

And the Magic happens....

Try it and feel the Odisha's traditional sweet.

Happy cooking 😊