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Makar chaula
Raw rice, banana and jaggery offering
ମକର ଚାଉଳ: Odisha's uncooked Sankranti offering of new rice, banana, chhena, jaggery, coconut and milk (plus 2 hours soaking)
On Makar Sankranti in Odisha, the first rice of the winter harvest goes to the sun god before anyone else tastes it. Makar chaula is that offering: freshly harvested rice soaked and coarsely pounded, then mixed raw with grated coconut, ripe banana, chhena (fresh cheese), jaggery or sugarcane juice, milk, black pepper and a little ginger. Temples such as Puri and Konark offer huge quantities, and every home in Cuttack and Bhubaneswar makes its own bowl after the morning bath. It is not cooked at all, so it tastes fresh, milky and gently spiced, with a soft chew from the rice. Eat it in the morning as prasad, with sugarcane pieces and til ladoo. The common mistake is grinding the rice to a powder; it should stay coarse, like broken grains, or the mix turns gluey. Chef's tip: use the newest, softest short-grain rice you can find; old rice stays hard even after soaking.
- Total time
- 15 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
- 5 ½ oz new-harvest short-grain rice (arua or gobindobhog)washed and soaked 2 hours
- 2 ⅞ oz fresh coconutgrated
- 2 ripe bananassliced
- 2 ⅞ oz jaggerygrated, or to taste
- ¾ cup full-fat milkboiled and cooled
- 1 tsp fresh gingerfinely grated
- ¼ tsp ground green cardamom
- 1 ¾ oz sugarcane (optional)peeled, cut into small cubes
- 2 tbsp cashews and raisins (optional)
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Method
0/5 doneStep 1: Drain 5 ½ oz new-harvest short-grain rice (arua or gobindobhog) well and spread on a cloth for 10 minutes so it is damp but not dripping.
10 minStep 2: Pound it in a mortar or pulse in a dry grinder for a few seconds at a time until coarsely broken, like fine semolina with bits. Do not grind to flour.
3 minStep 3: In a bowl, mix the rice with 2 ⅞ oz fresh coconut, 2 ⅞ oz jaggery, ½ tsp freshly ground black pepper, 1 tsp fresh ginger and ¼ tsp ground green cardamom, rubbing so the jaggery melts into the rice.
2 minStep 4: Stir in ¾ cup full-fat milk, then fold in 2 ripe bananas and 2 ⅞ oz fresh chhena or crumbled paneer gently. Add 1 ¾ oz sugarcane and 2 tbsp cashews and raisins if using.
2 minStep 5: Offer as prasad, then serve straight away at room temperature. It does not keep; eat it the same morning.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 330 kcal
- Protein
- 8 g
- Carbs
- 56 g
- Fat
- 9 g
- Fibre
- 3 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does makar chaula take?
- About 15 minutes in total.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of new-harvest short-grain rice (arua or gobindobhog)?
- Any long-grain rice, same amount.
- What can I use instead of fresh coconut?
- Desiccated coconut soaked in hot water for 15 minutes, about three quarters of the weight.
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Perfect for:Sankranti, Lohri & Pongal